Ordained Offer Alternatives To Traditional Weddings

Five years ago, the Rev. Tammy Morgan was faced with a challenge: She was asked to perform the wedding ceremony for a devout Catholic woman and a man who considered himself spiritual, but not religious.

The result was a simple outdoor ceremony, according to Morgan, who is now affiliated with Mystic See in Englewood.

The Rev. Patricia Charnley of The Angel Ministries in Venice has also performed a lot of nondenominational weddings.

Nondenominational is one thing, but at one wedding Charnley performed, many of the guests were dressed as vampires.

Maybe it's the spirit of the palm trees calling, but if the availability of people to perform such an unusual union is any indication, there may be more unconventional weddings in our area soon.

The Rev. Paul Valois, a North Port resident recently transplanted from Rhode Island, is hoping the practice catches on here. Valois hasn't just performed an offbeat wedding here and there; he's made alternative-style weddings the focus of his practice since becoming an ordained minister over the Internet five years ago with the Universal Life Church. Full Story

Related: religion, wicca, pagan, spells