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Until you are actually planning your wedding, you may not think about the person who will perform the wedding ceremony and join the two of you in matrimony. If you belong to a church or other religious organization, the answer may be as simple as asking your priest, minister or other clergy member. But if you do not belong to a church or you are getting married in another state, you may have to start searching for the perfect officiant to perform your marriage ceremony.

Choosing the right person to perform your wedding ceremony is one of the most important choices you may make during your wedding planning. It is important that you and your officiant are on the same page as far as what type of ceremony you wish to have and what your belief systems are. You may be nondenominational Christians, agnostics, atheists or pagans who wouldn’t want to end up with a Catholic or Protestant officiant. Ceremonies and belief systems can greatly differ from religion to religion, clergy member to clergy member and sometimes from location to location.

Before you start searching for a wedding officiant, sit down as a couple and decide on what kind of ceremony you want. There are many types of ceremonies, including civil, nondenominational religious, single-faith or interfaith religious, pagan and Wiccan to name a few. There are also many rituals and ceremony elements that can be included and added to your basic wedding service, either from family or cultural traditions or regional customs.