Many Jewish wedding traditions are thousands of years old and are as fun as they are historic.
 
Most brides feel like queens when walking down the aisle, but Jewish brides (and grooms) are actually considered royalty on their wedding day. A Jewish wedding is a sacred event and is considered a personal Yom Kippur for the bride and groom, meaning it's a day for spiritual atonement and forgiveness. All the couple's previous individual sins are forgiven, as the vows they take at their wedding join their souls before God, so they're able to start a new life together unburdened by past transgressions [sources: Shulman,Housman]. On this special day, the bride and groom are truly righteous because all their sins have been forgiven. Jewish law mandates that the pair be treated as royalty and each be seen as a king and queen.

However, there's a catch. In many cultures, the bride and groom are prohibited from seeing each other the day before the wedding, but in Jewish tradition, the pair must avoid each other for a full week. So while the couple receives royal treatment on their big day, until the ceremony itself, the king and queen celebrate their roles separately [source: Jewish Wedding Network].

The bride receives her guests on a throne like chair, all of whom offer congratulations and encouragement. The groom's guests toast and sing to him in a nearby room. Passages from the Torah are also read during the groom's reception .