I have recently become ordained by the *honorable Universal Life Church out of California. Legally speaking, the Ordinary Clerk of the Hall County Court House recognizes any person ordained by a church to lawfully wed consenting adults. I don’t have any experience doing such, but I could learn. My wife maintains the opinion that my ordination is worthless and mostly blasphemous. She’s mostly right, though the worth is arguable at this juncture simply because I *could* earn a little cash doing weddings. But I hear that you can start your own church as an ordained minister (of whatever), find some followers, erect a temple, pass out some punch, find salvation and redemption through the sacrifice of others.
Seriously though…I do believe in the sanctity of ordination and the seriousness of a serious theologian. However, I noticed that ULC isn’t the only organization these days offering all-too-easy ways of becoming ordained over the Internet. Looks like it turned into a popularity contest after all. If the churches won’t take ordination seriously, the world won’t either. And besides, I have a history of theological study and an interest in continued theological/philosophical learning.
* Universal Life Church is actually having some issues with their “honorable” status. However, they have the advantage concerning rights given by the Constitution 🙂