CHICAGO — Shalom! Welcome to the wedding of Sarah and Samuel. Some of you have not been to a Jewish wedding before, or in a while, so here is a rundown of Hebrew words you’re going to run into today at our…
*Simcha, which means “happiness.” A simcha is a happy event, like a brit, a bat mitzvah, or a…
*Chattuna, a wedding, which comes from the word…
*Chattan, a groom, in this case, Samuel. He gets married to the…
*Kallah, the bride. She (that would be Sarah) will be the one welcoming you at the…
*Kabbalat panim, literally, the “accepting of faces.” It is a reception at which Sarah greets her guests. Meanwhile, the groom is at the…
*Chattan’s tish (“tish” is Yiddish for table.) The men gather around it to make toasts, learn a little Torah, and sign a document called the…
*T’naim. This short document, signed by two witnesses, attests to the legal terms of the engagement. Then the…
*Ketubah, or “writ,” is signed. It is often referred to as a Jewish marriage contract. This document is beautiful, but it also spells out the chattan’s formal and legal obligations to his kallah. Their business done, the men escort the groom joyously to the…
*Badeken, at which the chattan “bedecks” the kallah with her veil, after making sure it is her! Don’t laugh…we do this because, in the Torah, Jacob was tricked by his father-in-law, Laban, into marrying Leah instead of his beloved Rachel. Now, we always check! The couple then proceeds to the…
*Chuppah, the wedding canopy: four posts holding up a decorative cloth or a tallit by its corners, symbolizing their new home. The chattan puts on his…
*Kittel, a thin, white robe that is supposed to make Samuel look like an angel. Once it is on, we can begin the…
*Kiddushin, the marriage ceremony itself. The chattan arrives under the chuppah first, to be circled seven times by the kallah when she arrives.
Some couples choose to circle around each other. There are two main parts to the service, the first being the…
*Erusin, or formal engagement (in talmudic times, this might be held a year in advance of the wedding, but today it is done just before the official marriage formulations. Erusin is achieved with a blessing and a shared cup of wine, followed by the…
*Nesu’in, in which Sarah and Samuel actually get married. In a traditional wedding, Sam will place the ring on Sarah’s finger, while saying…
“Harai at mekudeshet lee, b’ta’ba’at zu, k’dat Mosheh v’Yisrael,” which means, “Be sanctified to me with this ring in accordance with the law of Moses and Israel.” Some couples exchange rings under the chuppah. The ketubah is then read. Then family members and friends join under the chuppah to recite the…
*Sheva Brachot, the Seven Blessings, which tie the wedding back to the original simcha, the marriage of Adam and Eve. Samuel will then step on a glass, which symbolizes the destruction of the Holy Temple (based on Psalm 137 that we should remember Jerusalem at our happiest hour). It is also a cue to yell…
* “Mazel Tov!” which is used as “Congratulations!” Actually, it means “a good constellation” and is a wish for luck and fortune. Then the couple bustles back down the aisle and is escorted by all the guests into a private room for…
*Yichud, which means “oneness.” It is their time to be alone together for the first time as husband and wife. Meanwhile, you will all take your seats for the…
*Seudat Mitzvah, which is not just a wedding feast but a fulfillment of a commandment to rejoice with the bride and groom in their happiness. Following the birkat hamazon, the grace after meals, the Sheva Brachot are recited once again. They are also recited after any meals with a bride and groom (with at least a minyan) during the week following their wedding.