The Marriage Ceremony Flashcards
what are the two events which take place during the lead up to a jewish wedding?
Aufruf for the groom(chassan) and the Mikvah for the bride(kallah)
what is the aufruf?
the aufruf is a special ceremony organised for the chassan on the Sabbath before the wedding. The chassan goes to the synagogue, reads from the Torah and announces the wedding to the congregation. Nuts, raisins and sweets are thrown at him to symbolise a sweet life. Refreshments follow for the congregation.
what are the variants present in the practice of aufruf?
In Reform Judaism and some Conservative communities, both the kallah and chassan read from the Torah.
what is the mikvah?
the mikvah is a ritual bathing ceremony which involves the bride, kallah, cleansing herself in a bath full of holy water and reciting prayers from scripture in hebrew.
what is the significance of the mikvah for the kallah and ceremony as a whole?
- according to the talmud, the ultimate source of water is the river which came from Eden. by bathing herself in water, the kallah is thourght to be paticipating in the wholeness of Eden to become pure just like adam and eve once did.
- is an act of ritualistic purification, and marks the beginning of a new life, like coming out of the womb, untouched by sin
what is the Kabbalit-Panim?
the pre chupah reception
what happens during the Kabbalit-Panim receptions?
the kallah and chassan are placed into seperate rooms, usually right next to eachother, and become signified as royalty
they sit in fancy chairs, smilar to thrones. the kallah entices in refreshments with her female friends and the chassan entices in singing, torah reciting and refreshments also with his male friends.
they are also both greeted by friends and family accompanied with words of encouragement and kind blessings
the ketubah, marriage contract , is also signed at the repception
what are some variations present in the kabbalit-panim ceremony?
in reform judaism, the kallah and chassan may share kabbalit panim together.
For orthodox Jews, the Ketubah is signed at the chassan’s tish and requires the signatures of two adult male witnesses. In Reform Judaism, the chassan, kallah, the officiant, witnesses (who may be women) and other guests, are present.
what is Badeken?
the veling ceremony
what does the Badeken entail?
it is where the chassan makes sure he is marrying the right women
where does the veiling tradition originate from in judaism?
the custom of covering a womens face originates from the Matriarch Rebecca, who covered her face when meeting her groom, Isaac in an act of modesty.
the act of the groom unveiling his bride originates from the sotry of Jacob, Rachel and Leah. rachels father told jacob he could marry his daughter if he worked for 7 years. of course, the father veiled the daughter Leah and tricked jacob into marrying the wrong women. jacob then had to work another 7 years to marry rachel.
what is the overall meaning of the unveiling ceremony?
The veil also emphasises that the groom is not solely interested in the bride’s physical features, but rather her inner beauty which she will never lose. It also emphasises the innate modesty that is a hallmark of the Jewish woman
