[Avodah] Age of "Ancient" Minhagim

[kennethgmiller at juno.com]

In the thread "Woman reading a ketuba", R"n Toby Katz wrote:
> Well as you know, I do not look kindly on ancient minhagim
> that are less than thirty years old. Get back to me when
> women have been reading ketubot at weddings for a hundred
> years or me, and I'll rethink it. Right  now, I totally do
> not believe that this is an "eilu ve'eilu" issue or a
> matter of different minhagim in different communities, and
> I do not believe that any  bride would "honor" a woman with
> the reading of the ketuba without a self-conscious awareness
> that she is doing something that is pushing the envelope.
 
I too don't like the idea that certain recent "minhagim" are perceived as being ancient. But that is the reality, and it won't change easily.

Examples for my generation including the wearing of a kittel at a chupah, or putting a silver atarah on one's tallis. Examples for the next generation may include a chasan wearing a raincoat to his chupa, or litvaks who wait until age three for their son's haircut, or maybe even the ritual wearing of the red wrist-string.

My point is that if a kallah grew up in a community where women read the kesuba -- which might be as recent as just a few years, if this occured at a large number of weddings she attended prior to her own -- then it is quite likely that she would indeed
> honor a woman with the reading of the ketuba without a
> self-conscious awareness that she is doing something that
> is pushing the envelope.

Akiva Miller

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