Download hsc – marriage – judaism – yr 12

MARRIAGE
HSC RELIGIOUS TRADITION
DEPTH STUDY:
JUDAISM
Students learn about :
SIGNIFICANT PRACTICES IN THE LIFE OF
ADHERENTS
ONE significant practice within JUDAISM
drawn from:
 Death and Mourning
 Marriage
 Synagogue Services
Students learn to:

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Describe ONE significant practice
within Judaism drawn from - death
and mourning; marriage; and
synagogue services.
Demonstrate how this practice
expresses the beliefs of Judaism
Analyse the significance of this
practice for both the individual and
the Jewish community.
RELIGIOUS RITES
Are a method by which members of a religious
community celebrate what is important in their
lives and is an important medium for bringing
the individual and the group into contact with
the transcendent.
The effect of religious rites is to give meaning to the events
of life (human experience) and place them in the context of
the groups’ beliefs. In this way they touch that which is most
important to group identity, and inspire us towards an ideal.
RELIGIOUS RITES IN JUDAISM:
Such as rites of passage, are important elements
of religious identity within the Jewish tradition.
They are celebrations of, and memorials to the covenants by
which Jews understand their relationship with God as
expressed in the Torah.
For community worship, the synagogue is the focus, where
the central place of the Torah is evident, and the rituals
cement the individuals place within the community.
Religious rites and their effect on
the everyday lives of believers :
Provide continuity within the tradition –
because religious rites are usually based
on foundational events/stories.
 Provide opportunity for transformation of
the individual.
eg. rites of passage =transformed status
eg. rites of public worship = transformed
individually to live closer to the ideal as a
result of communion.
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RITES OF PASSAGE
A rite of passage is an important and often complex
ritual that allows an individual or individuals, to be
transformed from one stage to another i.e. from an
old status to a new status.
Rites of passage affect this change of status as
well as proclaiming it to the community. Thus
there is a strong community element in rites of
passage – it confirms the beliefs of the group,
encourages group cohesion, and teaches moral
lessons.
BEFORE
PRE-LIMINAL
The pre-ritual
status of the
individual who
is in the old
role, phase of
life or social
status,
preparing for
the new role,
phase of life
or social
status.
DURING
LIMINAL
When the
individual is
educated and
transformed so as
to learn those
things necessary
for their new
status.
AFTER
POSTLIMINAL
This stage is
characterised by
absorption into
the faith
community as a
member who has
achieved a new,
higher status.
Religious Rites of passage
results in JudaismSpiritual growth
 A deeper relationship with God
 A new, often higher status in the
religious community
 Additional rights and responsibilities
 A reminder of the history of Israel
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DESCRIBE…

Provide characteristics and features
Describe ONE significant
practice within Judaism
drawn from - death and
mourning; marriage; and
synagogue services.
Jewish Marriage as a rite of passage
The time
The couple are required to be over the age of 18 years. Jewish
weddings can take place on any day except the Shabbat and
festivals. Most Jewish weddings take place on a Sunday, usually
in the afternoon.
The place
The wedding ceremony may takes place in the synagogue or
outside. It always takes place under a chuppah or canopy.
The
participants
The rite of marriage is a public ceremony- the couple are
required to make their vows in public. Also present are 2
witnesses, families and friends and a rabbi usually officiates,
though it can be any observant Jew – marriage under Jewish law
is a contractual agreement between a man and a woman. A
minyan is required to be present for the blessing.
The charter
In Judaism marriage is seen as the ideal human state. Marriage
is rated very highly, it is seen as the way to emotional and
spiritual fulfillment.
Marriage is the basic social institution in Judaism.
Marriage provides physical fulfillment in the form of sexual
expression.
Marriage is seen as a personal relationship.
Marriage is a holy covenant- bound by contract.
The
set
form
The bride visits the mikveh- immersion pool (Orthodox)
On the shabbat before the wedding, the groom is called to
read the Torah.
The couple may fast before the ceremony (Orthodox)
Lifting of the veil.
Wedding takes place under the Chuppah.
Bride is escorted by either her parents or both mothers
Escorts carry candles
Bride circles groom seven times
Initial blessings are recited – over wine as both partners drink
from a cup
The giving of the ring – where life long commitment is implied
by the words spoken
Marriage contract – ketubah
Marriage closes with blessings recited over a cup of wine.
Recitation of the seven blessings.
The breaking of a wine glass
Yichud and fast is broken.
The
symbol
system
Chuppah
Two escorts
Nuts, raisins, sweets, fasting before the
ceremony
Initial blessings over the wine
Giving of the ring and recitation of marriage
vows
The ketubah
Handkerchief
The reciting of the seven blessings
Breaking of the wine glass
Retirement to a yichud
Final blessings over wine
Lighted candles
The hierarchical Once married, the wife has responsibility for
the home in order to free her husband to study
and role
the Torah. The wife is required to keep a
relations
kosher home and to bring up and teach the
children. Her responsibility is to ensure that all
that goes on in the home is expressive of
Judaism. The role of the husband is to provide
for and protect the family. Both roles are seen
as equally important, and marriage is viewed
as an equal partnership.
The
transformation
Prior to marriage this couple were single and
from 2 separate families. Marriage unites these
two people together in love, forming a new
family unit in which husband and wife are
responsible for one another and for their
children. Together the couple are now
responsible for continuing the Jewish Nation by
starting a family, keeping the mitzvah and
bringing up children in the Jewish tradition.
DEMONSTRATE…

Show by example
Demonstrate
how this
practice expresses the
beliefs of Judaism
How the Jewish Rite of Marriage makes present
the central beliefs of the tradition:
Sacred
Texts
Provide
a basis for the ethical teachings about marriage
Talmud explains the form of the marriage rite- this ensures
that key beliefs about marriage are made present in the
rituals.
The Torah gives little guidance regarding the procedures for
marrying.
The marriage rite does not rely on the use of sacred texts to
make present the ethical teachings about marriage to any
significant extent
Various rituals are derived from the Hebrew scriptures and
these assist the practising Jew in maintaining a knowledge of
certain parts of the Torah and other parts of the Hebrew
Bible.
 Marriage is seen as a personal, contractual
relationship. The Talmud specifies the role played by the
ketubah in the marriage rite, reinforcing the belief that
marriage is a holy covenant, a contractual relationship.
How the Jewish Rite of Marriage makes present
the central beliefs of the tradition:
The chuppah symbolises the marital home into which the
The
Symbols groom now brings his bride. It is used to make present to
the believers the centrality of the home, and the role of the
wife as homemaker, and in bringing up and teaching the
children..
The initial blessings over wine symbolise the joy which
the couple now share together, they also fulfill a mitzvah.
Jews believe that they communicate with God and grow in
their relationship with God by carrying out the mitzvot.
The ketubah reinforces the belief that marriage is a holy
covenant.
The seven blessings praise God for the creation of all
things, of Man, and of man and woman in God’s image, and
link the couple to the story of creation and the history of
Israel.
The smashing of the wine glass further links the couple
to the history of Israel.
ANALYSE…

Identify components and the
relationship between them; draw
out and relate implications.
Analyse the significance
of this practice for both
the individual and the
Jewish community.
The significance of Marriage
Judaism considers marriage to be a religious
obligation for three major reasons:
1. To bear children in fulfilment of God’s blessing
– Genesis 1:28;
2. To provide a strong foundation for one’s
dealings with society;
3. And to establish family life in a loving home.
Indeed Jewish people consider the home to be
like a ‘little temple’ Ezekiel 11:16 – where family
members find rest and serve each other with
love and compassion.
The significance of Marriage
For Judaism, marriage serves three
interrelated purposes.
1. The propagation of the human species,
as commanded in Genesis 1:28, "Be fruitful
and multiply". According to talmudic law,
this obligation is deemed to have been
fulfilled when a man has begotten at least
one son and one daughter, just as God
created male and female in the Garden of
Eden.
http://www.liberaljudaism.org/lj_wherewestand_marriage.htm
The significance of Marriage
2. Marriage affords loving companionship.
Again in the words of the Book of Genesis,
"It is not good that man should be alone....
Therefore shall a man leave his father and
his mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and
they become one flesh" (Genesis 2:18 and
24).
http://www.liberaljudaism.org/lj_wherewestand_marriage.htm
The significance of Marriage
3. Marriage establishes the family as the
basic social unit, and the home as the
"little sanctuary" (Ezekiel 11:16) in which
the father corresponds to a priest, the
mother to a priestess, and the table to an
altar. It is where children can grow up
under the loving protection and guidance of
their parents, and where the Jewish religion
can be practised and transmitted from
generation to generation.
http://www.liberaljudaism.org/lj_wherewestand_marriage.htm
The significance of marriage for both the
individual and the community:
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Marriage is seen as a personal, contractual
relationship.
Marriage is seen as the fulfilment of the
Mitzvah. All Jewish men and women are expected
to marry. This is the first commandment – located
in Genesis.
Marriage is a holy covenant.
Marriage is a religious obligation.
Marriage structures the lives of the couple and
assigns clear roles to each partner.
Marriage fulfils a mitzvah as it is a positive
religious duty.
Marriage signifies the beginning of a new
family.
The significance of marriage for both the
individual and the community:
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Marriage focuses on the centrality of
the home and family, and thus the
continuation of the Jewish nation.
Marriage is a way of holiness for the
couple. It is through their relationship and
the following of the mitzvah that the couple
builds their relationship with God.
The significance of marriage for both the
individual and the community:
Within
the marriage ceremony, the seven
blessings praise God for the creation of all things,
linking the couple to the story of creation and the
history of the Jewish people.
Elevates the ordinary/mundane to the
supernatural. It is a means of contact with God,
who is present at the ceremony. For example, the
recitation of the seven blessings, is designed to
sanctify the ordinary, to transform this particular
couple as their love embodies God’s creation,
revelation, and redemption in the here and now.
The significance of marriage for both the
individual and the community:

A means of identification with Judaism and
with the Jewish community. It helps the couple
to understand more clearly the central beliefs of
Judaism. The marriage ceremony also strengthens
the community of believers by putting the couple
on equal footing with other married couples within
the community and making them responsible for
ensuring their lifestyle is in keeping with Jewish
teaching and tradition.