5 out of 5 stars and 154 reviews Best of Weddings (10x).
5
(154)All locations in New Jersey, New York City & Phila areas
About this vendor
Friendly, confident and professional Wedding Minister/Officiant serving Non-denominational, Interfaith and Same-sex couples at the location of their choice throughout the NJ, NYC and the Philadelphia areas. Responsive, timely and reliable, I take great care in making your wedding ceremony memorable and stress free. Since I understand how important this event is to each Couple, it is a privilege that I do not take lightly. I sincerely enjoy meeting and mingling with the guests before and after the ceremony...
Feel free to reach out to me to discuss your details... 848-702-3499
Details
Ceremony Types
- Civil Union
- Commitment Ceremony
- Elopement
- Interfaith Ceremony
- Non-Religious Ceremony
- Religious Ceremony
Planning
- Se Habla Español
Religious Affiliations
- Christian
- Catholic
- Protestant
- Interfaith
- Spiritual
Wedding Activities
- Wedding
- Ceremony
Awards and Affiliations
10-Time 'Best of Weddings'
2026.2025.2024.+7 more.
Best of Weddings
The Knot independently assesses vendors for this award—it’s never self-reported. We base it on firsthand experiences from real couples and guests, and they must have a 4.5-star average across 7+ reviews in the qualifying year.
Hall of Fame
Earned by winning 'Best of Weddings' four or more times.
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Reviews
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5
out of 5.0154 reviews
Review photos
Showing slide number 1 out of 9
Rev. Whalen has been absolutely amazing and we are so grateful to have him as our officiant. He has been extremely helpful and so wonderful through the entire process. Not only had...
we booked last minute due to a previous cancelation, but our venue had flooded an hour prior to our ceremony. Rev. Whalen graciously changed course and met us at a different venue, and made sure our ceremony was still beautiful!! It was filled with laughs and tears and we will never forget it. Thank you!!!
Rev. Whalen was so professional and comforting. He answered any questions we had promptly and make our ceremony feel seamless and he is an amazing speaker. Everyone said how good h...
e did and how much they enjoyed listening to him! 10/10 recommend!
We couldn’t have asked for a better wedding officiant! Michael was warm, professional, and genuinely invested in making our ceremony feel personal and meaningful. He took the time ...
to understand our story and was open to all of our wants/needs/changes to create a ceremony that truly reflected us as a couple. Everything was handled smoothly, and his calm, positive presence helped make our special day even more memorable. We highly recommend Michael to anyone looking for an officiant who truly cares about their couples!
It was a wonderful experience with Rev Mike from the beginning. He is very communicative throughout the entire process and the ceremony was excellent! All of our guests appreciated...
the ceremony and Rev Mike made it feel unique to the couple.
Rev Michael Whalen was an amazing officiant for us for our early spring NJ wedding. His meetings up to the date were professional, kind, and easy going as he crafted his words for ...
our ceremony. When it came down to the ceremony, he was well spoken, easy to understand, added a drip of humor, and an all around calm demeanor as he led us through the ceremony. A true professional and a pleasure to work with. We would both highly recommend.
The Perfect Officiant!
We couldn’t have asked for a better officiant than Rev. Michael Whalen! From the very beginning, he made the process so easy and stress-free. He genuinely t...
ook the time to get to know my husband and I, which made our ceremony feel personal and truly special.
His communication was incredible throughout the entire planning process. Seriously an 11/10! He was always responsive, organized, and made sure we felt comfortable and prepared. On our wedding day, he arrived right on time, handled everything seamlessly, and made sure the ceremony ran smoothly.
He was also so kind and welcoming to our families, which we really appreciated. Weddings can be overwhelming, but Rev. Whalen made this part of the planning process one less thing for us to worry about. We are so grateful he was part of our special day and would highly recommend him to any couple looking for an officiant!
Michael is so responsive from the start of the planning process, gives great ideas, makes changes when you need, and makes sure he can pronounce names right, and is an awesome spea...
ker who makes people. have happy tears and laughter. He is awesome! I am so thankful for him making my ceremony so beautiful ❤️
Starting with our initial zoom call 6 months out, he really sought to get to know us well and curate to our wants and needs, which was only confirmed when we received the follow up...
email and info packet. As we progressed through the months the communication was easy and open, and not only did he answer our questions but help guide us on what we were stuck on or unsure of. On the day of he was punctual, detailed, organized, and well dressed. The ceremony felt deeply personal, yet narrated by a professional, which captured and kept the attention of the audience, however didn't take away from the two of us being the focal point at the altar. Would recommend over and over again.
We are so glad we decided to work with Michael for our wedding! From our very first FaceTime call, he was incredibly friendly, warm, and easy to work with. Michael is thorough, org...
anized, and professional. Throughout the planning process, his response times were incredibly quick, and at no point were we ever worried about how the ceremony would go. My husband and I felt completely at ease knowing Michael had absolutely everything under control.
Michael helped us personalize our wedding ceremony by providing many different and beautiful options for readings and unity rituals. This allowed us to build a ceremony that felt like "us." The ceremony itself went off without a hitch! We received so many compliments from our family and friends about how heartfelt and well-done the ceremony was. If you want an officiant who will bring peace of mind, lots of experience, and flawless execution to your wedding, look no further than Michael!
Reverend Whalen was awesome! He was very accommodating given the short notice I presented him with. Our ceremony was exceptional! The way we were able to personalize it had myself ...
and my husband tearing up and he is not a cryer. It was light hearted and at times had our guests cracking up. I loved how we were able to work with him on making the ceremony our own and he did an amazing job!
I cannot say enough wonderful things about our officiant for our wedding 2 weeks ago. From the very beginning, he worked with us throughout the entire year to make sure our ceremon...
y felt personal, meaningful, and exactly like us. He was patient, kind, responsive, and truly cared about bringing my vision to life.
On our wedding day, he helped make our ceremony everything I dreamed it would be. It felt beautiful, heartfelt, and so special. He created such a calm and meaningful presence, and we received so many compliments on how lovely the ceremony was.
I am so grateful for all of the time, effort, and care he put into making our day perfect. He truly helped make my dream come true, and I would recommend him to anyone looking for an officiant who is thoughtful, reliable, and genuinely invested in making your wedding ceremony unforgettable. 10/100000 recommend!!!
Reverend Michael Whalen was a fantastic fit for our Jersey Shore wedding. We met with him over a zoom call over a year prior to the wedding when we were at our most stressed and h...
e immediately calmed us down with his knowledge and experience. He made the whole affair extremely east, which is exactly what we needed. Well worth the money, Michael Whalen was a 10 out of 10 and we would recommend him to any of our friends and family.
We cannot say enough great things about Rev. Michael Whalen. From our very first conversation, he was professional, warm, and genuinely invested in getting to know us, not just sho...
wing up and reading a script.
Rev. Whalen created a truly customized ceremony that felt personal, meaningful, and completely “us.” He struck the perfect balance between heartfelt and lighthearted, weaving in just the right amount of humor so our guests were smiling and laughing while still feeling the emotion of the moment. So many people came up to us afterward to say how beautiful the ceremony was and how much they loved him.
He was calm, organized, and a total pro throughout the process, which helped take so much pressure off of us. And one of our favorite little moments, he even smoothly jumped out of the way at just the right time for our first kiss!
If you want a minister who is polished, personable, funny, and truly cares about making your ceremony special, we wholeheartedly recommend Rev. Michael Whalen. We’re so grateful we had him as part of our day.
We cannot say enough great things about Michael! From start to finish, he was extremely organized and always responded promptly to our emails, which made the entire process so easy...
and stress-free. He wrote our entire ceremony and customized it perfectly to reflect our story and what we wanted to say, even providing different options for certain portions so we could truly make it our own.
On top of that, Michael handled all of the marriage license details with the town after the wedding. All we had to do was pick it up when we got back from our honeymoon. That level of care and professionalism meant so much to us. Truly stress free!
We are so glad we chose Michael as our officiant. He was truly one of the best vendors we had on our wedding day, and we would recommend him without hesitation!
Our wedding day couldnt have been any more perfect. Rev Michael Whalen made the ceremony just how we would have pictured it, full of love, but not too serious either. He was amazin...
g throughout the entire planning process as well!
My husband and I had another officiant lined up that backed out at the last minute due to a family emergency. In a panic, I looked up other officiants in the area and I found Rev W...
halen who happened to be available on my wedding date. He happily accepted the job, despite the last minute notice. He made the entire experience very easy for my destination wedding on the Jersey shore. Thank you!
Michael was an absolutely amazing choice to officiate our wedding ceremony. From our very first phone calls while planning, he made everything feel clear, simple, and stress-free, ...
while still being incredibly thoughtful and specific to what we wanted as a couple. He was always available to answer questions and guide us through the process with confidence and care.
On the day of the ceremony, Michael was professional, warm, and so well-spoken. He had a natural way of connecting with our guests and felt completely at home with our crowd, which made the entire ceremony feel intimate and meaningful. We incorporated Catholic undertones along with additional rituals and elements, and he presented everything beautifully and seamlessly.
We truly could not be happier with his service. His presence, friendliness, and genuine support made our ceremony unforgettable, and we are so grateful to have had him be part of such an important day in our lives
Rev. Michael Whalen was a pleasure to work with from start to finish. His warm and professional tone was consistent from the first call through the ceremony itself. He worked colla...
boratively with us to create the perfect ceremony and allowed us to choose readings, ceremony style, and include personal details as well. Highly recommend!
There aren't enough things we can say about Reverend Michael. He created the most magical, personalized approach to our ceremony and people continue to remind us how incredible it ...
was. he is an absolute pleasure to work with leading up to the event, and day of does not disappoint! I would choose him to capture our ceremony in every lifetime! you won't regret it!
We cannot thank Rev. Michael enough. He was so helpful in making sure our ceremony suited us perfectly, he also helped with the marriage certificate and everything that needed to b...
e done prior. He was so professional and a pleasure to have as part of our big day. What a beautiful ceremony that we will remember forever.
Michael was amazing. He was very professional and responsive since the first time we connected. He had a lot of great suggestions for the ceremony and made it very easy for us. Man...
y people came up to us saying how beautiful the ceremony was, and his delivery, structure, and added details really helped make the ceremony special. He also helped with the marriage license process and made it really easy for us.
We couldn’t have asked for a better officiant for our wedding! From start to finish, Rev. Michael was incredibly professional, quick to respond, and always happy to answer our ques...
tions. He really listened to what we wanted for our ceremony and made sure it reflected us perfectly. The pace and flow of the ceremony were spot on — it felt natural, heartfelt, and meaningful. Truly everything you could want in a wedding officiant!
Rev. Michael is a true professional. We got married at The Park Loft in Oceanport and the ceremony was just perfect. He took the time to get to know us, our story, and made sure...
every detail was covered. 10/10!
We got married at Clark’s Landing Yacht Club in August 2025 and had our ceremony onsite. We knew we wanted everything at the venue, but didn’t know where to start when it came to a...
n officiant. We ended up speaking to a few officiants, and then found Reverend Whalen. Not only were his reviews excellent, but from our first conversation on FaceTime, we were very impressed with Reverend Whalen’s professionalism, attention to detail, focus, guidance, and expertise. All of that made our decision very easy! From the very start, Reverend Whalen was extremely knowledgeable, helpful, and very quick to respond whenever we had questions. His ceremony structure is perfect and customizable to how you want it to flow. We incorporated everything we wanted to, including memorials and a rose ceremony for our moms. He helped us figure out the kind of ceremony we wanted to and what we even wanted to be included because at first we weren’t sure, but Reverend Whalen’s guidance proved to be perfect to help us build our ceremony. At the wedding itself, he smoothly took care of everything and did a wonderful job with the ceremony itself. And he has a calming voice too so that helped take away some nerves when we stood up there in front of of everyone! But all in all we would 10/10 recommend working with Reverend Whalen - he helped make our day perfect and helped us craft the perfect ceremony for us.
Rev. Micheal was great to work with! He was personable, professional, and so easy to communicate with! He made our wedding ceremony one we won't forget- he truly made is so special...
for us. We highly recommend him!
We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect officiant for our wedding. From the very beginning, Rev. Michael Whalen was warm, organized, and attentive, making sure every detail of th...
e ceremony reflected us as a couple. He guided us through the process with ease, offered thoughtful suggestions, and really took the time to get to know our story.
On our wedding day, the ceremony was everything we hoped for—personal, meaningful, and beautifully delivered. So many of our guests commented on how heartfelt and unique it felt. [Officiant’s Name] has a true gift for creating an atmosphere that is both joyful and deeply moving.
We are so grateful to have had him play such an important role in our day and would recommend them wholeheartedly to any couple looking for someone who brings sincerity, professionalism, and warmth to their ceremony.
Rev. Michael was friendly and enthusiastic from our first call with him a year before our wedding. He got to know us so he could make the ceremony meaningful and unique to our jour...
ney together as a couple! Highly recommend choosing him for your special day.
I can’t recommend Rev. Whalen enough! He did an amazing job and was so incredible throughout the whole process. He really took the time to get to know both myself and my husband wh...
ich was reflected in his words during our ceremony. He told us what to expect leading up to our wedding day, how to go about getting our marriage license, and checked in along the way. Every raved about how great of a job he did at our ceremony and we couldn’t agree more!
Rev. Whalen was the best! We wanted something very short, sweet and simple and that's exactly what we got. We had an intro meeting with him and he was able to craft exactly what we...
wanted. Would recommend him to anyone in the area!
My husband and I are so happy we chose Rev. Whalen as our officiant. After our first phone call, we both knew he was the perfect person to officiate and celebrate our wedding. From...
the beginning he was funny, organized and personable. He truly took the time to get to know us as a couple and our love story. He planned the ceremony to include all of the elements we wanted and gave suggestions of different things I had not even thought to include or heard of. Our guests could not believe that he had not known us for longer, and had such nice things to say about the entire ceremony itself. Watching the ceremony back now, it is clear that we made the perfect choice in having Rev. Whalen as our officiant!
I'm so glad we chose to book Rev. Whalen as our officiant. When I originally came across his profile and reviews, longing with meeting him, I just knew he was our guy. He was so ki...
nd, funny, well structured, organized, very personal, completely well pre-planned, prepared, and his overall personality was just so awesome that he made this entire experience rather joyful. I had zero worries about him performing his tasks & he takes the time to really get to know who you are as a couple, as well as your love story. My guests also had a lot of nice things to say about him too on behalf of his energy, how well he spoke, and how overall down to earth, yet professional he was (and they're right) You can undoubtably see he loves his job and simply great at it. Rev. Whalen, thank you for helping make our wedding day truly the best and memorable. Especially in the heat, you were more than wonderful. If you're reading this review -this is your sign to book him!
Reverend Whalen was the perfect officiant for us and we are so grateful to him. He was incredibly professional, helpful and really took the time to learn about us and our story. He...
walked us through the ceremony and took into account what we wanted in our ceremony. He helped us understand the marriage license process and filing. We could not recommend him more.
Michael was organized, thoughtful, and professional throughout our entire experience. I would definitely recommend him to anyone getting married in the NJ area!
Rev. Whalen was amazing from the start. We decided to go with him after our first conversation. The ceremony he wrote for us was absolutely what we wanted, as well as the suggeste...
d readings. On our wedding day, he was prompt and did an amazing job marrying us. I couldn't have asked for a better officiant.
My husband and I had the best experience with Rev. Michael Whalen. He actually conducted three ceremonies for us, including one special for my grandmother as she wasn't able to mak...
e it to our official wedding day. That required a good amount of travel for him, but he did it anyway and I am so grateful to have had that opportunity to be married in front of her. Everything with Rev. Whalen was seamless. He always took the time to explain things to us and make sure we were aligned with the ceremony. We highly recommend using Rev. Whalen for your big day!
We are very fortunate to have had Reverend Whalen officiate our wedding. He is professional, friendly, and a pleasure to work with. He took the time to learn about my wife's and my...
relationship, and he arranged a beautiful ceremony incorporating all those details. He also answered all our questions about obtaining our marriage license and certificate. I cannot recommend him highly enough. Thank you, Reverend Whalen!
Michael was our officiant for our wedding in September 2024 and was wonderful! He was easy to work with and walked us through what would go on during the ceremony which helped ease...
our anxieties! When we also needed to make some changes, Michael was extremely helpful. If my husband and I could give him 10 stars we would! Thank you so much Michael!
Rev. Michael Whalen was the perfect choice to officiate our wedding! He was extremely professional, receptive to our feedback and changes we wanted made to the ceremony, and had an...
overall great attitude that made our ceremony feel special with some humor sprinkled within. We would recommend him to any and all couples!!
Rev Michael Whalen was absolutely amazing for our wedding on 12/6/24! He took the time to get to know our story and our family, incorporated our Christian faith and had amazing sug...
gestions and additions with so many personal touches to our ceremony. He delivered everything expected and more for our wedding day. Highly recommend!
Rev. Michael Whalen was absolutely amazing. We had an unfortunate last minute hiccup with our previously booked officiant & Rev. Michael Whalen swept in & saved the day.
He spoke...
with grace and professionalism and was detailed with his words. He captivated the room with his voice & made our day run seamlessly!
We can’t recommend him enough!
Thank you reverend! -Bailey & Nick
Our experience with Reverend Michael was a 12/10.
His professionalism is off the charts and the way he was able to portray my husband and Is relationship felt as though we knew him...
for years.
He was also gracious enough to stay and do a blessing before dinner which was extremely important to my family. The amount of guests who came up to us during and after our wedding praising his ceremony are to many to count. We had such a beautiful ceremony thanks to Reverend Michael
Rev. Michael was an absolute pleasure to work with! He works with you to nail down your ceremony so everything runs so smoothly. He is such a nice man and incorporates details of y...
our love story into your ceremony. Booking with him was one of the best wedding decisions we made! He is very experienced and handles the submitting of your marriage license to the town!
Expertise with Interfaith Ceremonies
We and our guests were so impressed with Rev. Michael’s creativity and expertise in weaving together two faiths into a beautiful and inclusive...
ceremony.
We came to Rev. Michael with the challenge of creating a non-traditional ceremony for our two faiths. He guided us throughout the process with his knowledge and brilliant suggestions on how to bring in both wedding tradition faiths to tell a beautiful story of who we are as a couple.
Rev. Michael brought laughter and tears while our families all felt united as on
We could not have picked a better officiant. Rev. Whelan is friendly and professional. He is also flexible when working with different requests and changes. Our family and friends ...
enjoyed his presence and the beauty of our wedding ceremony. The ceremony script made the day very special and personal to us. We were very blessed to have had him as part of our wedding and very grateful for his services.
Rev. Whalen was such an honor to work with! He was professional, prompt, responsive, and extremely willing to work with the different requests we had made in regards to our multi f...
aith ceremony. We highly recommend working with him and are very thankful for his role in our special day.
We hired Rev. Michael Whalen for our wedding in April & he was excellent from the start! From the very first intro meeting, we knew he would be a great fit for our wedding. He was ...
super organized, perfectly prepared and added such a nice touch to our ceremony. He was also super flexible the day of when we decided to take a piece out of the ceremony. Our guests loved how personalable he was and we are still getting compliments on our ceremony! We highly recommend Rev. Whalen for your occasion!!
Michael was an absolute pleasure to work with! He listened and did exactly what my husband and I were looking for. He spoke well, he was easy to work with and made our ceremony the...
icing on the cake! We can’t thank him enough for being a special part in our wedding day!!!
It was such a pleasure working with Rev Michael Whalen! He provided us with so many options of what could be done and said at our ceremony which helped us create our own personal c...
eremony that we were looking for. Our ceremony was so smooth and he brought such a warm, welcoming presence. We are forever grateful to him for making our special moment so unforgettable!
Working with Rev. Whalen was a wonderful experience. He took the time to know our love story. He gave us several readings to choose from for our ceremony and took care of all th...
e paper work. The day of our wedding my brother asked me how long I knew Rev. Whalen and I said not long at all. He spoke of our journey to become husband and wife as if he knew us right from the beginning. He was amazing!!!
Mike made the whole process so easy!! We got married at The English Manor on 10/8/2023 and the whole process leading up to, the work needed day-of, and processing paperwork afterwa...
rd was a breeze with Mike. He knew exactly what we were looking for when we couldn’t quite voice it ourselves, was full of suggestions when we were looking for readings outside the norm, and he made us feel very calm during the actual ceremony. We didn’t need him to attend the rehearsal and he was still flawless! My family is hard to please and they were complimenting Mike all around. I would recommend him over and over again.
Contact
12 Victoria Ln, Neptune, NJ | All locations in New Jersey, New York City & Phila areas
Rev. Michael D. Whalen's photos