Plan a Jewish Wedding Perfectly
The Jewish wedding is a revered mix of traditional values, religious beliefs, and a lot of fun as well. If you are in the business of wedding planning, or you have been tasked with handling a Jewish wedding in all its entirety, it is of the utmost importance that you take time to know more about their traditions. What is expected? What you can do to organise the perfect Jewish wedding ceremony without a hitch?
Dress Code: Keep the Themed Clothing Reserved for the After Party
While attending the wedding ceremony, all guests are supposed to follow a particular dressing protocol. Therefore, if you have any themes planned, it should be in line with the following, or the plan should wait until the ceremony is over and the after-party begins:
- Women can wear almost any dress, but their shoulders must be covered properly during the ceremony, especially if it’s in the synagogue
- Men can wear suits or tuxedos, but their heads should be covered with a yarmulke.
Sitting Arrangements
As a wedding planner, it is one of your basic duties to make the seating arrangements correct. Since we are discussing a Jewish wedding here, there are some very strict rules that need to be kept in mind and arranged well in advance.
First and foremost, even in the comparatively liberal-minded Jewish weddings, men and women are expected to sit at different sides of the wedding aisle.
Secondly, in case very strict religious protocols are in effect, you will need to arrange for a partition between the men and the women at the ceremony. Do talk to the bride and the groom to know whether the families are orthodox enough to want a partition.
Arrange for Candies
After the Aliyah blessing ceremony is over, the rabbi will proceed with the misheberach blessing ceremony. At that time, the guests are supposed to have enough candies to throw at the couple so that they can have a marital life as sweet as those candies.
Being the wedding planner, you will need to make sure that every guest has a decent amount of candy to throw during the misheberach. Watch out for the children eating some beforehand!
Find a Jewish Wedding Band for Hire
A typical Jewish wedding ceremony can take 30Â minutes to an hour. Once the couple has finished sharing their first meal together during the yichud phase, all guests, the family members, relatives, the bride and the groom are supposed to celebrate by performing the hora. This a form of circular dancing that everyone present engages in, with the tunes of a Jewish wedding band playing traditional music.
There are hardly any better Jewish wedding bands than Jam Hot for the hora and even the mezinke (the parents’ dance). Jam Hot are an international show band. Just visit their website and watch their previous performances both as a Jewish wedding band for hire, as well as a show band for all types of wedding celebrations.
These are all important facts, but there could be more, depending on how orthodox the families or even one of the two families are. Talk to them. Get to understand the rituals and expectations well before arranging anything. Even if you are a Jew yourself, there is a chance that you might not know about certain family customs beforehand.
Many thanks to Emily Roberts for this article.
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