Ketubah texts
Conservative Ketubah Text
A traditional text with an added clause to protect both partners, explained in plain English.
Who this is for
Conservative and Masorti couples who want a text firmly rooted in tradition, but with a modern safeguard: the Lieberman clause, which commits both partners to a Jewish dissolution should the civil marriage end.
The structure of the text
The Conservative ketubah keeps the classical Aramaic structure, then adds the Lieberman clause, drafted in the 1950s by Professor Saul Lieberman. The clause is designed to prevent the problem of the agunah, a woman unable to remarry because her husband withholds a religious divorce, by having both partners agree in advance to the authority of a rabbinic court.
A sample in English
On the ____ day of ____, in ____, ____ and ____ entered into this covenant of marriage according to the law of Moses and Israel, promising to honor, cherish and support one another and to build a faithful Jewish home together.
And we, the bride and groom, agree that should this marriage be dissolved under civil law, either of us may summon the other before the Beth Din of the Rabbinical Assembly, whose decision we will honor, so that a religious dissolution may follow.
All is valid and binding.
Sample texts are for education. Always confirm the final text with your officiating rabbi.
Key phrases
- Lieberman clauseAn added paragraph committing both spouses to a rabbinic court for religious divorce.
- Beth DinA rabbinic court; here, the Beth Din of the Rabbinical Assembly.
- AgunahA 'chained' spouse unable to remarry religiously; the clause aims to prevent this.
- GetA Jewish bill of divorce, which the clause helps ensure can be obtained.
What varies by community
Some Conservative couples use a fully egalitarian Hebrew text in which both partners make identical promises; others keep the traditional structure and simply append the Lieberman clause. Wording and translation vary between rabbis and communities.