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Home > What’s the correct processional order for a Jewish wedding ceremony?

What’s the correct processional order for a Jewish wedding ceremony?

02/12/2014 by Karen

Jewish wedding question
To begin with, I want to say that “there is no such thing as a ‘generic’ Jewish wedding — no matter what the rabbi tells you, no matter what your mother tells you, and no matter what the caterer tells you”.

That’s not my quote, that’s Anita Diamant’s, from her wonderful book, The New Jewish Wedding. And I start with it, as it’s important to know that just like all other aspects of a Jewish wedding, the processional order will vary with how religious you are, and your local practices, but it will still follow this basic order:

The wedding party enters in this order:

  • Rabbi and/or chazan (cantor) on Rabbi’s right.
  • Bride’s grandparents (or they can choose to be seated beforehand)
  • Groom’s grandparents (or they can choose to be seated beforehand)
  • Ushers in pairs (shortest to tallest)
  • Best man and / or Best woman
  • The groom, escorted by his parents (father on his left, mother on his right)
  • Bridesmaids (individually or in pairs)
  • The bride, escorted by her parents (father on her left, mother on her right)

Jewish-wedding-ceremony-processional-order

 At a traditional Jewish wedding, the bride’s side is on the right (if you’re facing the chuppah) and the groom’s is on the left. Both sets of parents stand under the chuppah during the ceremony, alongside the bride, groom, and rabbi., whilst the grandparents take their seats right after the processional.

Music for the ceremony

Whenever I interview brides and grooms for my Real Jewish Weddings I always am curious to know, “what song did you walk down the aisle to, and how was the song choice significant to you?”. I get so many varying answers and incredible choices that I created a Spotify playlist below) that is constantly updated with the top song choices. And if you’re after something a little bit more contemporary check out another awesome Smashing The Glass post:  The Top 10 Coolest Chuppah Entrance Songs for 2015.

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Filed Under: Dear Karen…, Jewish Wedding Rituals Tagged With: Jewish marriage service, Jewish Wedding, Jewish wedding ceremony, Jewish wedding rituals, processional order for a Jewish wedding ceremony, traditional jewish ceremony

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About Karen

Loves great design, cityscapes, berry cocktails, and the word “yes”. Founder and editor of Smashing The Glass. Follow me @SmashingTheGlass

Comments

  1. Nathan Johnson says

    20/05/2016 at 5:29 pm

    I have a Jewish friend of mine who invited me to his wedding. This will be my first time at a Jewish wedding, so I appreciate you talking about what to expect. It is interesting to know that there is no generic Jewish wedding. I am excited to find out how this will all go. Thanks for sharing!

    • Karen says

      23/05/2016 at 10:23 am

      Hi Nathan. It’s my absolute pleasure and I couldn’t be happier that the blog post was of help to you. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask… And enjoy the wedding! I’m sure it will be a blast!

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