Breaking the glass

Re: Breaking the glass

• Musicheals71 member

  

  January 2011 edited December 2011

  Hello, Heather, welcome to the Jewish Weddings Board!
  
  In answer to your questions:
  
  1.  You break the glass before you kiss.
  2.  This is the interpretation we used in our program for the Breaking of The Glass:
  
  The final event under the chuppah is the breaking of the glass.  This event has several meanings.  Even in our greatest moment of joy, we remember those who are suffering.  We also commemorate the destruction of the Temple with the destruction of the glass.  Most of all, we know that the marriage will last as long as the glass is broken - forever.  At the same time, the shattering of the glass is a cue to all of us here to shout out, "Mazel Tov!", and shower the newly married couple with love and joy!

  

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• fallbride1109 member

  

  January 2011 edited December 2011

  We also had an interfaith wedding so we used a slightly different interpretation.  This is what we put in the program (and is pretty much what was said by the rabbi):
  This Jewish tradition reminds us that love, like glass, is fragile and must be protected. For the bride and the groom, the shattering of this glass also symbolizes the breaking down of barriers between people of different cultures and faiths.  The glass is broken to protect the marriage with an implied prayer:  "May your marriage last as long as it would take to repair this glass."

  Planning the Meal
  With All the Trimmings
  

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• MrsMLRB

  

  January 2011 edited December 2011

  This is the final act of the wedding. There are many interpretations for why the groom breaks the glass. Some say it is to remember, even on the happiest day of our lives, the sadness of the destruction of the second Jewish temple.  Modern scholars have also interpreted this act to mean that, like glass, a marriage is fragile and must be well tended or it will shatter.
  

   

  Sorry about the strange font but here is what we have so far.

   

  

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• MrsWeiner

  

  January 2011 edited December 2011

  Thanks so much ladies. I really appreciate the information you have shared.
  I am glad to know the meaning of the glass and when to do this in the ceremony. I must say I am so sorry I have not gotten involved in with this board sooner. I've really enjoyed reading your posts though!
  Thanks for welcoming me :-)

  

  
  Make a pregnancy ticker

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• ARod22

  

  February 2011 edited December 2011

  1. Right before you kiss.
  2. Every happy moment is still tinged with some sadness at the brokenness of the world.. but every mitzvah, such as marrying, brings us closer to repairing the world, tikkun olam. Breaking the glass is a reminder of this.
  It's also the last time the groom will ever put his foot down

  
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