Since 1985, The Jewish Wedding by Anita Diamant sees a new edition, aimed to include the latest changes and understandings of the Jewish life in the last years, including the acceptance of same sex marriages. 'Jewish weddings are grounded in the past, but they have always been the stuff of the irrepressible present'.
Written in an accessible way, with many interesting Biblical and tradition-bounded examples, the book offers valuable insights into both the preparation process and the event as such, covering very important elements, such as the content of the ketuba, how to split the costs or dealing with tests for identifying possible genetic diseases. My list is considerably random and reductive but it is up to the reader to find out a lot of other intersting aspects. This is one of the many merits of this book: it is hardly an aspect of the Jewish Wedding left uncovered and I wish there are such valuable resources covering other important moments of the Jewish life circle too.
It also doesn't matter if you grew up Jewish or not or if you are part of a conservative or more liberal congregation: it creates bridges between different traditions and interpretations of the Jewish law being also a hard work of anthropolotical-like research and inquiry. If you are a person who, regardless of your own background and personal choices, you want to learn, this book will open your mind to a whole range of diverse customs, many of them newly introduced following the new society trends.
The book is mostly focused on the main checklist, without covering particular traditions and community rules, but such a particular focus would have divert from the main aim which is The Jewish Wedding in general, and not specific Jewish wedding(s).
A book recommended to anyone curious about how the Jewish Wedding are organised or just looking for a complete overview of this important life event.
Rating: 4 stars
Disclaimer: Book offered by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
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