Ketubah: the Jewish Prenuptial Agreement

Ketubah: the Jewish Prenuptial Agreement
By: Irfan Faruki

Ketubah can be technically considered as a part of every Jewish marriage ceremony. It acts as the blueprint or the manual of how the marriage should be. It indicates the role of the husband, which primarily is to provide food and clothing for the family. The ketubah also states the marital relations the wife should give his husband and vice versa. But more importantly, the ketubah is a legal document that mandates the husband to pay a particular amount of money to the wife in the event that the husband divorces her or if he dies unfortunately.

The creation of ketubah rooted from the problems caused by the biblical dowry. The dower, or the bride price, is the amount a young man has to pay to his soon-to-be wife or her parents at the time of marriage. Young Jewish men don't necessarily have big amounts of money prior to marriage. Unless they come from rich families, they find it hard to pay the dower required of them by the Jewish law.

The solution devised by the rabbis to this social dilemma is the ketubah. The ketubah delays the payment of the biblical dower of the husband to her wife. Ketubah allows the man to marry a woman even without paying her or her family a single cent at the time of their wedding. However, that amount becomes payable at the time of his death or if the marriage was broken up due to reasons like divorce.

The couple can get married without the ketubah. However, they cannot engage in any marital relations if their kebutah cannot be signed. The ketubah, before it can be enforced, it has to be duly acknowledged by the couples and two witnesses. Without these parties attesting to the married party's ketubah, it is unlawful for two people to act as husband and wife, even if they have just been married.

Right now, there are a lot of ketubah texts presented in the most artistic forms and designs. The kebutah is considered the sign of both the party's undying love for each other. Therefore, it has been the most vibrant and the prominent part of a Jewish marriage.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/marriage-articles/ketubah-the-jewish-prenuptial-agreement-298776.html

About the Author: Irfan Faruki. jessyjudaica.com offers Ketubah for Jewish marriage and Judaica gifts including Jewish wedding store and gift registry.