Matt and Tanya Get Married!!

Saturday May 18th. It was time for Matt and Tanya to get married.

Matt Signing the Ketubah

It was planned and now was the time.I never been to a Jewish wedding before. The wedding was very nice. It was a traditional Jewish marriage with the wedding canopy of silken cloth above the bride and groom.

This is called the Chuppah. This is symbolic of the new home the couple will make. I will let a better authority called the Jewish Wedding Glossary describe it for you:

The Chuppah, or wedding canopy, is a covering, often cloth, held aloft on four poles. The Chuppah is symbolic of the first roof the bride and groom share together, representing their new home. That there are no walls in this new home, encourages the couple to follow in the ways of Abraham and Sarah, whose tent was always open to guests.

I was one of the 2 witness to sign the  Ketubah (literally the marriage contract). Cindy and I signed the Ketubah just before  wedding

the ceremony. That was really very solemn and I was touched that I was chosen to sign it. Here is a description from the Jewish Wedding Glossary:

Traditionally spells out the husband’s obligation to his wife, everything from sustaining her with basic necessities to honoring and cherishing her. Additionally, the traditional Ketubah discusses how the husband must support his wife during their lives together

The ceremony was direct and to the point with the Cantor reading in Hebrew and English. I was up on Seven Circles I have heard about this but had never seen it before. It was nice to see Tanya circle around Matt. Again, I will turn to the Jewish Wedding Glossary for the symbolism of this tradition.

Where the Wedding Took Place 

the platform with Cindy and her daughter as well as Matt's younger son. One of the unique parts of the wedding is where the bide circles the groom 7 times. This is called the Seven Circles 

The custom of the bride circling the groom seven times is rich with symbolism. The following is a sampling of the meaningful interpretations that have been ascribed to this custom :
1) This parallels the seven days of creation, and symbolizes the fact that the bride and groom are about to create their own “new world” together.
2) Seven circles correspond to the seven times in the Torah where it is written “…and when a man takes a wife.”
3) When Joshua led the Children of Israel in the battle for the city of Jericho, he was instructed to circle the city seven times, resulting in the walls of the city crumbling. As two people enter into marriage, they face the challenge of breaking down the “walls” that may exist between them.

Witness Signature

 Last but NOT least there is The Breaking of the Glass. This is in my mind that the marriage is How Stuff Works. Its a pretty good description of what I witnessed at the wedding.

Tanya and her Father.

official and the celebration for the couple begins.  Here is a good description from a site called

Matt and Sons!

After the groom places a ring on the finger of his bride, he stomps on a glass wrapped in a napkin or cloth.breaking the glass is extremely symbolic. It echoes the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem and reminds the newlyweds and all the guests of the commandment in Psalms 137:6 to "set Jerusalem above my highest joy," even in the happiest of times

There were about 40 people there. When Matt stomped on the glass the assembled exclaimed MAZEL TOV! That was way fun! Here is the meaning of Mazel Tov!

Congratulations!!! :)

It's a blessing and congratulatory statement that essentially means good luck. It can be given at any time, but most non-Jews are familiar with its role in weddings.

Fun After the Wedding

They have some nice friends and the people were nice to me.  It Siouxie and the Banshees in the synagogue that's pretty funky. In my case finding myself dancing to their song "Kiss Them for Me" with a nice

Stepping Lively

was interesting  to listen to the likes of New Order and

Having fun with Patricia

woman having fun while negative thoughts of WXPN playing this son TO DEATH. Also being fired from a volunteer position with the station. Geez.. hearing Michela Majoun still makes me gag! Umm... resentment much? So, enough about my issues back to the wedding!

Reception!!

It was a nice fun wedding and the first one I have been in YEARS! Its the first time I have seen Matt since he was last married in the year 2000!!

 I put up photos on Facebook that I hope folks will like. I was bummed that I had to leave early in the morning yesterday at 8 am. Matt dropped  me off on his way to work to work. The ride home

The DJ

was not bad since I got to sleep and well that is a new entry for this blogger. Good luck Matt and Tanya, I will see you in NYC later this Summer!!

"Steane"r and her Son