The Wedding
In traditional Judaism, marriage is viewed as a contractual bond commanded by God in which a Jewish man and a Jewish woman come together to create a relationship in which God is directly involved. Though having children is not the sole purpose, a Jewish marriage is traditionally expected to fulfil the commandment to have children. In this view, marriage […]
Pregnancy Rituals
The birth of any child is greeted with great joy, not only by the family but by the whole community. From the moment the expectant mother, la parida, announces the exciting news that she is pregnant she is deemed to have special status. Whoever she encounters wishes her a good and easy birth, escapamiento bueno. […]
Pidyon haBen
The pidyon haben (Hebrew: פדיון הבן) or redemption of the first-born son is a mitzvah (commandment) in Judaism whereby a Jewish firstborn son is “redeemed” with money. According to the Torah (Hebrew Bible) God intended for the first-born of each Jewish family to be a Kohen – i.e. that family’s representative to the Holy Temple. (Exodus 13:1-2, Exodus 24:5 with Rashi). But […]
Other Childhood Customs
When parents were concerned that their child was not learning how to walk early enough, they took the child to the synagogue. There, the parents tied the child’s feet together with a rope and another person then untied the rope. It was believed that this procedure could make the child begin to walk. When a […]
Las Fadas
In Sephardic communities there is a tradition of welcoming girls with a celebration called zeved habat, or “gift of the daughter.” The name for the ceremony derives from the book of Genesis, in which the matriarch Leah states, following the birth of Zevulun, “Zevedani Elohim oti zeved tov,” or “God has granted me a gift.” In […]
Final Resting Places
The original location of the old Jewish cemetery was just a short walk outside “la puerta de la ciudad” (Koskinou Gate, also called the Gate of Saint John), which was situated near the “La Fasana” area of the Jewish Quarter. In the mid 1930s, Italian governor Mario Lago approved a city of Rhodes master plan about the land occupied by […]
Engagement
The wedding ceremony itself traditionally consists of two elements, the Kiddushin (Espozorio) and the Nissuin (Kasamiento) or the betrothal and the actual marriage. Though they were once separate components, they are now combined into one ceremony. Meaning and Significance Contents History Espozorio / Kiddushin – Engagement In Rhodes, an engagement was celebrated at the home of the bride-to-be, with […]
Death and Mourning
In Judaism, life is valued above almost all else. The Talmud notes that, since all humankind is descended from a single person, taking a life is like destroying an entire world while saving a life is like saving an entire world. Death, however, is not viewed as a tragedy, even when it occurs early in life or through […]
Brit Milah
Brit Milah is the ceremony during which a circumcision is performed on a Jewish baby boy when he is 8 days old. This ceremony remembers the covenant that God made with Abraham and is a symbol of the covenant between God and the Jewish people. It is how Jewish identity is conferred on a baby boy. Brit […]
Bar Mitzvah
Fundamentally, the bar or bat mitzvah marks the day a boy turns thirteen, or a girl turns twelve, and enters Jewish adulthood. Subsequently, they can participate more fully in Jewish life and its obligations. In Ladino, the occasion is known as kumplir minyan, “to complete the minyan,” which refers to a new obligation young boys can now fulfil as […]