How to Become a Wedding Officiant

#1. Check the laws of the state and county where the ceremony will be held to see what they require in the way of an officiant.

Honestly, I wouldn't do it, unless the couple is prepared to have a civil ceremony for paperwork purposes before the ceremony you officiate.

The problem is that there are some states in which there is a clear path to using an officiant who is not an ordained minister or a judge (e.g., Massachusetts, which has an "officiant for a day" program). Maryland is not one of those states.

Outside of those states, the usual route is to become ordained online. There are some states in which a marriage performed by someone ordained online is clearly permitted. There are other states in which a marriage performed by someone ordained online is clearly invalid. And there are a lot of states (including Maryland) in which the status of a marriage performed by someone ordained online is unclear.

(cont.)

In the states in which it is unclear, the couple will not find out whether their marriage is invalid when the papers are filed. Instead, they will find out only if the marriage is contested in court at some later time (e.g., on death, divorce, or bankruptcy), at which point it will be too late to fix the problem.

If you get ordained online and file the paperwork for them, they will lose the ability even to fix the problem by having a brief courthouse ceremony. In order to be married at the courthouse, they have to show they are not already married. And until and unless their marriage is the subject of a court contest, they will not be able to show that.

If instead they have a brief courthouse ceremony for paperwork purposes, they can then have you perform whatever ceremony they want, without the legal risk of discovering later than their marriage is invalid.

A friend is officiating my wedding in Georgia. She's going to use American Fellowship Church. It's free to become ordained online, but you have to pay for a card that says you're ordained. I've read where others have successfully become ordained through them and married people. But still, check the county where you're getting married and see.

http://www.amfellow.org/maryland-minister-license/

Good luck!

I agree with 2d Bride. There have been several articles about weddings performed by on-line ordained persons that were later found to be not legal.

Just because a state or jurisdiction within a state says the marriage can be done by an ordained person, in several jurisdictions/states the ordination must include a congregation or flock not a simple on-line application. There are some states (like NY) in which some parts of the state allow on-line ordination and other counties don't so it can easily get confusing.

At the very least I would consult with a family law lawyer before taking on that responsibility

Contact the county you are going to perform the ceremony in and see what their rules are.

DISCLAIMER FROM THE WWW.AMFELLOW.ORG WEBSITE

Just FYI

While training is not required in order to become ordained with the American Fellowship Church, we do urge our members to learn more about being an ordained minister, therefore we offer a number of online courses that are self paced and written in plain English. If you are interested in training please see "Online Minister Training"

*The information provided on this page is for guidance only it is NOT legal advice.

It is critically important that you verify all information with your local marriage license office / county clerk before conducting a wedding ceremony. It is your responsibility to operate within the bounds of the law.

So basically, you will get a card that states you can do it, no required training about how to do it, and no guarantee that what you are doing is legal.

Http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/18/fashion/weddings/making-sure-that-online-officiant-is-legal.html?ref=weddingresources&_r=0

These discussions always seem to revolve around the legality and not the ability/style. That's a factor too.

Maryland is tricky. I second the above advice to check with your local county clerk and record. Ask to speak directly to the clerk (i.e. the head honcho who actually signs the licenses). Sometimes the folks who work in the office don't know all the technicalities.