Ian Bonner-Evans

OneSpirit interfaith minister and celebrant

Serving Lanark, Lanarkshire and the Central Belt of Scotland

CALL 07732 851927
CONTACT ME BY EMAIL

Offering special ceremonies for those important times in life

Hello, and thank you for visiting my website.

I am a OneSpirit interfaith minister and celebrant with years of experience of being alongside people during significant times in life.

My main role is to plan, prepare and deliver a ceremony such as a legal wedding or funeral for you and your loved ones. As an interfaith minister, I am keen to provide a service which is based on your own beliefs and values and which meets your personal requirements and wishes.

I live in Lanark and cover all the main towns and villages in South Lanarkshire and North Lanarkshire.

I frequently conduct ceremonies in other parts

of central and southern Scotland including Edinburgh, Glasgow, West Lothian, Fife and the Scottish Borders.

I am happy to travel elsewhere in Scotland and have held ceremonies as far north as the Highlands. I have also conducted non-legal weddings and funerals in Wales and England. Please be aware that I would require reimbursement of any extra costs incurred, such as for overnight accommodation, if asked to travel some considerable distance.


Why bother having a ceremony?

Life is never static, it is constantly changing. We enter this world as babies and if we are lucky we will move through childhood into adulthood and then old age before we die. We will experience many challenges and changes, some very positive, others less so, as we live this unique life of ours.

Human beings seem to have an "in built" desire to mark many of these important transitions in life with some form of ceremony or ritual. Whether it's the birth of a baby or getting married, whether it's celebrating a significant anniversary or marking the end of a life, we want to acknowledge these times as being special and meaningful to us.

Many people in Scotland today will turn to their religious communities for guidance, comfort and support during these important times. There are others who do not consider themselves to be religious and will seek out a civil or humanist celebrant to assist them with their special event. However, there are lots of people who do not entirely embrace either humanism or a religious tradition and who prefer to live according to their own personal beliefs and values. Some of these individuals would say that they have a more spiritual view of life, rather than a religious or humanist view of life. Interfaith ministers are often asked to provide ceremonies or rituals for those who see themselves in this way. Of course, most interfaith ministers would be more than happy to respond to any enquiry, be it religious, spiritual or humanist, because an openness to diversity lies at the heart of interfaith ministry.

So if you are looking for someone who can plan, prepare and deliver a special ceremony for an important occasion, then I would be more than happy to help! What matters to me is that the ceremony is based on your wishes, beliefs and values.

“You know quite well, deep within you, that there is only a single power, a single magic, a single salvation – and that is called loving” -

Hermann Hesse

Funeral and farewell ceremonies

Having to arrange a funeral is just one of a number of decisions that have to be taken in the immediate aftermath of the death of someone close to us. My role, along with other professionals such as a funeral director, is to help, guide and support you during this difficult and painful time.

Legal weddings and other ceremonies

I am available to hold legal weddings and civil partnerships in Scotland. My role is to work with you to create a unique and special ceremony which truly reflects your own beliefs, values and wishes.

About Me

Originally from Wales, I moved to Scotland when I was eighteen to study in Edinburgh and never left! I love Scotland and have lived in various parts of the country including the Central Belt, the Highlands, Orkney, the Scottish Borders, Morayshire, and have now settled in Lanark.

I’ve enjoyed a varied career. I began by working for twenty years in education at a local, regional and national level. I then spent a short time in the NHS and was a pastor for a small congregation in Edinburgh for five years. I retrained to be a counsellor and supervisor and ran a successful private practice for a number of years. My academic qualifications include a Bachelor of Divinity degree and a Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling. I have various professional qualifications including a Postgraduate Certificate in Secondary Education and a Postgraduate Certificate in Counselling Supervision. My last major period of study was a two year training course with the OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation in London. This was a profound period for me at the end of which I was ordained as a OneSpirit interfaith minister in 2016.

Being a OneSpirit interfaith minister is a delight, a privilege and a responsibility. I am aware that whilst many people find great comfort in their religious communities, many others feel alienated from established religions perhaps because of some dogma or certain religious attitudes or behaviour, or because they feel that religion has no place in the modern world. As a OneSpirit interfaith minister I acknowledge and respect these differences. However, I do believe that there is great beauty and wisdom at the heart of the various religious and spiritual traditions of the world. I also appreciate the treasure that can be discovered within Humanism. I know from personal experience that many people are nourished when they are touched by such beauty and wisdom. I don’t try to convert or impose any belief or moral value on anyone else, but seek to offer what people feel they might want or need at a given moment in life, often calling upon the powerful resources within these various traditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are you a minister or a celebrant?

I am both. I have been ordained as a minister and see my role as “ministering” to others, or serving others. I have also been trained as a celebrant, and have a great deal of experience of holding different kinds of ceremony.

Are you religious?

I was born and brought up in the Christian tradition but I consider myself to be a spiritual not a religious person. You can find out more about what I mean by this in my blog, or I would be happy to talk about this distinction with you. What I do want to emphasize is that I am here to respect your beliefs and values and not to share or impose my beliefs on you.

Do you offer Humanist ceremonies?

Yes, and I would be happy to do so if that is what you require. I have a great deal of respect for Humanism however I do not consider myself to be a humanist.

What do you do with my personal information?

I take your privacy very seriously, and have produced a Privacy Policy which outlines clearly, and in detail, how I treat your personal information. Please ask me for a copy.

What are your fees?

I charge £150 for a “Welcome to the World” (baby naming/blessing) ceremony.


I charge £450 for a wedding ceremony. Please note that I require a non-refundable booking fee of £100 to secure the date of the wedding.

The outstanding balance of £350 must be paid no later than one week before the wedding. I charge an additional flat rate fee of £50 if couples

want me to attend a wedding rehearsal. This fee is to cover my petrol costs and expenses.

I charge £250 for a farewell ceremony (funeral/cremation/memorial service).


I am very conscious of the cost-of-living crisis which is having such a terrible effect on so many families, so I would be willing to negotiate a reduced fee in certain circumstances. Any reduction would need to be discussed with me and agreed in advance of the ceremony. Please feel free to raise this with me.


Please contact me if you want to know how much I charge for other types of ceremony.

Are you willing to travel?

Yes. I live in Lanark and cover all the main towns and villages in South Lanarkshire and North Lanarkshire, but I frequently conduct ceremonies in other parts of central and southern Scotland including Edinburgh, Glasgow, West Lothian, Fife and the Scottish Borders.

I am happy to travel elsewhere in Scotland and have held ceremonies as far north as the Highlands. I have also conducted non-legal weddings and funerals in Wales and England. Please be aware that I would require reimbursement of any extra costs incurred, such as for overnight accommodation, if asked to travel some considerable distance.


Do you provide legal advice when planning a service?

No, that is not my role and I am not legally trained to do so. However, I would be happy to point you towards those professionals who could support you. For example, I could direct you to the local registrar when thinking about certain legal aspects of a wedding. Funeral directors and solicitors are also very experienced in helping answer legal questions surrounding the death of a loved one.

Can we trust you with our special ceremony?

I hope so! I have spent my whole working life in different professional settings which required high standards and an ongoing commitment from me. I approach my role as an interfaith minister and celebrant with the same professional commitment. I am on the Register of OneSpirit Interfaith Ministers (ROSIM) and as such I am guided by the OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation’s Code of Ethics. As a member of ROSIM, I commit to ongoing personal development and supervision, have professional indemnity insurance and agree to abide by the OneSpirit Complaints policy. I am also a member of SICA (Scottish Independent Celebrants' Association) and abide by the SICA Code of Conduct and commit to SICA's other professional requirements such as an annual Peer Review process.

Testimonials

"Thank you so much, Ian. So many people commented on what a wonderful service it was, including the funeral director! You provided a very personal service, just as our mother wanted, which helped make a sad situation very special. Our families are very grateful to you."

Linda, Louise and their families

"One of the best decisions we made for our Wedding Day was having Ian officiate and we simply cannot recommend him enough.

From the outset of planning our wedding, Ian was there for us. The lead up to any wedding can be nerve-wracking but we always felt incredibly confident and in such safe hands with Ian.

What made our journey so special was that he truly captured who we both were as individuals, our own personal stories and who we were as a couple.

As a couple, Ian made our ceremony feel perfectly tailored to us. We come from different religious backgrounds and have families from all over the world who attended the wedding, and Ian was able to beautifully welcome everyone and ensure that we were all woven into the ceremony. For example, Ian even learned a few sentences in Serbian to welcome our international guests.

We have had countless wedding guests compliment us on how perfect, beautiful and meaningful our ceremony was. Many guests told us 'that was the best wedding ceremony we have ever sat through'. We decided to have both a photographer and a videographer on the day and thank goodness we did as having a video of our ceremony to look back on has been wonderful. "

Anna and Stefan

"Ian's love and support leading up to the funeral of my dad, and afterwards, gave enormous comfort to myself and my family. His care and compassion held us all at this sad and difficult time. Both the service at the private family cremation and the Service of Thanksgiving at the Church were full of warmth, deeply personal, and heartfelt. All family and friends who attended commented on how beautiful the service were and how they captured the essence of who my dad was, which is exactly what we had hoped for. We can't thank him enough for all he has done for us to help make this unbearable time more bearable."


Debi and family

"Ian was the celebrant for our marriage. Because it was the second time around for the both of us, and we are now a little older, we didn't want a formal church service. What we did want was a ceremony that would give a defining spiritual experience that wasn't overly religious, for such a special event in our lives. Ian managed to bring all of that together for us, while at the same time introducing a good element of light-heartedness and warmth to the occasion. All of this was very much appreciated by both ourselves, and all of our family and friends who attended."

John and Lynn

"Thank you so much for such a wonderful ceremony on Saturday, it was perfect! We were so happy with it, and so many of our friends and family complimented you on your delivery and how warm you made the ceremony feel. You were able to help us make the ceremony a very personal reflection of our beliefs, and for that we are so thankful. You were so in tune with us, we felt that we could completely trust you to perform our wedding."


Janine and James

"The funeral service was beautiful. You carried out Frank’s wishes and fulfilled all of the family’s requirements too. It was very personal, dignified and respectful and summed up Frank really well. Thank you."

Dick and Maureen

"We both wish to thank you again for today and especially for your hard work in preparing a service for our special day. Your thoughtfulness and inventiveness in preparing the wedding is much appreciated and your delivery of the ceremony was exemplary. We couldn't have wished for more."

Keith and Primrose

We wanted to thank you ever so much not only for being part of our wedding day and for such a wonderful service, but also for

everything that went into the planning and organising in the run up to the day. Your support, knowledge and wealth of experience helped us massively in deciding what kind of ceremony we wanted, and we could not have done this without your help and guidance (including a crash course on how to use fountain pen!)

 

There were so many comments from our friends and family of how lovely the ceremony was and how much they enjoyed it so thanks again, it was just perfect.

Dylan and Lynsey

 




"We just wanted to thank you for a wonderful service and for the support you have given us over this time. You captured my mother perfectly, with her love for her family and for life in general, and this made the funeral so special."

Susan and David

'Thank you so much for a beautiful wedding last Saturday. Everyone commented on how great the service was, so much so that most people asked us how long we'd known you! What more can we say?!"

William and Abigail

"Ian was wonderful to work with and helped us create our perfect wedding ceremony. From the first meeting, Ian was incredibly organised and walked us through the process of planning our ceremony. We had several video calls with him in the months and weeks prior to the wedding and his friendly and accommodating nature made us feel at ease and truly heard throughout the entire process. On the day, the ceremony was exactly what we had hoped for, and it was clear that his dedication and organisation played a huge role in making it a success. We highly recommend Ian to all couples looking for a professional and heartfelt officiant!"

 

Laura and Philip

Location and Fees

I live in Lanark and cover all the main towns and villages in South Lanarkshire and North Lanarkshire, but I frequently conduct ceremonies in other parts of central and southern Scotland including Edinburgh, Glasgow, West Lothian, Fife and the Scottish Borders.

I am happy to travel elsewhere in Scotland and have held ceremonies as far north as the Highlands. I have also conducted non-legal weddings and funerals in Wales and England. Please note that I would require reimbursement of the extra costs incurred when travelling some considerable distance.


I charge £150 for a “Welcome to the World” (baby naming/blessing) ceremony.

I charge £450 for a Wedding ceremony. Please note that I require a non-refundable booking fee of £100 to secure the date of the wedding. The outstanding balance of £350 must be paid no later than one week before the wedding. I charge an additional flat rate fee of £50 if couples want me to attend a wedding rehearsal. This fee is to cover my petrol costs and expenses.


I charge £250 for a Farewell ceremony (funeral/cremation/memorial service).

I am very conscious of the cost-of-living crisis which is having such a terrible effect on so many families, so I would be willing to negotiate a reduced fee in certain circumstances. Any reduction would need to be discussed with me and agreed in advance of the ceremony. Please feel free to raise this with me.

Please contact me if you want to know how much I charge for other types of ceremony.

Get in touch

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the services I offer, or to arrange an initial meeting. This initial meeting can be either in person or online. We will talk about why you want a particular ceremony and will explore what you are hoping for during the service.

There will then be ongoing contact between us, the frequency will depend on the circumstances of each request.


You can also call me on 07732 851927 if you would prefer to leave a message or speak to me first. I am happy to discuss any queries or questions you may have prior to arranging an initial meeting.


All enquiries are usually answered within 24 hours, and all contact is strictly confidential and uses secure phone and email services.

© Ian Bonner-Evans

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