Ketubot have many different styles of language and designs, depending on the beliefs and traditions of the couple. Traditionally, the language of the ketubah formalises the various requirements by the Torah of a Jewish husband vis à vis his wife, and stipulates the sum to be paid by him in case of divorce. A traditional ketubah is written in Aramaic.

Conservative Jews often include an additional paragraph, called the Lieberman clause, which stipulates that divorce will be adjudicated by a modern rabbinical court (a beth din) in order to prevent the problem of the agunah.

Reform Jews permit personal innovation in the text of ketubot. Some couples, for example, often opt for more egalitarian language, similar in tone to marriage vows, which stress the values on which they base their relationship and marriage (love, companionship, family, tradition, etc.). The text used in ketubot under Reform auspices may be a traditional text, accompanied by a more creative, poetic and egalitarian rendition in English.

Because there are a variety of available texts, betrothed couples often consult their Rabbi or wedding officiant in order to determine which text is right for them. Wedding Ketubah can design a custom Ketubah with individually crafted commitment texts.

Wedding Ketubah specializes in personalized Ketubot / Ketubas that incorporates the design and the language that the couple desires. Click here to contact Wedding Ketubah.

Ketubah is a protective safety valve for the wife.

In ancient times, leaders of faith communities insisted on the marriage couple entering into the Ketubah agreement. It acted as a replacement of the biblical dower or bride price, which was payable at the time of the marriage by the groom to the bride or her parents.[see Exodus 22:15-16 and Deuteronomy 22:28-29.]

Ketubah is a mechanism whereby the amount due to the wife (the dower) came to be paid in the event of the cessation of marriage, either by the death of the husband or divorce. It may be noted that the biblical bride price created a major social problem: many young prospective husbands could not raise the bride price at the time when they would normally be expected to marry. So, to enable these young men to marry, leaders of faith communities, in effect, delayed the time that the amount would be payable, when they would be more likely to have the sum.

The adopted was to provide for the bride price to be a part of the ketubah. It may also be noted that both the dower and the ketubah amounts served the same purpose: the protection for the wife should her support (either by death or divorce) cease. The only difference between the two systems was the timing of the payment. It is the predecessor to the wife’s present-day entitlement to maintenance in the event of the breakup of marriage. Another function performed by the ketubah amount was to provide a disincentive for the husband contemplating divorcing his wife: he would need to have the amount to be able to pay to the wife.

Wedding Ketubah specializes in personalized Ketubot / Ketubas based on the designs and texts that reflect the heritage of the couple. Click here to contact Wedding Ketubah.

Ketubah is considered an integral part of a traditional Jewish marriage.

Ketubah states that the husband commits to provide certain neccesities to his wife, and that he will pay a specified sum of money if he divorces her.

Ketubah guarantees that if the husband dies, the ketubah amount is the first charge on his estate, and it is given to the widow.
Wedding Ketubah specializes in personalized Ketubot / Ketubahs that includes texts that reflect the commitments of the couple.Click here to contact Wedding Ketubah.