Abraham and Martha's Wedding

All the conversation in the car didn't bother Georg; he knew exactly how to get home. As they were getting close Maria asked.

"Does everyone remember that Friday is Abraham and Martha's wedding."

She heard happy responses and a question.

"Mom, is a Jewish wedding like yours and Dad's?"

"It has its similarities, Liesl, as well as rituals which come from the Israelites of long ago. And don't be surprised to see Abraham and Martha dancing during the ceremony; it's one of the rituals."

"Now I'm really looking forward to it."

"We all are." Georg answered as he parked the car in front of the mansion and the children hurried inside. They found Abraham and Martha sitting close on the sofa in their living room.

"Mom was telling us about your wedding. Do you really dance during the ceremony?"

"We do, Brigitta. Did you enjoy your trip?"

"I'll let Friedrich answer you."

"More than you can imagine. And now, I'm super excited about attending the University."

"Did everyone else enjoy it too?"

"We did and Mom had a surprise when we stopped for lunch." Kurt answered.

"Martha, it's really incredible. My aunt and Uncle were there."

"Oh my! What a wonderful surprise."

"It certainly was. They're coming to Gilead in two weeks. I invited them to stay with us. Are you two more than ready to be married?"

"You got that right. We have one more meeting with Rabbi Jacob tomorrow. And Martha wants to check on the reception preparation."

Tomorrow came and those things were done. And now the engaged couple had to spend time away from each other for a full day, from noon to noon.

Early on Friday morning, Abraham left the mansion for the synagogue; Martha could leave her room but she spent the morning in quiet reflection on her marriage to come.

Georg would drive Martha and her Maid of Honor, Sarah, to the synogogue a full two hours before the wedding.

In a small room in the rear of the synagogue, the couple met with Rabbi Jacob and signed an ancient document which was their marriage contract and had a small meal together.

And soon all the others left the mansion too. As they came closer to the synagogue, they heard unusual music being played by a quartet. Liesl asked.

"Mom, is the music one of the differences from your wedding?"

"It is. Many of the songs are the instrumental version of music written for some of the psalms; like the twenty-third psalm. Martha's processional song is different too."

Maria didn't need to remind the children to be quiet as they entered; they were intrigued by the music. None of them could avoid seeing a white cloth tarp attached to four poles over a raised area in the place which was like the altar in their church.

The signal the wedding ceremony was about to begin was when Rabbi Jacob walked down the aisle and took his place under the tarp.

He didn't speak. Instead the quartet played a melodious song with a slight tempo. It was to this music, the congregation watched Abraham with the other men all around him walk to the tarp and enter the space.

There was a pause in the music. Martha had come from the small room along with Mary and Sarah; they escorted Martha down the aisle when the quartet began to play another song from ancient Israel. When they reached the tarp, it was Samuel who took Martha's hand to bring her under the tarp.

And now the music really changed as Martha began to dance around Abraham. And they didn't stay under the tarp. This happy piece of music had all the members of the bridal party dancing in the aisle.

It made everyone, including the children smile. The couple returned to the space under the tarp. Now they watched as Martha's veil was lifted, they saw the Rabbi with a glass of wine and they watched as both Abraham and Martha took a sip. And then the couple exchanged rings and heard the Rabbi's pronouncement.

"You are now man and wife."

Everyone heard Abraham. "I will now break a glass so our marriage will last forever."

As Abraham stepped on the bag with the glass inside, he shouted. "Mazel Tov!" and everyone began to dance to the very peppy piece of music the quartet was now playing.

And the couple hurried to the back of the synagogue to share a few moments alone, including their first kiss, before the music began again and they would leave for the reception in the synagogue's dining room.

The music continued until all the guests had departed. Ruth was with Maria and Georg and the children. "Follow me to reception."

They could hear the music before they arrived there. "Come on everyone and join the circle. Just copy what everyone else is doing. Be happy and laugh."

This peppy piece of music continued for many minutes. The bride and the groom were lifted in chairs and moved to the beat of the music.

And there were hardly any breaks as the music continued; each piece had a beat that made you move to it. The music continued non-stop for about thirty minutes. When it stopped, Samuel got everyone's attention.

"While you were dancing, the caterer brought trays of small sandwiches, and other snack foods like, potato chips, pretzels, nuts. There's also a punch bowl filled with fruit punch. And you can sit in the chairs all around the periphery of the room."

And Maria was asked. "Mom, did you know about the music? Dancing to it was so much fun."

"I did, Liesl. I've been to a Jewish wedding before."

And Kurt was asking his dad. "Have you had this kind of food before?"

"I have. The sandwiches are quite good. Are you hungry?"

Kurt smiled rather than answer in words. "Then let me get your mom."

She was talking with others who had come to the wedding. "Maria, our children want to eat."

"Okay, I'm coming."

She helped Marta and Gretl with their food. They both sat on chairs to eat. The others stood to eat. When the director of the music group noticed most everyone had finished eating, he spoke.

"We will now play some Austrian music. We will begin with two Strauss waltzes. Abraham, bring your bride to the center of the dance floor. You can begin to dance and then your guests will join you. This first waltz is a peppy tune, The Viennese Spirit."

Abraham and Martha picked up the beat in this waltz and soon the floor was crowded with guests, including Georg and Maria. The music ended with applause before the director spoke again.

"I selected this next piece because it speaks to the hearts of all people from Vienna Austria. The group will now play a part of the Blue Danube; named for the river which flows through Vienna."

This waltz was more traditional; couples stayed in the waltz position as the music played. The couples seemed to float around the dance floor.

Again the director announced the next piece of music. "Besides the waltz compositions from the Strauss's, Austria has a wealth of folk music; the most famous is Laendler.

The group knew what to do; they formed two lines, one for all the ladies, the other for the men. They stood opposite each other. The famous music began.

The two lines took three steps forward; they bowed or curtsied before backing away. This was repeated.

The next movement in the dance brought their faces close. Then a circle promenade began; the group made a lot of noise. They stomped their feet and clapped their hands. Then the partners joined hands in the promenade position and danced in a wide circle before forming two lines again and backed away from each other. Again they bowed or curtsied before breaking out in applause. The children surrounded their parents and heard.

"I like that dance. Mom and Dad, had you ever danced it before?"

"I have, Brigitta." Maria answered. "I also taught it to my fifth grade class. The school had an Austrian Festival day."

"And I saw it performed once, it is very easy to do. Maybe in all those records we found, there's one with the music to the Laendler."

While they were talking, the Wedding Cake was brought out. Abraham and Martha made the first cut into it and politely fed each other a small piece. They were then carried off in the chairs to the same piece of music as before. They waved to their guests as they left the room.

The guests were then served a piece of cake and slowly the guest began to leave. Samuel stood by the exit door to accept their complements. Georg, Maria and the children were last.

"This was a beautiful wedding and wonderful reception."

"I thought everything went well. Children, did you enjoy yourselves?"

"Very much," Liesl answered and her brothers and sisters nodded in concurrence. And the family returned home still talking about the wedding.