Posted to Op-Ed on
by Rabbi Simcha Weinstein

In case you have spent your Passover vacation on another planet, you have not heard that the wedding of Prince William of Wales and Catherine (Kate) Middleton is scheduled to take place at Westminster Abbey on Friday.

Op-Ed: Why I Wont Be Watching the Royal Wedding

by Rabbi Simcha Weinstein

In case you have spent your Passover vacation on another planet, you have not heard that the wedding of Prince William of Wales and Catherine (Kate) Middleton is scheduled to take place at Westminster Abbey on Friday.

As an Englishman in New York, I’m obviously interested in the nuptials of Prince William, who is second in the line of succession to Queen Elizabeth II. Like everybody, I remember where I was when his mother was tragically killed (Jerusalem), and I’ve grown up with him. Yet, I do not intend watching the royal wedding, and that has nothing to do with the fact that my invitation must have gotten lost somewhere over the pond.

While Prince William and Kate have personally approved a list of memorabilia, including official mugs, plates, biscuit tins and porcelain pill pots, tea-towels and, of course, the official china, I’m not buying into it, literally.

The wedding hysteria and celebrity publicity hoopla surrounding the wedding is at a boiling point, and as the world agonizes over the dress, cake and honeymoon, I will be serving my own Queen, as we prepare Shabbat Dinner for 50 guests in our Jewish community center.

I vaguely remember the royal wedding of Charles and Diana and not so vaguely remember how Camelot fell in the intervening years. With respect to the House of Windsor, they do have a disastrous record when it comes to nuptials.

Let’s face it—what does one expect in a world of texts and tweets, celebrity fascination has been magnified more than ever? I would dare to ponder, ‘what would the world think if the fashion police were to analyze my every clothing choice?’

Judaism places special respect on government and royalty. The 14th century sage, Rabbi Dovid Abudraham, first included a special prayer, writing that it is the “custom to bless the King, and to pray to G-d that He may give him victory.” Being that when there is peace in the palace, there is peace in the kingdom.

Interestingly, in a few weeks, Jews around the world will celebrate the holiday of Shavuot. The Talmud describes Shavuot, the day marking the giving of the Torah, as resembling a wedding between the Almighty and the Jewish people. The Almighty as the groom and the Jewish people as the bride; Mount Sinai represents the wedding canopy and the Torah the ring on His bride’s finger. Each year on Shavuot we renew our nuptial vows to our Beloved Creator as the word “Shavuot” has the same root as the Hebrew word “shevuah”—an oath.

In a Jewish wedding, after the ceremony, the bride and groom adjourn to a private room called the “yichud” (private) room. The few minutes the couple share alone allude to their new intimate relationship and emphasizes that their absolute privacy be respected.

This is something our dear young royals so badly need. In the words of the prayer, “May the supreme King of kings, in His mercy, sustain them and deliver them from all distress and misfortune.”

Mazel tov, Prince William and Kate! I’m going to give you the one gift you need most—the gift of freedom.

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30 Comments

  • O.K.

    instead of writing an op-ed of how you are not going to watch it…just don’t watch it. its over anyway.

  • confused

    What was the rabbi’s point? Do the paragraphs connect to each other in any way?

  • To Rabbi Party Pooper & spoilsport!

    You need to stop being so uptight & pompous. We Brits should appreciate the fact that because of the Royal Family (going back to Charles I) we are allowed to live & worship freely. Not only that, but what’s wrong with a bit of glamor & ceremony in what is a very depressing & miserable decade.

    Rabbi W, get a life & stop spoiling it all. You don’t want to see it & enjoy it, don’t. No skin off MY nose!

  • chaim

    As a former Englishman, i might agree to a point, However, what is the purpose of this article? Bashing somebody who is actually getting married verses today statistics of single parents. Here is a couple getting married in public, in a church, religious setting and not pregnant. The Rebbe Rashab would use a pisgom, not putting somebody down to bring yourself higher! As a Rabbi, one needs to be responsible for what one says and writes, how does this increase in bring mroe Godleness into our world? agutten shabbos

  • full windsor

    honestly trying to figure out the logic or line of reason here.. not that some of the ideas wernt true.. but totally disjointed.. rabbi i suggest you spend some more time on your op ed next time and less time sounding hip and lebbin mit de zeit

  • Waste of time reading

    Rabbi, please take this as a positive feed-back.

    Not a good and chesive communication.

    I’m sure if you looked it over before submission, you would re-do the article.

  • Dan

    The true point in not watching the wedding of these german by descent mamzeirim is because they are anti semites (the real reason the king abdicated the throne wad because he was a nazi sympathiser) anti Jewish, they were directly responsoble to the qoutas on Jews entering the Holy Land, harrassing the few survivors of ww2 and not allowing them vital medications, murdering of Jewish Etzel members, siding and arming the Arabs in an attempt to kill the Jews before they had declared a state, not to mention prince Harry’s dressing up as a Nazi…. At every UN Gathering they side with the Arabs against the Jews and I am still morning the Kedoishim and Baalai Hatosfos murdered in the tower of York hy”d!!!!!
    Amelek is Amalek is Amelek!!

  • Don-t knock it

    If the tourists world wide that spend billions of dollars a year came to CH like they do to UK to see the Royalty and the wedding etc I bet the author and more then a few Rabbis would dress up and put on quite a show.

  • 12345

    I whatched the wedding and it was interesting.The customs were very wierd.

  • chana

    I think this comment was very sensitive and pertinent to the tenor of our times. maybe some of you readers do not remember the tragic circumstances that led to the death of Princess Diana-the onslaught of the paparizzi; she was a slave to it and ultmately it took her life. the gentleman who wrote this article is showing sensivity and concern and giving them a blessing that they should truly live a life of freedom and dignity and hopefully escape the slavery of the press and foolish gossip and thus live a meaningful and private life while doing acts of kindness for their people and others. The English royalty does not have great track record all the way back to the days of King Henry and his multitude of wives. Further the writer was depicitng the very prviate and beautiful union betwewen a kallah and his bride, between HaShem and Klal Yisroel and how a royal union is meant to be – one conducted with modesty and dignity. If one is to be royalty they must act that way in all their livushim and not be fall prey to the moral disintegration as their previous family members have done. We only need to look at the dignfified royalty of the Rebbe’s mother and wife who acted with the utmost modesty and had such royal bearing. This was a very meaninful artcle. And it is a sad commentary that most of the comments made couldn’t see the deeper comparisons he was trying to make. if I were to write anyting bad about this wedding it was the awful gaudy, fashion and those goulish terrible hats the women wore. What were they thinking??? Basic lessons in good taste and modesty would be appropriate and in order! Any takers for the job?.

  • Help

    Probably the worst article I’ve read. Waste of brain cells, pixels, and time

  • MArriage and Royalty

    Unfortunately your right, the Queen hasn’t had much nachas from her children. However she might be getting nachas from her grandson! and IY”H future grandchildren.

    The chief Rabbi (UK) in the house of Lords lately spoke on the importance of marriage, nevermind in just the jewish world.
    The fact she is a commoner and seems to be regal and refined, No Fake – This marriage will most likely last and be a private refined couple.
    I wonder if Prince Harry will follow suite? Will He marry her sister? They looked quite good together.

  • Proud to be English

    Rabbi,
    I think you are strongly mistaken, if anything the Torah will Davkeh encourage to watch the wedding
    1) it’s a wedding of a potential King, Al pi din when you see a king you’re required to make a Brocho “…Shecholak mikvodo lebossor vodam” AAKV”K by his wedding.
    2) due to our demoralized and hefker time we live in (where ppl are living together and having children in a Hefker way without marriages, etc etc).. watching a Goy of the highest stature getting married (according to his) Kahalocho, is very important bc it brings moral and ettics in our lives, therefore Rabbi if u don’t want to watch – dont; but dont publicize it and dont push it on us UK citizens…
    Long live the queen.

  • Isaac

    The images of the wedding were powerful enough for me that they will be remembered on Rosh Hashanah. If a baser v’dom royal wedding looks like this, imagine the kingdom of heaven…
    The Ba’al Shem Tov & the Rebbe do tell us to learn a lesson from everything we see, after all.

  • To Proud to be English

    1. It’s pretty questionable whether you’d recite this bracha when seeing modern British monarchs; they don’t have life-and-death powers over their subjects (see Magen Avraham 224:5). Anyway, even if the bracha is to be said in that case, that certainly doesn’t establish any kind of obligation or encouragement regarding someone who’s not yet the king (and in this case, is in fact only second in line to the throne, after his father).

    2. Are you aware that William and Kate were in fact “living together without marriage” for a while before this wedding? Very nice that they finally made it official, but don’t kid yourself that their actions demonstrate morality.

  • no thank you

    “if I were to write anyting bad about this wedding it was the awful gaudy, fashion and those goulish terrible hats the women wore. What were they thinking???”

    I’ll take the unique hats any day over the bland, judgmental, holier-than-thou conformity of CH and Willy.

  • CHer

    How are you a former Englishman?
    and its not a big deal to watch a wedding.. I hear the Cheif Rabbi went to the wedding… iz nisht gut!