As a Cantor for over 20 years, one of the best parts is officiating at a Jewish wedding ceremony. What’s better than being able to perform a wedding ceremony for two people who are so incredibly in love and deciding that they are going to spend the rest of their lives together? So here’s a confession – when I was single for years, as much as I loved officiating wedding ceremonies, part of me was scared and nervous. I would stand there under a beautiful Huppa, with a glowing Bride and Groom and their families and wonder to myself; “will I ever meet my soulmate? Will I ever get my turn or will I be single for the rest of my life?” Not that there’s anything wrong with being single if that’s what you want. But that’s not what I wanted.
Luckily, years ago I did in fact meet my wife and feel so incredibly blessed and fortunate. But let’s not forget that at every wedding, there are guests who have just gone another bad first date and are wondering if they will ever get to walk down the aisle with their life partner. When we have found are forever person, lets not forget to still be on the lookout to set up our single friends with someone and be proactively on the lookout for a good match. Sure, there are dating apps – but they will never replace the human approach. Inasmuch as they say with a job search, its not what you know but who you know, people can find their forever person because of a set up. It’s about being kind and empathetic and remembering what it was like to date and sometimes feel hopeless. The Jewish way is to always be on the lookout for an opportunity to do a kindness and share our good fortune with others in need. So let’s all have our single friends in mind and extend ourselves to bring love to others!
Sincerely,
Cantor Ben