Who is Qualified to Perform a Jewish Wedding (EH 49:3) Question: Who is qualified to perform a Jewish wedding?
Responsum: The concept of a rabbi officiating at a wedding ceremony appears only during the Middle Ages. We first hear of it in twelfth-century Egypt, and later in fourteenth-century Germany. Legally there exists no function for a “third party” during a wedding ceremony. From a halakhic point of view “Kiddushin” may be defined as a private transaction between bride and groom, with no formative part to be played by an officiating rabbi. When the institution of a rabbi officiating at a wedding becomes a matter of course in Ashkenazi literature it is tied to the safeguarding of a communal rabbi’s public authority. In addition, a Talmudic dictum is brought to bear on our subject. “Rav Judah said in the name of Samuel: One who is not knowledgeable about Gittin and Kiddushin, should have no business with them”. It is clear from the wording and the context of this statement, that it does not imply the existence of an officiating rabbi at the ceremony. However, even though there is no formal r
