Marriage is an entry into a magnificent and precious destiny, opening us to the potential  that lies hidden.

Love is a divine force. It is the mother of life. It is the force that brings a couple together. It is at a wedding that a couple proclaims publicly what has been in their hearts for perhaps a long time, the desire to spend their lives together. This they do in front of their family and friends, those who have been so much a part of their lives. For it is here they acknowledge that the secret of their completion is found in the other, the one who they wish to spend the rest of their life with. They know that while differences may separate them it is these same differences that draw them to each other. They now form one presence for each has half a language that the other seeks.

While John had been appointed as a marriage celebrant in 1995, it was in 2000 that he focused full time his endeavours in celebrancy work. Weddings and ceremonies have always held a special place in his heart as far back as 1967 when he performed his first wedding as a priest. He has always viewed both ritual and ceremony as essential for human beings to give themselves and others those necessary messages which enable an individual to stay human.

John believes there is a deep spiritual meaning in any wedding. The love that a couple experience in their relationship is spiritual within itself. If a couple wanted something with religious connotations John is willing for that to be included in a ceremony.

Having worked as a celebrant in 3 continents and appreciating the rituals and customs of various cultures, John has a profound sense of respect for what a couple may want. He knows that the wedding belongs to them and their wishes are to be respected. For him it is paramount that couples feel completely comfortable with him so that they can sense that he is a friend who wishes to honour what they want in ritual. The letters and the cards of appreciation he receives from those whose weddings he has officiated at tell their own story.

Your marriage must stand not by words but by the strength of your love and the power of your faith in each other. It is made by the close relationship of living side by side from day to day, looking outward and working in the same direction. We do not marry the perfect person rather we marry an imperfect person who we learn to love perfectly.
The following two quotations encapsulate the essence of love.

“Caught up by your beauty I speak of my heart’s desire to live the fullness of life dwelling in your presence forever”.
Ps. 17

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you simply, without problems or pride:
I love you in this way because I don’t know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close.
SONNET XV11 by Pablo Neruda