The expense of a wedding these days as in years of
yore can be enormous. In impoverished Jewish communities in the land of
Israel, in the Arab countries, and in Europe families often celebrated the
weddings of siblings on the same day, so that they can put up two or more
weddings for the price of one. However, double weddings for more distant
relatives were discouraged.
During the dismal days
of pogroms and overtly anti-Semitic regimes, there were few happy occasions and
reason for celebrations. Thus, double weddings were rare, as holding two
ceremonies on one day deprived the community of a day of merriment.
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