Have you been asked to read at a humanist wedding ceremony and don’t know what to pick? Maybe you are getting married yourself and need inspiration for readings that will work in a humanist ceremony.
The good news is that with a humanist wedding ceremony there are no rules about what you can or can’t include. For instance you can make a dramatic entrance to your wedding if you like, you can personalise every detail (and not just the vows) and you can even involve your dog in your wedding festivities too.
Your ceremony will be completely bespoke to you, and your celebrant will help you find readings that suit you and your outlook on life. Basically if you’ve seen some words you like, they will almost certainly work because your ceremony is about YOU and YOU get to choose!
Humanist celebrant suggestions for wedding ceremony readings
One of my favourite things about being a humanist wedding celebrant is the lightbulb moment I get when I find a new reading and know instantly that one of my couples will adore it.
So, you lovely human, this page is peppered with inspiration for your wedding readings. This is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the huge number of options. I say that, not to overwhelm you (sorry!), but to highlight that if you haven’t seen a reading that you like yet, there are more ideas out there for you.
Can I let you in on a secret? Whilst I love each and every couple I marry, I do sometimes very very occasionally feel a bit disappointed because people choose a reading that is so popular I (and often lots of their guests) have heard it lots of times before. That’s why I’ve curated a list of out-of-the-ordinary, some might say offbeat, readings for humanist wedding ceremonies.
The main thing these readings have in common is that they’re NOT the run of the mill choices. You won’t see any lovely dinosaurs or excerpts from Captain Corelli’s Mandolin in this list.
Without further ado, let’s jump in.
Seven readings for a humanist wedding ceremony
From The Sandman by Neil Gaiman
Have you ever been in love? Horrible isn’t it? It makes you so vulnerable. It opens your chest and it opens up your heart and it means that someone can get inside you and mess you up.
You build up all these defences, you build up a whole suit of armour, so that nothing can hurt you, then one stupid person, no different from any other stupid person, wanders into your stupid life…
You give them a piece of you. They didn’t ask for it. They did something dumb one day, like kiss you or smile at you, and then your life isn’t your own anymore. Love takes hostages. It gets inside you.
Sometimes by Sheenagh Pugh
Sometimes things don't go, after all,
from bad to worse. Some years, muscadel
faces down frost; green thrives; the crops don't fail,
sometimes a man aims high, and all goes well.
A people sometimes will step back from war;
elect an honest man; decide they care
enough, that they can't leave some stranger poor.
Some men become what they were born for.
Sometimes our best efforts do not go
amiss; sometimes we do as we meant to.
The sun will sometimes melt a field of sorrow
that seemed hard frozen: may it happen for you.
Love is Friendship Caught Fire by Laura Hendricks
Love is friendship caught fire; it is quiet, mutual confidence, sharing and forgiving.
It is loyalty through good and bad times. It settles for less than perfection, and makes allowances for human weaknesses.
Love is content with the present, hopes for the future, and does not brood over the past.
It is the day-in and day-out chronicles of irritations, problems, compromises, small disappointments, big victories, and working toward common goals.
If you have love in your life, it can make up for a great many things you lack.
If you do not have it, no matter what else there is, it is not enough.
Nothing Else Matters by Metallica
So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters
Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
And nothing else matters
Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters
For me by Tracey Emin
Hurry
But do not hurry me,
Push
But do not push me,
Hold
But do not crush me’
Love
But do not change me
Let us stay the way we are
Devour
But do not consume me,
Thrill
But do not frighten me,
Excite
But do not scare me.
Teach
But do not change me
Let us learn from the way we are
Kiss
But do not smother me,
Embrace
But do not break me,
Adore
But do not suffocate me,
Love
Let me love you
Just the way you are.
From Wicked by Winnie Holzman
I've heard it said
That people come into our lives
For a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend
Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
A Marriage by Michael Blumenthal
You are holding up a ceiling
with both arms. It is very heavy,
but you must hold it up, or else
it will fall down on you. Your arms
are tired, terribly tired,
and, as the day goes on, it feels
as if either your arms or the ceiling
will soon collapse.
But then,
unexpectedly,
something wonderful happens:
Someone,
a man or a woman,
walks into the room
and holds their arms up
to the ceiling beside you.
So you finally get
to take down your arms.
You feel the relief of respite,
the blood flowing back
to your fingers and arms.
And when your partner’s arms tire,
you hold up your own
to relieve him again.
And it can go on like this
for many years
without the house falling.
Alternative readings for a humanist wedding ceremony
What do you think? Do any of these alternative wedding readings resonate with you? It’s not an exhaustive list, just a few of my favourites.
There are hundreds, in fact thousands, more ideas: “You deserve a lover” by Frida Kahlo is a fabulous short reading which is grounded and expansive at the same time. And “I'd Rather Rise in Love With You” by Jana Lynne Umipig is a longer literary piece which is radically truthful and super romantic too.
Your humanist celebrant will be able to tailor their suggestions to you, so do ask for their ideas too.
Before you go…
A BIT ABOUT MEG
As a humanist wedding celebrant I have the great pleasure of marrying incredible humans to their favourite people. My whole vibe is about creating life affirming experiences for nearlyweds - Celebrating individuality and authenticity above all else.
My mission is to help people express themselves fully, and deeply connect with their loved ones during life’s milestone moments. If you want a little piece of this, let’s chat! You can set up an initial call using this contact page.
For inspiration on how to bring some fun into your ceremony, and to learn more about my out-of-this-world humanist ceremonies follow me on social @megseniorceremonies. Keep your eye on this blog because I’m always adding new posts to help lovers to have wonderful humanist wedding ceremonies.
Photography credit: Claire McClean Photography