The Jewish wedding is celebrated according to numerous customs and laws designed to bring out its full spiritual and material significance. Using gestures, symbolism and Hebrew verses, all these rites express the profound meaning of the union of a man and a woman, including the establishment of a certain number of obligations that are automatically created between the spouses.<\/p>\n
In France, Jewish marriages require a birth certificate, the parents’ marriage certificate (ketubah<\/em>), the parents’ family record book (livret de famille) and the bride and groom’s family record book (livret de famille), to ensure that the marriage is legal.<\/p>\n
In most Sephardic Jewish weddings, the wedding ceremony is preceded by a henna party.<\/p>\n
Wedding customs<\/strong><\/h3>\n
The wedding day is an extremely auspicious day to repent for past sins, so much so that some brides and grooms fast on their wedding day and read the prayer recited on Yom Kippur (Great Forgiveness) instead of the afternoon prayer normally recited every day of the year. Their sins are forgiven on this day, as a new life together begins, symbolizing the fact that their union is in some way the birth of a new soul through the fusion of their respective souls.<\/p>\n
The bride and groom are considered to have the status of king and queen for a year, and especially for the seven days following the wedding. For this reason, they are forbidden to do any work whatsoever, and so relatives take advantage of the occasion to perform a good deed, like servants who cheerfully serve their king or queen: they dress the bride and groom before the ceremony, they invite the newlyweds to a banquet during the following seven days, and so on. The bride and groom are called khatan<\/em> for the man and kala<\/em> for the woman.<\/p>\n
Jewish weddings are celebrated under the bridal canopy (chuppah). This symbolizes the new home which, according to the prophet Malachi, is called \u201ca sanctuary for the Lord\u201d.<\/p>\n
The ritual<\/strong><\/h3>\n
The ceremony proceeds as follows: the officiating rabbi stands under the bridal canopy, where the groom is invited to join him; the groom is usually accompanied by his parents. Finally, the bride is invited. She stops a few meters before the bridal canopy, and the groom comes down to place the veil over her face. This gesture symbolizes the groom’s verification that this is indeed his wife, and his covering of her face once he’s sure it’s the right one; it refers to Jacob’s first marriage, to which Laban deceitfully gave Leah instead of Rachel. Then the groom returns under the chuppah, followed by his bride-to-be.<\/p>\n
The chanting of blessings<\/strong><\/h3>\n
The officiating rabbi begins by filling a wine glass and reading the engagement blessings:<\/p>\n
Baroukh ata Adona\u00ef Elohenou melekh ha-olam, bore peri hagefen.<\/em><\/p>\n
Baroukh ata Adona\u00ef Elohenou melekh ha-olam, acher kidechanou bemitsvotav vetsivanou al ha-arayot ve-asar lanou et ha-arousot, ve-hitir lanou et ha-netouot lanou al yede \u1e25oupa ve-kidouchin. Baroukh ata Adona\u00ef, mekadech amo Yisrael al yede \u1e25oupa ve-kidouchin.<\/em><\/p>\nThe chuppah<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Praise be to you, Eternal One, our God, King of the Universe, who created the fruit of the vine.<\/p>\n
Praise be to you, Eternal One, our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us with your commandments, and given us prescriptions concerning unions between close relatives, forbidding us the betrothals of others and allowing us unions consecrated by religious marriage. Blessed are you, Eternal One, who sanctifies your people Israel with the bridal canopy and the consecration of marriage.<\/p>\n
Blessing of the engaged couple under the chuppah <\/em>(Ashkenazi rite) – Jacques Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n
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