Harei At... Under the Chuppah

“Harei At” Under the Chuppah  

 

Harei at mekudeshes li b’taba’as zo k’das Moshe v’Yisroel” (You are betrothed unto me with this ring in accordance with the law of Moshe and Yisroel). These are the words the chosson says to his kallah under the chuppah. In order to ensure that the kiddushin is valid, he must say the words loudly and each word must be clearly enunciated, so that the two witnesses and the kallah hear him. It’s crucial that the witnesses actually hear the chosson say those words, even though they are aware of what he is saying; if they do not hear him clearly, the very fact that he said words that they couldn’t hear might create a halachic problem. Since the witnesses have to hear the chosson’s own voice, not its electrical amplification, he should not speak into the microphone, which is halachically not considered a human voice. In case he did speak into the microphone, as long as the witnesses were close enough to hear his actual voice, and made a point of listening closely to his voice, and not to the electronically generated version transmitted through the microphone, it’s acceptable. Chassanim should practice saying those words in advance—to themselves, of course, not to their kallah—so that they not only know how to say the words clearly and properly, but also understand their meaning. #316?

https://halacha2go.com?number=316

Practical Halacha: One minute a day. By Horav Yosef Yeshaya Braun, shlita, Mara D'asra and member of the Badatz of Crown Heights.