Lissin Lev Chaya, Life-Cycle Celebrant & Officiant

r and I are queer, and we were excited to create a wedding ritual to affirm our commitment to each other and incorporate traditions from both of our heritages. My partner is a Jewish atheist, and I have an Anglo Protestant background but am not religious. We had some general ideas about elements we wanted in a ceremony, including the seven blessings from the Jewish wedding tradition, and a handfasting ceremony connected to my Celtic roots. We knew we didn't want language about god. It was also important to us to work someone who could craft a ceremony that would center our deep love for each other and the commitment we were making, and also hold the complexity of our political feelings about marriage as a state-sponsored institution. From the start, we felt like Lissin was listening closely to us, and that she understood where we were coming from. She asked thoughtful questions, shared about herself, and really took the time to get to know us. The ceremony she created was grounded, joyful, romantic and fun! She also lead our rehearsal with a great combination of ease and directiveness. Our friends and family said that our ceremony allowed them to get to know us in a more intimate way through the stories that Lissin shared about us. Several folks said they thought she must be an old friend of ours that they'd just never met! We are so thankful for the experience of working with Lissin, and recommend her wholeheartedly.