Child Blessings and Naming Ceremonies

Unitarians use various names for ceremonies that celebrate new life – child dedication, naming and blessing. We encourage families to create with us a ceremony that reflects their own joy in the miracle of life and their commitment to the well-being of their child. Parents are not asked to make particular theological commitments and may choose to involve godparents, grandparents and other children in the ceremony if they wish. Such services may be held here at Ipswich Unitarian Meeting. They are a joyful way to bring family and friends together for a special occasion, giving thanks for the precious gift of life that each child represents.

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Weddings

Our faith tradition takes marriage seriously. Making a commitment to live with one person for the rest of your life is one of the most important decisions you will ever make and so any service which celebrates this must be one which speaks truthfully about the couple's own genuine faith and hopes. Unitarians were at the forefront of the recent campaign to gain full marriage equality, we offer same-sex marriages. We do marriage services for couples of mixed faith, for humanists and atheists, for people who have been divorced and all other variations of the human condition. Planning a wedding will involve several meetings and we ask couples to attend some of our Sunday services so that you get to know the community.

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Funerals and Memorial Services

Unitarians mark death with a service that celebrates someone’s life as well as mourns their death. As with other ceremonies, we offer the opportunity to create a ceremony that is truly personal, reflecting the deceased person’s life and honouring their beliefs and those of their family and friends. whether more humanistic or faith orientated. Our minister visits the family at home and offers guidance in creating an appropriate ceremony, which may take place here at the Ipswich Unitarian Meetings or at a local cemetery, or crematorium.

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