Return to the Jewish Wedding Guide for Interfaith Couples.

Today, [A] and [B] have chosen to marry. Their love unites two different lives, families, and faiths. While appreciating the differences between their traditions, [bride] and [groom] believe that being together is far better than being apart. Because of their commitment to each other, I have asked them to remember that although their faiths have different histories, it was not always so. I have asked the bride to remember that Yeshua (whom Christians call Jesus) was a Jew, who interpreted his Jewish traditions in a particular historical moment. And I have asked the groom to remember that many Christian traditions have their roots in Jewish traditions, but that the traditions have been interpreted differently in particular historical moments. Out of these two distinct traditions, [A] and [B] have come together to honor the best of both, and to focus on their similarities rather than their differences.

This ceremony is a tribute to the couple’s creativity and mutual respect. It joins their cultural traditions and memories and symbolizes their wonderful commitment to honoring their very different roots. It testifies to their eagerness to share with one another the wealth of their individual heritages and, at the same time, to build together a unique partnership based on sharing, on joy, on learning, and on celebration. 

[A] and [B] have created this ceremony. They have woven from threads of two traditions a fabric that represents who they are together. Out of two different and distinct traditions, they have come together to learn the best of what each has to offer, appreciating their differences, and confirming that being together is far better than being apart from each other. As we bless this marriage under the huppah, the Jewish symbol of the new home being consummated here, we will later light the unity candle, the Christian symbol of two people becoming one in marriage.