By Cantor Ari Isenberg
Spiritual Leader, Shaar Shalom Congregation - Halifax

One of the most recognizable rituals at a traditional Jewish wedding is the breaking of the glass.  A full, complete glass is placed on the ground, and the groom smashes it with all his might.  Jews smash glass, break glass, shatter glass on an occasion that can only be described as one of the happiest days in the Jewish lifecycle.  We perform this ritual as a symbolic gesture.  It reminds us that even on the happiest of days, we still mourn the loss of our Temple, and we insist on retaining the memory of that tragedy in our collective conscious.  We break the glass because it reminds us that however great our suffering, others still suffer in this world and need our compassion and our help.  We break the glass because it stresses the importance of working hard, fighting for what we believe in – including love – and never taking anything for granted.

On November 9^th, 1938, our enemies greatly under-estimated the symbolism and importance of broken glass in our tradition.  Our enemies thought that by breaking glass, they would shatter us and demoralize us.  Little did they know.   

Our enemies did wreak havoc, they did cause indescribable and unimaginable pain, suffering, destruction, and extermination – but they did not do to us what they set out to achieve, for shattered glass does not deflate our spirits; rather, it invigorates us.  Smashing glass does not make us abandon our religion, it propels us to rebuild and retain our identity.  Broken glass does not enslave or conquer us; rather, it liberates us.  It does not make us relinquish our destiny and our God-given right to exist - it revitalizes our passion for life and renewal. 

Because we acknowledge our own suffering – the broken glass - even at our happiest of times, and use that reality to propel us and invigorate us, we are able to rise above intolerance, transcend the hatred we fall victim to, and fight – fight for ourselves, for justice, for survival, for our destiny, and for a better world.

 May God who brings peace to the entire universe, bring peace unto us and to all People, and let us say Amen.