Marriage of Seniors
Question
What does a 77 year old man wear to his chips 4 pm? Tallis?? When does a 77 year old woman go to the Mikvah prior to marriage on Sunday afternoon, Wednesday night?
Answer
Shalom!
Thank you for your question.
If your community custom is to wear a tallit at the Chuppa ceremony then the custom applies regardless of one’s age. If you don’t have such a custom there is no reason to wear a tallit at the Chuppa.
A woman of any age must indeed go to the mikva before getting married. This is due to the concern of “dam chimud” – that a bride’s excitement at the prospect of getting married might lead to a release of blood.
Regardless of a woman’s age, we are concerned that blood might be released, and that the blood might be so minute that it could go unnoticed. As such, a bride must do Hefsek and count seven clean days as close to the wedding as possible, in your case it is permitted to go to the Mikvah on Wednesday and the wedding is on the following Sunday.