Shattered Glass

Q: I recently attended a wedding where the Rabbi concluded the ceremony with the breaking of the glass.  Under the Huppah the Rabbi said that there are many interpretations for this tradition.  What are they and which is correct?

A: I once heard a congregant report that he had heard a person tell him, “It’s the last time he’ll put his foot down!”  Needless to say, that is not one of the traditional responses.

A wedding is the time with unrestrained joy.  According to our tradition, when a couple is betrothed the Holy One, Blessed be He, rejoices.  Weddings plans move along usually accompanied by great anxiety: elaborate preparations are the order of the day.  In the old country,  the entire Jewish community was invited to the wedding!  Entertainers were hired and musicians engaged.  All the stops were pulled out for the bride and groom.

Yet no event can be completely happy or sad.  When we return from a burial the first thing we consume is an egg, symbolizing that life goes on despite the pain.  At our marriages, we break a glass as an austere reminder that our lives are fragile and we can be easily shattered.  The glass adds the historical reminder of the destruction of the Temple many centuries ago.

We must be acutely aware that pain is a part of every life.  And for the person who can only see sorrow we reintroduce the thought that there is joy in the world and in his future.

Life is a delicate balance.  It is this balance that keeps us healthy to face each new day.