A professional scribe will present Prince William and Kate Middleton with a
specially-made scroll in Hebrew and English for their upcoming royal wedding on
Thursday.
Mike Horton will hand over the scroll he made himself to
British Ambassador Matthew Gould at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv.
“A
friend came up with the idea of writing a scroll for the wedding of Prince
William and Catherine,” he said on Sunday. “We went to a rabbi in Hod Hasharon
to phrase the scroll and one refused, but another agreed. He took out the Jewish
stuff, as I asked, and I’m going to present it on Thursday, after which it will
be put in the diplomatic pouch and delivered to Common House next to Buckingham
Palace.”
The text written in Hebrew and English by a rabbi is based on
egalitarian principles, Horton said.
“As beloveds and friends, we promise
to love, honor, cherish and support each other,” it reads. “May we be ever open
and honest.”
While Horton is not a sofer stam, an ordained Jewish scribe,
he has produced scrolls in the Jewish tradition for special occasions beginning
with his own wedding in 1973.
“When I got married in 1973, I wrote one
for my ex-wife,” he said.
“I was in an arts college in London and I did
calligraphy but I’m not a sofer stam. I freelance and that’s part of my
profession. I’m also a photographer and graphic designer.
To the best of
our knowledge, neither the bride nor the groom have any links to Judaism, which
is why the 63-year-old British-born Jerusalem resident was careful to omit the
religious language found in ketubot, the traditional Jewish marriage
contracts.
“I don’t think I would get an invitation to the wedding and if
I did, I’m not sure I would go,” Horton said. “They’re not my crowd of people,
plus it’s on a Friday morning and I have to get ready for
Shabbat.
Perhaps I could receive a note and I could use that for
advertising.“