Wedding Policy and Application

Due to the size of our church and the number of requests for weddings that are received, we have a process for assigning a wedding officiant, which ensures experienced, professional, Christian coverage for a wedding.

If the applicant has a personal relationship with a member of our pastoral team, elder team, or small group ministry team, a request may be made to have them perform your wedding. However, it will depend on their schedule, availability, and existing commitments. None of our pastoral staff, elders or small group leaders are licensed to perform the legal portion of a wedding, and therefore, if you choose to use one of our leaders, the legal portion of your marriage will need to be done separately (arranged by the applicant) and at an additional cost.

Due to our limited staff size vs. the size of our church, most weddings will be provided an officiant who does weddings and funerals as a ministry and a business. This person is licensed to perform the civil aspect of a wedding, so this helps with logistics. They are skilled, experienced, professional, and a committed member of our church, so we are excited to be able to encourage their use for your wedding.

All officiant scheduling is done through the Wedding Approval Team, to ensure that a reasonable and balanced schedule is maintained for all those involved in conducting weddings, pastoral or otherwise, and a timely response to the applicant, to assist with your planning.

For a variety of reasons, our pastors and leaders have chosen not to be licensed by the Ontario government to perform civil (legal) weddings. This does not mean we won’t preside over a wedding ceremony, just that, in the event one of our leaders has a personal relationship with the couple and are officiating the wedding, we provide “spiritual leadership” only. The weddings we perform would appear very similar to any typical wedding except that when we pronounce a couple married we would say “As a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I pronounce you husband and wife.” rather than saying “By the power vested in me by the Province of Ontario, I now pronounce you husband and wife.” The rest of the ceremony is the same – processional, music, charge to the bride and groom (always based on some Biblical passage or topic), vows, rings, kiss, recessional, etc.

The Biblical theology of getting married does not require the government’s involvement or approval to be considered “married.” However, according to Romans 13:1 and other passages, we are also called to submit to the government God has placed us under (unless they seek to force us to disobey Scripture or dishonour Christ). Therefore, the elders require that any couple requesting a Christian wedding officiated by a Redemption pastor to also satisfy the civil (legal) component. This means you must have someone licensed by the Province of Ontario to pronounce you husband and wife on or before the day of your Christian ceremony and sign your marriage license. There are a variety of ways this legal/civil component can be done including, but not limited to:

• Have a ceremony, on or before your Christian ceremony, at City Hall as they provide civil wedding ceremonies.
• Have a ceremony, on or before your Christian ceremony, conducted by a wedding company.
• Hire a licensed individual to conduct a ceremony, on or before your Christian ceremony,.
• Hire a licensed individual to attend your Christian ceremony and sign the marriage license.
• Have a family member or friend who is licensed attend your Christian ceremony and sign the marriage license.

In the Wedding Application below, you can request contact information for some of these options, if required. As previously indicated, our designated wedding officiants are licensed by the province of Ontario, so this is only a concern if you are requesting a member of our leadership team.

The process is very simple. To be assigned an officiant and receive leadership approval for a Redemption wedding, you must complete the following application in full, and submit it to the office. A reply will be returned within one week confirming receipt of the application, and expected timeframe to be assigned an officiant

The Wedding Application must be completed, whether you are requesting one of our leaders, or using one of the wedding officiants we refer to. No congregant is permitted to by-pass this process. All wedding requests must go through the Wedding Approval Process. The normal process will be to pass on your request to be officiated by one of our wedding officiants. Any individual church leader cannot agree to perform a wedding without approval from the Wedding Approval Team. If there is an officiant who you have built a relationship with and you would like to perform your wedding ceremony, you may let them know that you have requested their participation after you have submitted your application.

This Wedding Approval Team will assign an officiant for a wedding based on the following four criteria:
1. Schedule availability of wedding officiants (default)
2. Request for a particular leader by the couple
3. Relational connectedness of leader to couple
4. Schedule availability of leaders.

We realize that some weddings are planned for far in advance, and others are occasionally planned in a very short timeframe. For our own planning purposes, we require that applications be submitted no more than one year prior to the wedding day, and no less than two months prior to the wedding day.

Weddings are permitted at our facility, however, no weddings are permitted in the facility at any time on Sundays, due to the two services and the length of time it takes after the second service to properly clean the building.

If you would like to request the use of our facility for your wedding, please review the Facility Use Policy and Regulations and submit the Application with your deposit to reserve the space. Note that the building can only be used for weddings by Redemption congregants.

• Audio/Video Equipment: Due to the cost, complexity, and storage issues of the equipment required for weekend services, we cannot loan or rent any of this equipment for weddings.
• Office Equipment/Supplies: The office photocopier is not permitted to be used to produce handouts or programs for weddings.
• Other Redemption Supplies: Due to wear and tear, breakage and difficulty at times on getting things returned, our policy is not to lend out or rent any other Redemption components such as table clothes, plates, cutlery, lighting, etc.

Some Biblical injunctions regarding how to treat and care for leaders as they give themselves to various ministry calls and requirements are found in 1 Timothy 5:17-18, Romans 4:4, and 1 Corinthians 9:3-18. In light of these considerations, the Redemption leadership has set forth the following guidelines regarding honorariums for weddings. Please understand that this represents our desire to uphold the Biblical injunction to be gracious, kind, considerate, and generous to those gifted and called by God to provide oversight to the family of God. This also recognizes their investment and hard work in preparation, experience, as well as their time and energy away from family during wedding functions.

• Redemption leadership suggests that an honorarium be given directly to the individual(s) officiating or participating in a wedding ceremony, other than tech and custodial resources (for onsite weddings), who will be paid by the church.
• The suggested honorarium is $300, but this is up to the discretion of the couple.
• If a worship/music leader is requested, the suggested honorarium for the individual providing this service is $200 (again, at the discretion of the applicant, and to be paid directly to the individual providing this service).
• For the Redemption member who performs weddings and funerals as his ministry/business, fees will be communicated directly by him to the applicant. Our office will provide his contact information.
• If an officiant is required to travel out of town beyond one hour from London, travel expenses (both ways) should be fully compensated. If the travel distance is over two hours, a hotel for one night should be provided at the couples cost. A mid-range hotel (similar to a Holiday Inn or Homewood Suites, etc.), for a one night stay, close to the venue would be requested. In addition, any out-of-town meals required should to be reimbursed.
• Officiants do not stay in someone’s home as they need their freedom to study, prepare, relax, etc.