Rabbi Yehuda Deri, Beersheba’s Chief Rabbi, ran to the shelter when the red alert sirens went off on Sunday, but he was surprised to find a young couple and all of the guests waiting for him to officiate at their wedding.

The rabbi did not take the request lightly. The bride and groom were Ashkenazi Jews who traditionally do not marry during the period of the counting of the Omer that extends from Passover until the holiday of Shavuot, which is traditionally a somber period of time not given to festivities. The exception is on Rosh Chodesh (the new month) which is considered a semi-festival. Since Sunday was the day marking the end of the month of Nisan and the beginning of the month of Iyar, the couple took the opportunity to marry. If the marriage did not take place before sunset, the wedding would have to be delayed for several weeks.

The rabbi normally followed the Sephardi custom of not holding weddings in the afternoon but agreed to deviate from his custom due to the special circumstances.

The mother of the bride told the rabbi that her daughter was born during the Gulf War while Saddam Hussein fired Scud Missiles at Israel.

Rabbi Deri blessed the couple with a “special life” together and to “establish a faithful house in Israel with Torah and mitzvoth (commandments).”

One of the worshippers added, “And the children will be born without rockets.”

The video clip of the extraordinary wedding was posted to Twitter by Yishai Kohen, a political writer for the Haredi news service Kikar Shabbat, and has garnered over 100,000 views.

Jeff Kiser from the U.S. commented:

I do not understand how any nation can think they are able to prevail against a nation so strong they celebrate life, even in shelters as missiles fly overhead. So long as that spiritual strength remains, the nation will be unassailable-Love of life will always overcome cults of death

— Jeff Kiser (@1962Kiser) May 5, 2019