It's unclear how many U.S. weddings are led by such officiants, but the percentage is clearly rising, said study researcher Dusty Hoesly, a doctoral candidate of religious studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Most people who perform these weddings get an ordination from the Universal Life Church (ULC), which has ordained more than 20 million people since 1962, Hoesly said.
Two websites found increases in the percentage of weddings performed by a couple's family member or friend: TheKnot.com reported an increase from 29 percent in 2009 to 40 percent in 2015, and TheWeddingReport.com found an increase from 10 percent in 2008 to 17 percent in 2012, Hoesly said.
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