AMMAN — The restrictions imposed on gatherings and wedding
parties to curb the spread of COVID-19 have greatly contributed to the
financial stability of newlyweds Samah Montaser and Alaa Abuhamam, according to
Montaser. “Without these restrictions over weddings, we might not be married
now,” she told
Jordan News in a recent interview.
اضافة اعلان
“Since my marriage ceremony was limited to the wedding
party, the costs of other gatherings were saved and (we) invested in our future
house, allowing us to get married within a week!” said Montaser, a resident of
Irbid.
Since the onset of the pandemic, many couples are taking
advantage of restrictions to forego social commitments and minimize marriage
costs and consequent debts.
According to a report from the Chief Islamic Justice
Department, 2020 saw 67,389 marriages, continuing a downward trend in the
number of marriages since 2017. But some newlyweds said they consider
themselves lucky.
“My sister’s jaha (a tradition involving men from both
families gathering for the marriage proposal) required us to rent a venue for
200 men, but mine was at home with 20 men invited. The difference in cost is
crystal clear,” Areej Azzam, a bride-to-be from Amman, told Jordan News.
It was not just about costs, according to Areej. Since there
was a limitation on the number of guests she could invite to her engagement
party, “it was much like a formal family dinner with a surprisingly pleasing
and warm atmosphere,” she said.
“The unbearable marriage expenses correspond mostly to the
number of attendees, not to the ceremonies themselves; a thing that many people
became aware of, thanks to defense orders,” said Mohammad Hani, a recent groom.
The expenses he saved from the wedding ceremony were
invested in furnishing his house, Mohammad said. “We bought luxurious
electronics and furniture that we thought our budget wouldn’t allow.”
‘Social Taboo’
Mohammad was also optimistic that social norms and
perceptions might become more practical and flexible regarding costly wedding
traditions.
“Religiously, the real purpose behind weddings is to
announce the marriage, make it known to the public and bring joy,” Hassan Abu
Arqoub, head of public relations and international cooperation at the General Iftaa
Department, told Jordan News in a recent phone interview.
However, Arqoub also stressed that “Islam calls for
moderation and balance, and forbids profligacy.”
“That some people incur debts that they will struggle to
repay just to offer lavish dinners and huge feasts violates the Islamic
teachings of frugality,” said Alaa Al-Ajawi, who holds a master’s degree in
Islamic jurisprudence and is an Islamic studies teacher.
‘Robbed of joy’
Not all are happy to forego expensive and lavish ceremonies
however.
Another newlywed from Amman, who preferred to remain
unnamed, said that the health crisis “robbed me of the joy of holding the
wedding I dreamed of.”
“What prevented us from holding gatherings and a wedding
party was not financial issues, rather it was the constant coronavirus cases in
our families,” she added.
In the early days of the pandemic, people’s insistence on
holding large gatherings was a major cause for the spread of the virus, most
notably what infamously became known as the “Irbid wedding” in March 2020,
which was one of the first COVID-19 clusters in Jordan.
Following the event, the government suspended the operations
of all wedding venues, but that did not stop some from violating defense law
regulations. Eight wedding violations occurred within 24 hours on August 28,
2020, in Irbid, local news media reported.
In another incident that went viral, a groom that was seen
in videos on social media stepping down from a helicopter on his wedding day in
March, 2021, was arrested.
“I am not going to lie by saying that if situations were
normal I would not have the traditional ceremonies,” Montaser conceded,
“however, it has been a year since the outbreak of the pandemic, during which I
see that people (have) started to be more conscious and aware that super-costly
weddings are superficial.”
Sector woes
Whether they are happy about it or not, people are spending
less money on wedding festivities, which meant that the wedding planning
industry was feeling the crunch.
In an interview with
Jordan News, wedding planner
Alaa Tariq, who has been in the business since 2012, said that some half of his
clients are asking for minimal facilities and services, at a cost 80 percent
less than what they would have paid pre-pandemic.
“The wedding planning sector employed over 100,000 people in
2019, which dropped to 35,000 in 2020 and is dropping further this year. ...
The average income of wedding planners in the peak season of spring/summer 2019
was JD500-JD600 monthly, while during the same season of 2020 it dropped to
only JD150 monthly,” said Ma’mun Al-Manaseer, the president of the Wedding
Venues and Planning Businesses Association.
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