[Avodah] woman reading the ketuba

[Elazar M. Teitz]

R. Micha Berger wrote:

<The flaw is that if we really felt this line of reasoning, we wouldn't give the job out as a kibud. Mesadeir qedushin has to be qualified. The berakhos should be from people whose berakhos are more likely to matter. So giving these out are compliments, and thus kibudim. But reading the kesuvah?>

R. Zev Sero responded:

<The kesuvah-reader also has to be qualified - he has to be able to read Aramaic without breaking his teeth.  Unfortunately, it seems that people are not aware of this requirement, and too often give it to someone who, however good he is at rabbonus or teaching, is unqualified for this job.>

     In Europe, reading the k'suba was a job, not a kibbud. The rov of the community would be m'sader kiddushin, and the shammes would read the k'suba.  In Israel today, for the most part, it is considered the least of the kibbudim under the chuppa.

     It is said that the reading became the kibbud it is in the US because of R. Moshe Feinstein, who would ask for it if he was not m'sader kiddushin.  If true, I am convinced it was for the reason alluded to by RZS: he couldn't stand the butchering of it by those unfamiliar (and from my experience, this includes some rashei yeshiva and rabbonim).

EMT

 

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