Notes

• "The Avraham Seev is a custom that goes back many years. It is observed on the Shabbat following a wedding when the bride and groom are present in the synagogue. For this ceremony, we take out an extra Sefer Torah. It is not read until we are finished with the Aftarah. At that point, we place the special Sefer Torah on the Tevah and call up the bridegroom, the Hatan, who will say the blessings of the Torah as usual. From the Sefer Torah, the reader sings the first seven verses of Genesis, Chapter 24 (פ' חיי שרה) alternating each sentence with its Aramaic translation, which is sung by someone else. Each Aramaic verse, however, is sung to the tune of a different Makam (musical mode or theme).

  The appropriateness of the seven sentences can be found in the fact that Abraham, who is old and nearing death, makes his servant Eliezer swear that he will go back to Abraham's birthplace and choose a wife for his son Isaac... Eliezer came back with Rebecca, a beautiful match and soulmate for Isaac. The congregation's wishes, likewise, go out to the married couple for a very happy marriage." - Hazzan Isaac Azose