Weekday Jewish Wedding Ceremony Local Temple

Bride-to-be asked...

My fiancé and I are not having a big wedding celebration just immediate family and 2 witnesses. I would prefer to get married by a Rabbi and not a JP. Would a Rabbi perform the ceremony at the temple during the week? Also, do we need to be members of the congregation?

Dear Bride-to-be

A couple can have a Jewish Wedding ceremony any day of the week. If couples decide to have a weekday Jewish Wedding, Tuesday would be the “chosen day” of the week. Tuesday is the third day of creation, and in the Torah it is repeated twice: "and G-d saw how good it was".

I cannot speak for your local temples on their policies of non-member Jewish Wedding ceremonies officiated by the Congregational Rabbi. However, I can guide you with the following information that will assist you.

It will be up to the Rabbi and the congregation. It is best to telephone or make an in-person visit and speak with the Rabbi's Secretary in the temple office of your local temple congregations.

Please Note: around this time of the summer is when most Congregational Rabbis take their vacations. If you were seeking a summertime wedding, do ask the first question, "is the Rabbi in town?", then, "will the Rabbi marry non-members during the week in the temple building?" Also, the Jewish High Holiday cycle begins soon after Labor Day weekend as well. Plan well.

Do Remember: raising a Chuppah, the wedding canopy, creates the couple's sacred space for their Jewish wedding ceremony. That is why the statement is true, "you can have a Jewish wedding ceremony anywhere when you raise the Chuppah." A Jewish wedding is based on customs and traditions. The holiest part of a Jewish wedding ceremony are the Jewish wedding vows and the traditional ring exchange with the index finger of the right hand.

All my best and Mazel Tov!
Rabbi Andrea Frank