Update: Due to Covid-19, we are putting the Agnostic Scotland Life Celebrancy Training plans on hold until 2021. Please contact us if you wish to find out more. We look forward to being in touch with you. Thank you.

At Agnostic Scotland it’s been a busy year. We’ve sowed the seed of a beautiful new belief body and watched it grow. Our three founders, Linda Keys, Andrea Taylor and Onie Tibbitt, have been busy conducting ceremonies in grand hotels and family homes, on hilltops and lochsides, in crematoriums and burial grounds. At Agnostic Scotland, we offer ceremonies that respond to the unique blend of beliefs, values and wishes of the families involved. As one of our ambassadors says:

“In today’s Scotland, there are fewer formal rituals. But our souls still need them. Today, we need a safe space for our rites, our ceremonies. Somewhere where there are no stipulations on God. Or Gods. Or no God(s). Or on gender binaries. Or on what a family looks like. Or on what music you can and can’t sing, or play, or listen to. I am excited that Agnostic Scotland can hold those spaces, perform those rituals, celebrate those ceremonies. Everyone deserves a safe place to mark life’s milestones.”

Stella Hervey Birrell, Award Winning Poet and Writer, East Lothian, Scotland.

Since our launch in November, we’ve been humbled by the response from people across Scotland wishing us well, enquiring about working with us, and asking about how to support our Community Fund and join our Community Connection Gatherings. It’s been a magical year and we are now excited to begin the process of seeking out like-minded others to join our Scotland-wide Life Celebrant network.

“Sooner or later, though, no matter where in the world we live,
we must join the diaspora, venturing beyond our biological family to find our logical one, the one that actually makes sense for us.”

Armistead Maupin

If you are someone who has always held a deep fascination for life transitions, who loves to honour rites of passage through ritual and ceremony, who enjoys bringing individuals together in celebration, and who has a heart-centred and open-minded respect towards the many varied, sometimes contradictory, and often complicated beliefs, values and wishes of others, then becoming an Agnostic Scotland Life Celebrant could be the perfect role for you. No prior celebrancy experience is necessary, although experienced celebrants are also welcome to apply.

On 18-22nd November 2020, we will be hosting a 5-day Agnostic Scotland Life Celebrancy Training course in Edinburgh. The course will be comprehensive and will include all aspects of Celebrancy including Weddings, Namings, Funerals and other Life-Transition Ceremonies. We will be focussing on interactive content to build confidence in working with families, collecting information, holding the space, exploring rituals, presenting to a gathering, self-care and mindfulness, navigating challenges, understanding the legal responsibility and role of a celebrant, and more. There will be individual assessment at each stage of the training, and successful candidates would then be invited to participate in the Mentoring programme. Upon successful completion of the Mentoring programme you would be formally accredited as an Agnostic Scotland Life Celebrant. Agnostic Scotland is not an employer; applicants who are successful at all stages and who go on to complete their training will carry out their Life Celebrancy work on a self-employed basis.

We are keen to invite 10-15 Celebrants to join our network and we are limited to recruiting 1-2 Celebrants per geographical area. It is possible to apply to work in an area where you do not live. Ideally applicants should be interested in all aspects of Celebrancy – Weddings, Namings, Funerals, Life-Transition Ceremonies. However, we will consider applications from individuals wishing to only offer Funeral, Life Celebration and Memorial Ceremonies. Whilst we are already at capacity for Wedding Celebrants in the Lothians, we are happy to accept applications from individuals interested in working predominantly as Funeral Celebrants in the Lothians.

Applications will open on 1st June. The application deadline will be 19th August 2020. Interviews will be held on 22-24th September 2020 and the Training is on 18-22nd November.

Please do not register your interest unless you can attend on these dates. To register your interest with a view to applying, please contact us.

We look forward to hearing from you!