Bishop Craig Ministries
Spiritual Services for All of Life and Beyond!
Our Philosophy and Concerns
We Believe That:
You have the right to a celebrant who is well trained, validly ordained from a source other than the internet, and who has extensive experience in a variety of ceremonies.
If a celebrant is offering you "packages" with different pricing, they are cheating you. Clergy have an ethical obligation to give you the best they can, not hold out for more money.
You have the right to have the final say about what is included in your ceremony, with the exception that an ordained clergy person can not violate their ethical standards (perform illegal or immoral activity, lie about their identity, perform a marriage if s/he has good reason to believe the couple's relationship is abusive or one of the couples is not consenting to the marriage, and similar).
There should never be an extra charge for the celebrant to be present at the rehearsal.
If a member of the clergy is charging $600 for your wedding (exclusive of charges for travel), they are cheating you.
If a wedding celebrant ever raises their voice to "yell" at you, your wedding party, or your guests, they are engaging in clergy abuse and should be reported to their denomination or supervising body and the venue where the ceremony is taking place.
Premarital counseling should be offered (but not required) to every couple at no extra charge.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do you have a Church?
A: Yes. The website is www.UACMilwaukee.org
Q: What makes you a bishop?
A: I am Presiding Bishop of the Universal Anglican Church (www.TheUAC.net)
Q: What is an Anglican?
A: The Anglican spiritual tradition has its roots in the Church of England
Q: How do you pronounce "Anglican"?
A: "Ang-li-can," not "An-gel-i-can"
Q: How many weddings have you done?
A: I have performed over 225 weddings to date.
Q: Do you perform ceremonies that are not overly religious?
A: Yes. The level of spirituality in a ceremony is determined by the choices the couple makes in planning the ceremony. Because all ceremoies are custom planned with the couple being married, it is possible to have the perfect level of spirituality for your personality!
Q: Are there restrictions as to the spiritual or religious beliefs of the couple? Is there any spiritual or religious tradition you don't work with?
A: No. Wherever you are on your spiritual journey is just fine with me.
Q: Do you perform "secular" weddings?
A: Yes, except that I will not represent myself to be anything other than a member of the clergy. I have had people ask me to pretend to be a Justice of the Peace, and I have refused because I feel that would be unethical.
Q: Do you perform private wedding ceremonies?
A: Yes. Of course, according to State of Wisconsin Law it is necessary to have two witnesses over the age of 18 present at your marriage. We can provide those witnesses if necessary, but we do require advanced notice of the need for witnesses.
Q: Do you perform Holy Union Ceremonies?
A: Absolutely, and with great joy!
Q: Do you perform more than one ceremony in a day?
A: No. It is our feeling that it is absolutely unfair to a couple if we effectively have our attention divided on your wedding day!
Q: Do you do rehearsals?
A: Absolutely. We believe rehearsals are very important, and we love doing them!
Bishop Craig Ministries
Spiritual Services for All of Life and Beyond!
