New Same sex wedding mag: Equally Wed

Equally Wed  US only. (or you could all just come up to Canada, you know :-) Nice fun articles, including suit-fitting for women. Not much political discussion as yet, more focus on style and honeymoons.

Ethical Baby-Naming ceremonies

We all welcome babies, and we all have a responsibility to make their world a safe and welcoming one. Here are a few excepts from a ceremony we're going to perform on Saturday - may all the world's children have a name, and have a family, and have hope and peace.

"In welcoming and naming a child with this ceremony, we celebrate one of life’s continuing miracles, the birth of a human being and the continuation of humankind. We rejoice that this child has been born into the concern and care not only of her parents, but also of this gathering and community.

The phrase 'it takes a village to raise a child' is true. While the task of nurturing children belongs mainly to parents, it also belongs to all of you, family, friends and colleagues who are gathered here today.

Article 7 of the Convention on Children's Rights says:
1. "The child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and. as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents". Not all children in the world enjoy this right today, so it is all the more important that you are here to recognize Elizabeth, and let her know that you care for her and her parents.

For you are representing the larger community in which this child will grow up. It is through you that she will come to know her community and her world. By your support, example and encouragement you have a part to play in the development of this child to her fullest potential.

We give the child a name in this ceremony, and by doing so we declare that the child is an individual, a unique and a separate person with a dignity and a life of her own.

A name once given will be associated forever with a face, a voice, a walk, a laugh and all the other idiosyncrasies our families and friends recognize that reflect this child’s individuality.

This child’s name will be spoken, whispered, shouted, cried, sung and written – thousands of times, impersonally and meaningfully – by family, friends, neighbors, school chums, teachers, doctors, colleagues, loves, strangers, and maybe by children and grandchildren. It will define her identity.

In every birth, blessed is the wonder.
In every creation, blessed is the new beginning.
In every child, blessed is life.
In every hope, blessed is the potential.
In every transition, blessed is the beginning.
In every existence, blessed are the possibilities.
In every love, blessed are the tears.
In every life, blessed is the love.

There are three names by which a person is called:
One which her father and mother call her,
And one which people call her,
And one which she earns for herself.
The best one of these is the one that she earns for herself.

In giving Elizabeth her name we declare that we will respect her as herself and give her the freedom to be herself. In naming and welcoming this child through a public ceremony, we declare that all of us are responsible for the care and development of all children. It is our task to give them our ideals and our hopes. It is our task to give them a world of peace and justice in which to grow.

Here before us are three symbols of life. The first is water, symbolizing the great stream of humanity flowing down to us from the past, and on whose vast currents each of us is carried. With this water we recognize you, Elizabeth Kathleen Sofia as part of the stream of humanity from generations past, as you are now, and all that you will become. May goodness, truth and honour go with you.

Elizabeth the names you are given are a symbol of your unique self. You are a never-to-be repeated person, whose life will ultimately be what you make it. You were created in love. As you become one who loves, you too will become a creator. To this end you are now named and dedicated.

The second symbol is the light of knowledge. We will now ask the parents and sponsors to light a candle, a symbol of the fire of knowledge within all of us. They will then light the Naming candle of ELIZABETH, saying 'We promise to do our best to light your path with knowledge and wisdom, that you may pass on the light of understanding in your own turn, to those who wait for you'.

For the third symbol, we give Elizabeth a flower - the beauty and freshness of life, and the meaning of this dedication. No flower grows alone, apart from sunshine and the rain, apart from the soil from which it grows. So, too, no child grows up alone, and all of you are here for this child, in all the seasons and the times of her days. We dedicate ourselves to the task of nourishing the beauty and freshness of this child and of all children.

In giving Elizabeth her name we declare that we will respect her as herself and give her the freedom to be herself. In naming and welcoming this child through a public ceremony, we declare that all of us are responsible for the care and development of all children. It is our task to give them our ideals and our hopes. It is our task to give them a world of peace and justice in which to grow."