This coming Monday, May 19, I will be blessed to be celebrating the marriage of my fourth daughter, Avital, to Eliya, in the desert mountains outside of Jerusalem. As the excitement builds up, I invite you to join us and be part of our celebration. Of course, every wedding is joyous, but if you’ve never been to a traditional Jewish wedding or experienced that, especially here in Israel, you won’t want to miss it. There’s something remarkable in a traditional Jewish wedding that most Christians, specifically, and non-Jews in general, have never experienced. 

Many unique aspects of a traditional Jewish wedding include Biblical roots and customs going back thousands of years, connecting us to past generations, specifically in the Land of Israel. The wedding will be streamed here on Monday, May 19, from 11:30 Eastern time, with friends commenting who cannot join us in person, joining virtually to highlight some of the unique aspects of the wedding so you’ll understand what’s going on. 

Here’s a short overview: 

1. Before the ceremony, a marriage contract, the ketubah, is signed, outlining the groom’s responsibilities to the bride. This formal document, in Aramaic text that has remained the same for thousands of years, legally binds their marriage. 
2. After signing the ketubah with two witnesses, Eliya will be escorted by me and his father, and danced along with dozens of friends and family, to see Avital, who will be surrounded by my wife, Eliya’s mother, all their sisters, the bride’s maids, and many more. This is often the first time the couple will have seen one another in a week. They will have a quiet moment together amid hundreds of celebrants, receive blessings from their parents and grandparents, and he will place the veil over Avital’s face, bringing in Biblical reminders of Leah and Rachel, just to make sure I don’t switch Avital for one of her sisters.  
3. The wedding ceremony will take place under a canopy called a chuppah, with four open sides symbolizing the couple’s new home and God’s presence. In our case, the top of the chuppah will be the tallit, prayer shawl, of Avital’s maternal great-great-grandfather, as we used it for our wedding 33 years ago and for our other married children. 
4. Under the chuppah, Avital will circle Eliya seven times, a ritual symbolizing protection, unity, and the building of a spiritual wall around the marriage. This affirms that they are actively choosing to center one another’s lives around each other. 
5. The ceremony includes seven unique blessings, Sheva Brachot, recited over wine, focusing on creation, joy, and the couple’s union, which are unique to Jewish liturgy. Different people will be invited to take part in invoking these blessings, In our case, this will be a blend of the traditions of our respective families, specifically with Eliya’s relatives bringing in traditions from his family’s Jewish Yemenite background as the ingathering of the Jewish people from the four corners of the world. 
6. The ceremony is divided into two parts—kiddushin (betrothal) and nisuin (marriage)—and is marked by separate blessings, with Eliya giving Avital a ring. Two witnesses will affirm he places the ring on her finger, saying in Hebrew, “With this ring, you are consecrated to me by the laws of Moses and the people of Israel.” Cheers, singing, and dancing will follow this. Unlike Western/Christian weddings, where the bride and groom exchange vows, and someone “pronounces” them husband and wife, this affects their marriage. 
7. Because my family is comprised of native English speakers, some of the ceremonies will be translated into English. However, the ceremony is conducted primarily in Hebrew or Aramaic, a custom that goes back thousands of years. 
8. Another thousand-year-old tradition is that Eliya will break a glass, as a reminder of the destruction of the Temple, while singing the verse from Psalms 137, “If I forget you O Jerusalem, let my right hand lose its strength.” Also, during the ceremony, the rabbi will place ash from the destruction of the Temple on Eliya’s head. These symbolize that even in our most joyous occasions, we pray and yearn for Jerusalem and the Temple to be rebuilt, and that our lives remain incomplete. 
9. After the ceremony, Avital and Eliya will be danced out by friends and family, spending a brief period alone in private, yichud, symbolizing their new intimacy as husband and wife. As they begin their marriage together, the party will begin. 
10. The wedding meal (seudah) will be a lavish multi-course meal and include specific rituals like additional blessings and lively dancing. Traditionally, men and women will dance separately, and unlike modern social dancing, Eliya and Avital will be at the center of concentric circles of dancing, literally in the middle of the celebration. There will be lively dancing and additional fun, which are meant to bring extra joy to the bride and groom on this, their happiest day. 

These are just some of what is in store. Even if virtually, the experience will be unparalleled. Please join us in celebrating as we sing from Jeremiah 33:10-11, “Yet again there shall be heard, in the cities of Judah, and the streets of Jerusalem​. The voice of joy and the voice of gladness,​the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride.”

You will undoubtedly be blessed by experiencing our traditional Jewish wedding on Monday, May 19. The reception will begin at 11:30 AM Eastern time, followed by the ceremony at noon. The ceremony will be streamed, and you’re invited to join us here at https://youtube.com/live/jCF1sGWKWlc?feature=share. Of course, if you miss it, it will be at the same place for you to come back and see afterward. Mazal tov. Congratulations.