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Prague · 28 Cheshvan 5787

Shabbat this week · 16:02–17:11

Wedding

Jewish Wedding

חֲתֻנָּהchatunah
Awaiting expert review

A traditional wedding joins two legal steps, betrothal (kiddushin) and marriage (nisuin), into a single ceremony under a canopy (chuppah). It includes the marriage contract (ketubah), a ring, the seven blessings and the breaking of a glass. Many customs are communal.

01

Legal basis

Halakhah

The Mishnah lists the ways of effecting kiddushin, among them the handing over of an object of value; today a ring without stones is used, given before two witnesses.1

Halakhah

The ketubah (כְּתֻבָּה) is a contract written in Aramaic that sets out the husband's obligations toward his wife, including financial provision in case of divorce or widowhood.2

Halakhah

Under the chuppah the seven blessings (sheva berakhot) are recited, and they are repeated at the festive meals during the following week.3,4

02

Customs

Minhag

Breaking a glass at the end of the ceremony recalls the destruction of Jerusalem in the midst of joy; tradition links it with the Talmudic story of an expensive cup being broken at a wedding.5

MinhagAshkenazim

Ashkenazi customs: the veiling of the bride by the groom (bedeken), the bride circling the groom seven times, the couple fasting on the wedding day and the groom's white kittel.

MinhagSephardimMizrahimYemenite Jews

In Sephardi, Oriental and Yemenite communities a pre-wedding henna celebration is widespread.

Bible

The wedding phrase "the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness" is quoted in one of the seven blessings, following the prophet Jeremiah.6

03

Today

Modern practiceIsrael⁂ To verify

In Israel, Jews contract religious marriages through the Chief Rabbinate; the state registers civil marriages contracted abroad.

Modern practice⁂ To verify

The movements differ on questions such as an egalitarian ketubah, intermarriage or same-sex marriage; Orthodox Judaism does not recognize the latter two, while some liberal congregations allow them.

FAQ

When are weddings not held?

On Shabbat and holidays, and traditionally also during part of the Omer period and in the "Three Weeks" before Tisha B'Av; the details vary between communities.⁂ To verify

Is a rabbi required?

Halakhically, the witnesses and the correct procedure are what matter; in practice a rabbi officiates and ensures the ceremony is valid.

Sources

Secondary literature

  1. 8Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd ed.

See also