Jewish Wedding Rings - Traditions and Customs and How to Buy Smart

In a traditional Jewish wedding ceremony, Jewish wedding rings play a very important role. In Jewish law, a verbal declaration is not enough to be married.

According to Jewish law, a formal, physical consecration must be made. Usually this is done with the giving of a Jewish wedding ring, however in ancient times, it was merely something of value-with the minimum value of what is now a penny.

Don't worry-I know you won't be that cheap! :)The ring must be of solid uninterupted gold with no holes breaking the circle. The continuity of the rings represents the hope for an everlasting marriage.

Requirements for Jewish Wedding Rings

The ring must be the bridegroom's property at the time of the Jewish wedding ceremony. While only one Jewish wedding ring is required by Jewish law, (given to the bride), many couples exchange rings.

Orthodox Rabbis refuse to perform a double ring ceremony, because they feel it invalidates the idea of the groom acquiring the bride as a wife in exchange of something valuable.

A Reform or Conservative denominational Rabbi may incorporate a ring exchange between bride and groom with little problem usually.

What Hebrew Wedding Rings are made of?

Most Jewish wedding rings are made of simple solid gold bands, although recently embellishment with Hebrew letters on the band has become quite popular.

Many rings can even now be fully customized with many different Hebrew phrases, or even the couple's names either inscribed or raised inside the band.

How To Buy a Jewish Wedding Ring

Buying a Jewish Wedding Ring can often be a confusing and frustrating adventure. There are so many Jewish jewelry stores, and with the advent of the internet, there are even more than ever before.

However, the internet has proven to be a big advantage for buyers. Low overhead and large online demand have driven prices for expensive Jewish Wedding Rings that used to go for $800-1000 down into the $320-600 range, depending on 14k or 18 gold, ring size, etc.

Look for merchants with these types of price ranges. Anything cheaper will be a ring of inferior quality. Anything higher is the seller making huge profits - off of potential buyers.

Another advantage of the online retailers is customization and options. Some Jewish wedding ring retailers can completely customize any engraving, either with hebrew phrases or the bride and groom's names. Look for websites who include customization in the price, rather than upsell the customization.

A Jewish Wedding Ring goes on WHICH finger?

The ring ceremony consists of the groom placing the ring on the bride's right index finger. Afterwards, most women move it to the customary "ring finger" of the left hand.

The reason for this Jewish wedding tradition goes back to the time of the Talmud and the differences in beliefs at that time about which finger is closer or more direct to the heart! Christianity taught the ring finger; Judaism taught the index finger.

When the Jewish Wedding Ring is Given?

In most ceremonies, the bridegroom repeats a Hebrew vow after the Rabbi, with the giving of the ring. The bridegroom would declare, "Behold, thou art consecrated to me with this ring, according to the law of Moses and Israel."

In hebrew, this phrase is Hare at mekudeshet li betaba' at zo k'dat Moshe v' Yisrael.

With a little practice, you can easily learn to roll this phrase off of your tongue in no time at all. If you can't speak Hebrew, don't worry! On our website, we have a page where you can hear this phrase being said, right through your computer.

This statement that husband and wife are holy to each other. It is as if they were saying, "As Shabbat is to Jewish time and as Jerusalem is to Jewish space, you will be to me."

With this buyer's guide to Jewish Wedding rings and their traditions, you can be confident of making a good choice in choosing your rings for your special wedding day.

About the Author:
Josh Singer and Shira Frimer are authors and owners of http://www.about-jewish-weddings.com containing completely FREE articles on everything from A-Z you should know about Jewish Weddings and Jewish Wedding traditions.

They also offer beautiful, completely customizable Jewish Wedding Rings, hand-painted custom Ketubahs (Jewish Marriage Contract), as well as hand-painted silk Jewish Wedding Chuppahs.

Visit their website and receive "101 ways to save on your Wedding Costs" - a $69.00 value - absolutely free, no strings attached.

© 2005 Josh Singer and Shira Frimer. This article may be republished, as long as it remains unchanged, carries this copyright and reprint notice, and has a live link to our site.

In The News:

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St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Eloping to Vegas? Why Not Lower Manhattan?
New York Times, United States - Jan 7, 2009
“With these new digs, there might just be a new world wedding capital.� The city clerk’s office issued 66600 marriage licenses 2007 and performed about ...
Manhattan's new Marriage Bureau earns wows as a place to say your vows New York Daily News
NY hears wedding bells, aims to compete with Vegas The Associated Press
Wedding Bells Ring In NYC Marriage Bureau WNYC
Downtown Express - Gothamistall 254 news articles

Boston Globe
‘Bride Wars’ is a failed marriage | 1 ½ stars
Kansas City Star, MO - 12 hours ago
And their mutual friends will have to decide which wedding to attend. All would be well if only one of them would cancel (or if they would agree to a double ...
Video: Ann Hathaway's Stellar Year CBS
'Bride Wars' stars Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway are funny allies Los Angeles Times
Two Weddings and a Furor New York Times
Tampa Tribune - Boston Globeall 757 news articles

New York Times
Movie review: Cliches nag 'Not Easily Broken'
San Francisco Chronicle,  USA - 5 hours ago
The opening wedding scene in the new Bill Duke film, "Not Easily Broken" is so overwrought and cliched, it's akin to sitting down with a promising novel, ...
Not Easily Broken ( ** ) AHN
Movie Review: ‘Not Easily Broken’ is a romantic soap opera that ... Providence Journal
» Inspirational drama anything but 'Broken' Chicago Daily Herald
Pittsburgh Post Gazette - Kansas City Starall 77 news articles

FOR FAMILIES: A guide for parents to Jan. 9 and earlier releases
Chicago Tribune, United States - 10 hours ago
By Roger Moore | Tribune Newspapers What it's about: Best friends become dueling brides when they both book the wedding they've always dreamed of in the ...

Wedding war: Las Vegas versus New York
KVBC, NV - 8 hours ago
The city has renovated it marriage bureau and even built a 24000-square-foot wedding complex with the hope of becoming the most popular wedding site. ...

Wearing white and eating cake, Brides magazine turns 75
The Canadian Press, NEW YORK - 20 hours ago
"The magazine is realistic about how people's lives are today, but still the focus is how to have a successful wedding and start a healthy marriage," says ...

New York Magazine
City to Make Your Shotgun Marriage Just That Much Nicer
New York Magazine,  USA - Jan 7, 2009
Photo: Getty Images Perhaps sensing the economic downturn (and having eventually watched the Sex and the City movie), the city spruced up its civil-wedding ...

MLive.com
Bay County gets older, refrains from marriage, likes guns ...
MLive.com, MI - 18 hours ago
Luczak said economics could be partly to blame, as young couples struggling to get a foothold in life may be putting off the expense of a wedding.

MSNBC
Couple goes from divorce to 'I Do Again'
MSNBC - 12 hours ago
Cheryl and Jeff Scruggs, founders of Hope Marriage Ministries, recount the slow destruction of their relationship, which ended in divorce. ...

Former First Lady Cornelia Wallace Dies At 69
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