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Rev. Jude Smith

English
Ceremony Rehearsal
Interfaith
Civil Union

Why couples loved this vendor

  • Marriage License & Certificate
  • Seasoned Professional
  • Great Planner
  • Officiant
Rosemary
Elizabeth
Samantha
Kristofer
Adam

Recommended by 100% of couples

About this vendor

Rev. Jude Smith - Interfaith Minister, is a non-denominational minister and civil wedding officiant based in Rhinebeck, New York. Rev. Jude Smith regularly covers a two-hour radius, bringing her north to the Adirondacks and Lake George, south to the boroughs of New York City, and east into Connecticut and Massachusetts. Her ceremonies range from completely secular to more spiritual. She creates warm and joyous ceremonies that are sacred, meaningful, elegant, and transformative. She celebrates marriage equality for all and welcomes all faiths, preferences, and spiritual paths, especially those who consider themselves spiritual but not religious. Rev. Jude Smith - Interfaith Minister, looks forward to custom-designing a ceremony that is unique to you.

Looking for a small elopement ceremony or planning a micro wedding? Rev. Jude Smith believes all wedding ceremonies, big or small, deserve to be meaningful and transformative. She welcomes the opportunity to co-create a ceremony that will touch the hearts of all who are present -- especially yours!

Experience

This passionate interfaith minister and licensed civil wedding officiant is the Executive Director of the Center for Authentic Living and brings years of experience in creating meaningful and contemporary rituals. She was also a co-founder and Executive Director of a vibrant interfaith community. In addition to performing wedding ceremonies, Rev. Jude also facilitates meditation retreats and workshops, offers spiritual counseling, and provides pastoral care in a hospital setting. She holds degrees in Business Administration and Psychology from the State University of New York at Albany and an advanced degree in Education from Pace University.

For those couples who are looking to blend traditions, cultures, and religions, Rev. Jude Smith reads and speaks Hebrew with authenticity and has enjoyed a long-term Interfaith marriage, making her uniquely qualified to bring together families from different backgrounds in ways that are inclusive and easily embraced by all.

Services Offered

Rev. Jude Smith will meet with each couple prior to their wedding day to discuss their hopes and dreams, their love story, their vision for the future, and any traditions or rituals they would like to include in their ceremony. She will then create a custom ceremony, provide sample vows and guidance on creating personal vows, a pre-wedding checklist, and various poems, prayers, rituals, and readings.

Her services include:

  • Commitment Ceremonies
  • Civil Unions
  • Elopements
  • Micro weddings
  • Travel and Destination Weddings
  • Vow Renewals
  • Baby Blessings
  • Rehearsals
  • Interfaith Ceremonies
  • Single religion Ceremonies
  • Non-religious Ceremonies
  • Multi-cultural Ceremonies
  • Counseling
  • Familiarity with Jewish rituals and the ability to read and speak Hebrew

What You'll Love About Rev. Jude Smith

This officiant captured couples' stories in a personalized and thoughtful way. Her kind and patient demeanor put couples at ease. Read through her reviews to learn how she'll create a beautiful ceremony for your special day.

Features

Woman-owned

Links

Visit website

Weddings with this vendor

Kelly & Alex's wedding
Kelly & Alex
36 photos

FAQ

What is the starting price for ceremony rehearsals?

$150

What is the starting price for pre-marital counseling (per session)?

$125

What types of weddings and events do you provide services for?

Non-religious
Interfaith
Ceremony Rehearsal
Vow Renewal
Civil Union

What services do you provide?

Premarital Counseling

What religious affiliations do you serve?

Agnostic
Baha'i Faith
Baptist
Buddhist
Catholic
Earth-Based
Episcopalian
Evangelical
Hindu
Islam
Jainism
Jewish
Lutheran
Methodist
Mormon
No Denomination
Pagan
Presbyterian
Quaker
Shinto
Sikhism
Taoist
Unitarian

On average, how long are wedding ceremonies you officiate?

Less than 30 mins.
30-60 mins.

In which states are you licensed?

CT
FL
GA
MA
NJ
NY
PA
RI
VT

What languages do you speak?

English

Still have questions?

Reach out about anything you didn't see answered here—no question is too small!

Wedding couple

Reviews of Rev. Jude Smith

This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Review summary

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Rev. Jude is a warm, experienced, and highly recommended officiant who creates deeply personal, inclusive ceremonies. She guides couples through vows, offers thoughtful resources, and is flexible with scheduling and ceremony style. Guests and couples praise her professionalism, calming presence, and emotionally memorable ceremonies.

Review summary

Powered by AI
This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Rev. Jude is a warm, experienced, and highly recommended officiant who creates deeply personal, inclusive ceremonies. She guides couples through vows, offers thoughtful resources, and is flexible with scheduling and ceremony style. Guests and couples praise her professionalism, calming presence, and emotionally memorable ceremonies.

Rosemary
Rosemary Sent on 05/18/2026
5 out of 5 rating

My fellow lesbians: Jude is the officiant for you!!

When my wife and I started looking at officiants for our wedding, it was extremely important to us to find someone who had married openly queer couples in the past. Then, we found Jude; right on her website, she listed the importance of marriage equality, and told us that she "marries hearts, not genders." We were so excited!

From the very first communication we had with Jude, she was warm, friendly, and so excited to be part of our special day. We had several calls with her before she drafted us the most beautiful, personal ceremony we could ask for; we really feel she truly understood our love and connection. She walked through every part of our ceremony to make sure we felt comfortable and happy with the words she would be saying, and we did! She also guided us through the process of writing our vows as two first time brides, offering gentle advice and guidance, but ultimately valuing our comfort in our words above all. I will also say, as an interfaith minister, Jude was exceptionally open and welcoming our spiritual beliefs (as minimal as they were!), weaving them through our ceremony with respect and acceptance.

And I can't even begin to mention how amazing she was day of!! The ceremony made our families so emotional, even making my dad cry. It was delivered with eloquence and the true expertise of a seasoned professional. She made our wedding day extremely memorable for us, and for our guests.

Honestly, I can't say enough AMAZING things about Jude. Lesbians, queer couples, non-binary folks, trans folks, if you are looking for someone to marry you, Jude is the woman to do it. Don't hesitate, just reach out!!
Elizabeth
Elizabeth Sent on 12/30/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Reverend Jude is superb!

Rev. Jude is a wonderful celebrant. She is sincere, kind, and exudes a glow that you don't see in other ceremonies. She's the real deal. I have seen her perform various ceremonies and she is by far the best!
Samantha
Samantha Sent on 10/18/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Wedding October 2025

Reverend Jude was an exceptional officiant at our Wedding Ceremony this past weekend. She took the time to get to know each of us and our relationship and express that in our ceremony. We didn't get married in a church but wanted that sort of vibe and Jude created that scene perfectly. Our guests thought she was someone we had known a long time, that's how personalized she made our ceremony! She has a very calming demeanor and left us with no worries on our wedding day. She not only thinks of the couple, but the parents and the rest of the guests as well. I highly recommend Reverend Jude to officiate any wedding; she will make any couple feel special on their big day!
Kristofer
Kristofer Sent on 06/27/2025
5 out of 5 rating

Jude delivered a beautiful ceremony in partnership with us

Jude walked us through the process from start to finish so we knew exactly what to expect. She guided us through the ceremony itself, like the pro she is, and many of our guests commented afterward how beautiful the ceremony was. Highly recommend!
C
Clare Sent on 10/25/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Extraordinary

We knew Rev. Jude was the one to officiate our wedding within moments of meeting her. We could not have imagined a better person to have played such an important role in our wedding day. Rev. Jude went completely above and beyond in making sure our ceremony was an authentic and genuine reflection of us as a couple. She truly pours her heart and soul into her work, and it is evident that she approaches each ceremony with care and thoughtfulness. We had multiple meetings with her leading up to our wedding in which she got to know us and walked us through various aspects of our ceremony to make sure it felt right to us. She is open to doing things as traditionally or non-traditionally as the couple wants. We did a handfasting ceremony as part of our wedding which was beautiful and meaningful. We can say without a doubt that the ceremony was a highlight of our wedding day. We received so many compliments from guests saying they had never been to a wedding like ours before! Words that were used to describe our ceremony were: beautiful, touching, captivating, warm, intimate, and authentic. We were astounded that only after a few short meetings, she was able to craft a ceremony that was so perfectly unique to us, that by the end it felt like we had known her for years. She is also a professional public speaker, and effortlessly captured the attention of every one of our guests for the entirety of the ceremony. Our ceremony felt sacred and joyous, and we attribute that to the gift that Rev. Jude has for her craft. We are so grateful to Rev. Jude for everything she did to give us the wedding ceremony of our dreams. We highly, highly recommend her, without hesitation!
Adam
Adam Sent on 10/13/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Kind, Considerate & Warm

Rev Jude was a stellar officiant for our wedding - from start to finish. We had some personal matters that caused us to move our wedding date up several months earlier than we initially intended and she was very flexible and accommodating. We still managed to have several meetings before the ceremony to go over all the finer details and ensure the ceremony that was being crafted reflected us both as individuals and honored the coming together of our very different lives and families. She kept it real with us and that in turn made us feel safe keeping it real with her. She offered so many alternatives and options and even brought up a few things we had not remotely considered that made the day more special. She really touched the hearts & minds of our guests and we were all transformed by the end of the ceremony. She helped ground us and remind of us why were there before the ceremony started and stayed true to that right throughout all our interactions. We’re forever grateful to her for being part of our ceremony and for making us a family. For any queer or LGBT+ couples looking for a minister who will honor your relationship, shine light on your partnership, bring your friends and families together in unity and make the day beautiful, look no further.
Frank
Frank Sent on 10/13/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Very thoughtful

Rev. Jude was so complete in her work. She took the time necessary to get to know us, our background and story, and incorporated all of it into our ceremony. She asked us about our wants for our day. Rev. Jude was respectful of them and gave us ways to make sure that they were included. Her experience after many years of being an officiant is what made the day go smoothly. Her warmth, dedication to her craft, and sincerity exuded throughout the entire process.
Lauren
Lauren Sent on 08/13/2024
5 out of 5 rating

What a fantastic officiant!

Jude has our eternal gratitude! She was such an instrumental part of our wedding; her spirit and exuberance added so much to the ceremony and, I think, really helped connect everyone with us. It was everything I could've hoped for, and more! She created an absolutely standout ceremony that we'll always remember. And our guests sang her praises as well! Definitely work with Jude if you can, she'll make your wedding so incredibly special.
C
Chelsea Sent on 01/01/2024
5 out of 5 rating

LOVED our experience with JUDE!!

We had a beautiful experience, Jude was really through and helpful beyond her scope, as she is from the area and had amazing and helpful recs. Thank you again for your thoughtfulness Jude.
A
Allison Sent on 12/30/2023
5 out of 5 rating

Immensely Recommend!!💞

I couldn’t be happier with Jude being our officiant! She is kind, patient and extremely comfortable to talk to.
I suffer with anxiety so we wanted to make sure I was absolutely comfortable with the officiant we picked. From our first conversation, I knew we chose perfectly!

Our ceremony turned out wonderful thanks to her! She understood exactly what we wanted for our special day and took the proper time to go over exactly how everything was going to proceed.
Everyone I know that had spoken with her expressed to me how friendly and personable she is!
We all loved her!
If anyone is thinking about hiring an outstanding officiant, then Jude is it!
❤️
We're all about trust. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.

Awards

161
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2023 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2022 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2021 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2020 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2019 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2018 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2017 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2016 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2015 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2014 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2013 Winner
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Professional Network & Endorsements

Metro Music Metro Music Wedding DJs

Rev. Jude Smith is a class act. Professional, Personable and Organized. I would recommend her to all Bride & Grooms looking for that officiant with the "special touch!"

Frog Hollow Photography Frog Hollow Photography Wedding Photographers

Makes the ceremony very personal for the couple. Blends traditions and words of different faiths. Wonderful to work with. We love Rev Jude :)

DelConte Photography DelConte Photography Wedding Photographers

I love JUde. She deliveres a one of a kind ceremony based on who you are, not cookie cutter blah

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5.0 out of 5 rating , 77 reviews
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