Philadelphia Officiants + Premarital Counseling

Elyssa Cherney, Rabbi and officiant Tacklingtorah.com

Finding meaning in your most profound moments

Philadelphia, PA

PA-NY-NJ-DE-DC-MA-CT-RI

Travel area: No travel restrictions See details

5.0

Praised by couples for:

Officiant

Great Planner

Marriage License & Certificate

Rabbi Elyssa did an amazing job personalizing our ceremony and weaving our questionnaire responses and the time she spent getting to know us into such thoughtful and meaningful words about our relationship. We received so many compliments from our friends and family specifically about the ceremony, including from a non-Jewish couple who told us they wanted to renew their vows with her after hearing how beautifully and thoughtfully she spoke about our relationship. We are so grateful for the care, warmth, and personal touch she brought to our wedding ceremony.

Lauren B.

5.0

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ We cannot recommend Rabbi Elyssa Cherney highly enough. We were introduced to her through a mutual friend whose siblings had used her as their wedding officiant, and from our very first conversation, it was clear that she was thoughtful, organized, and genuinely committed to creating a ceremony that reflected who we are as a couple. One of the things we appreciated most was how well she listened. Rather than fitting us into a pre-written template, she worked with us to build a ceremony that aligned perfectly with our beliefs, values, and vision for the day. She shared different versions of blessings and readings, ranging from traditional to more modern interpretations, which gave us the flexibility to thoughtfully tailor every aspect of the ceremony. In the months leading up to the wedding, we met with Rabbi Elyssa several times and went through what felt like meaningful pre-marital counseling. We talked about our past, present, and future together, and participated in communication and grounding exercises that helped us better understand each other as partners. These conversations also allowed Rabbi Elyssa to truly get to know us, which made her words during the ceremony feel deeply personal and authentic. On the wedding day, she beautifully led both our Ketubah signing ceremony for more than 60 guests and our wedding ceremony for 236 guests. Despite the size of the crowd, she made the experience feel intimate, personal, and meaningful. The ceremony was exactly what we hoped for. Rabbi Elyssa was incredibly easy to work with throughout the entire process. She has a wonderful ability to make everyone feel included, which was especially important given the diversity of our guest list. We had guests from a wide range of religious backgrounds and levels of familiarity with Jewish traditions, and so many people commented afterward on how much they loved the ceremony and how welcomed they felt. What started as finding an officiant for our wedding quickly became a much more meaningful relationship. Rabbi Elyssa took the time to truly know us as individuals and as a couple, and we hope to continue building that relationship as we celebrate future Jewish life events and milestones. If you’re looking for an officiant who will create a personalized ceremony, make all of your guests feel engaged and included, and become a trusted guide through important life moments, we wholeheartedly recommend Rabbi Elyssa Cherney. She played a huge role in making our wedding day so special, and we are incredibly grateful for her.

Dylan S.

5.0

Rabbi Elyssa Cherney

OWNER

Typically responds within 24h

AWARD WINNER (3X)

Thanks to recommendations from couples on The Knot

There are moments in our lives where we are deeply vulnerable, such as joining together in marriage. At these times, we invite our communities to surround us to help us learn and grow. When we mark these special moments in our lives, we have the opportunity to feel hope, love and a spark of holiness. I write completely personalized ceremonies for your transitional moment of marriage. I spend time getting to know the couples I work with, and show up ready to help you feel present on your wedding day. My ultimate goal is to help you think about the big picture of marriage! I offer premarital counseling, as we think through together questions that will come up throughout your marriage. I then help you mark this moment in your lives by sharing your unique love story with your community. Elyssa Cherney, Rabbi and officiant Tacklingtorah.com is a wedding officiant based in Philadelphia, PA.

Woman-owned Business

10+ years in business

Speaks English

Small team (2-10 members)

Details

Ceremony Types

Commitment Ceremony

Interfaith Ceremony

Non-Religious Ceremony

Religious Ceremony

Second Wedding

Vow Renewal Ceremony

Religious Affiliations

Interfaith

Jewish

Conservative

Reform

Secular

Spiritual

Wedding Activities

After The Wedding

Newlywed Life

Getting Engaged

Premarital Counseling

Wedding

Ceremony

Awards and Affiliations

3-Time 'Best of Weddings'

2025.2024.2023.

Join couples who chose award-winning vendors for their wedding

Meet the team

Rabbi Elyssa Cherney

Owner

Rabbi Elyssa Cherney strives to make life's ordinary moments into extraordinary ones. She believes holiness is created by helping people find meaning in their lives at moments of transition, especially weddings! Elyssa runs the website tacklingtorah.com as a way to connect with others and help people think differently about what role Judaism can play in their everyday lives. Elyssa creates personalized rituals for all moments of peoples' lives, as well as serves as a rabbi at a synagogue in Bucks County, PA. Elyssa is a wife and mother to a strong-willed toddler!

5.0

out of 5.0

54 reviews

Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.

Review Summary

This AI-generated summary is a snapshot of this vendor's ratings and feedback.

Rabbi Elyssa is praised for creating deeply personal, inclusive ceremonies that balance tradition and modernity. Reviewers note her warmth, thorough preparation, grounding exercises, and pre-marital counseling that calmed nerves and engaged diverse guests. She’s responsive, organized, made ketubah signings and interfaith elements meaningful, and is highly recommended.

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Kira T

Highlighted review.

We had a great experience with Rabbi Elyssa Cherney. She worked with our timeline and schedules. The ceremony was personal and touching.

Lauren B

Rabbi Elyssa did an amazing job personalizing our ceremony and weaving our questionnaire responses and the time she spent getting to know us into such thoughtful and meaningful wor...

ds about our relationship. We received so many compliments from our friends and family specifically about the ceremony, including from a non-Jewish couple who told us they wanted to renew their vows with her after hearing how beautifully and thoughtfully she spoke about our relationship. We are so grateful for the care, warmth, and personal touch she brought to our wedding ceremony.

Any questions?

Dylan S

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ We cannot recommend Rabbi Elyssa Cherney highly enough. We were introduced to her through a mutual friend whose siblings had used her as their wedding officiant, and from ou...

r very first conversation, it was clear that she was thoughtful, organized, and genuinely committed to creating a ceremony that reflected who we are as a couple. One of the things we appreciated most was how well she listened. Rather than fitting us into a pre-written template, she worked with us to build a ceremony that aligned perfectly with our beliefs, values, and vision for the day. She shared different versions of blessings and readings, ranging from traditional to more modern interpretations, which gave us the flexibility to thoughtfully tailor every aspect of the ceremony. In the months leading up to the wedding, we met with Rabbi Elyssa several times and went through what felt like meaningful pre-marital counseling. We talked about our past, present, and future together, and participated in communication and grounding exercises that helped us better understand each other as partners. These conversations also allowed Rabbi Elyssa to truly get to know us, which made her words during the ceremony feel deeply personal and authentic. On the wedding day, she beautifully led both our Ketubah signing ceremony for more than 60 guests and our wedding ceremony for 236 guests. Despite the size of the crowd, she made the experience feel intimate, personal, and meaningful. The ceremony was exactly what we hoped for. Rabbi Elyssa was incredibly easy to work with throughout the entire process. She has a wonderful ability to make everyone feel included, which was especially important given the diversity of our guest list. We had guests from a wide range of religious backgrounds and levels of familiarity with Jewish traditions, and so many people commented afterward on how much they loved the ceremony and how welcomed they felt. What started as finding an officiant for our wedding quickly became a much more meaningful relationship. Rabbi Elyssa took the time to truly know us as individuals and as a couple, and we hope to continue building that relationship as we celebrate future Jewish life events and milestones. If you’re looking for an officiant who will create a personalized ceremony, make all of your guests feel engaged and included, and become a trusted guide through important life moments, we wholeheartedly recommend Rabbi Elyssa Cherney. She played a huge role in making our wedding day so special, and we are incredibly grateful for her.

Simon S

Rabbi Elyssa Cherney officiated our wedding and did an amazing job. Leading up to the day she spent quality time with us learning about us as a couple, giving helpful advice (both ...

wedding and non-wedding related), and helping us incorporate the Jewish traditions we wanted in our day while making it our own given our different heritages. She was knowledgeable and approachable (fun to be around, too!). In our ceremony service she thoughtfully wove everything she had learned about us into a meaningful personalized ceremony. Many of our guests commented on how great the service was and how much it reflected us as a couple. Thank you Rabbi Elyssa!

Carly D

Rabbi Elyssa was an incredible officiant. She led a beautiful ceremony that incorporated Jewish traditions and personal anecdotes. She also led a very special Ketubah signing befor...

e the ceremony. My favorite part, though, was when she guided my husband and me in a private grounding meditation and prayer. This truly helped calm my anxiety and feel ready for the festivities. We also had multiple meetings before the wedding, and she was always available for any questions that came up. I highly recommend Rabbi Elyssa for any life event!

Amy S

Rabbi Elyssa was fantastic at our wedding! Not only did she provide a great balance between tradition and modernity for the ceremony itself, but she was a great support leading up ...

to the ceremony. Our grounding moment between us and her before signing the ketubah was a highlight and was much needed. Her guidance during the planning stage was appreciated and comforting and she provided order and calm to the day.

Emily S

Highly recommend Rabbi Elyssa for your wedding ceremony! From the moment we met her, we could feel her warmth and grounding nature, which we continued to feel throughout our sessio...

ns with her and our wedding. She knew exactly what to say to calm us before our ceremony and brought a level of intentionality that we didn’t even know we needed. Our ketubah signing, which we thought was going to be a more administrative part of our ceremony, was actually the most moving and meaningful part of our day, all thanks to her. The ceremony was incredible and her voice was extremely beautiful and soothing throughout. Her speech was a great mix of humor and personalized sentiment, and so many guests complimented us on how great the ceremony was. Do not hesitate to reach out to her if you are looking for a rabbi!! It will be one of the best decisions you make for your special day.

Emilie G

Rabbi Elyssa was truly exceptional! She spent a lot of time actually getting to know us not only as a couple, but as individuals as well. Our wedding ceremony was unique and specif...

ically tailored to us. Moreover, during the planning process, Rabbi Elyssa provided us with so much information about Jewish weddings and really worked with us to incorporate the traditions that spoke to us. We could not recommend Rabbi Elyssa enough!!!

Cary Z

We knew Rabbi Elyssa was the best choice from our first meeting. She was eager to get to know us; attentive to our needs as an interfaith, interracial couple; and always responsiv...

e when we had a question. During the chaos of wedding planning, she was always reassuring and kept us centered. Just before the ceremony, within the marathon of the wedding day, Rabbi Elyssa pulled us aside and gave us a much needed moment of silent meditation. After the ceremony, all of our guests - and we mean all of them - came up to us and told us how it was possibly the best ceremony they'd ever been a part of. It was intimate, spiritual, and had a gravity that struck everyone in the room. We could not recommend Rabbi Elyssa more.

Vinny V

Rabbi Cherney was kind, thorough and patient with us as we prepared for our wedding. Because we are an interfaith couple, Rabbi Cherney took her time explaining the rituals and the...

ir meaning, underscoring the importance of our wedding beyond the big party. During the ceremony, she was a calming presence that helped guide us through the process without any stress. Her words during our ceremony were beautiful, and brought laughter and happy tears to everyone in attendance. Our loved ones have repeatedly told us that the ceremony was one of the best they have attended.

Ani S

Everything we could ask for in a Rabbi and more . Kindness, patience, understanding, and wisdom. She helped create a successful wedding, despite wardrobe, malfunctions, and a light...

bulb that would not break.

Ely M

Rabbi Elyssa made our wedding ceremony even more special than we could have imagined. She took the time to get to know us beforehand and guided us to find deeper meaning in our wed...

ding and our future marriage. Guests were commenting on how beautiful the ceremony she conducted was. I would recommend her to anyone!

David M

Rabbi Elyssa exceeded our expectations. She was great and I would recommend her to anyone.

Jeremy K

Rabbi Elyssa took the time to get to know us and made us feel special. On our wedding day she went above and beyond to ensure we were present in the moment with each other. The cer...

emony was beautiful!

Naomi H

Rabbi Elyssa is fantastic! My husband and I were nervous picking an officiant but Rabbi Elyssa was really helpful and put us at ease. We were interested in an inclusive Jewish cere...

mony and she had lots of suggestions to help us create a meaningful service. In addition, it was incredibly helpful to have her input and guidance both before the wedding and the day-of to coordinate everything we would need and set it up

Alyssa T

Working with Rabbi Elyssa was a pleasure. She is warm, friendly and made us feel so comfortable right away. She is also so easy to connect with. Our conversations in preparation fo...

r the wedding were meaningful and helpful. We talked about our relationship, our future relationship and family plans, and the big picture surrounding the wedding. Rabbi Elyssa made the wedding much more than an event for us; she made it a magical experience. The ketubah ceremony she prepared for us was unlike any other I have ever witnessed. It was spiritual and transcendental. The ceremony under the chuppah was also nothing short of amazing. She made it so personal and intimiate, but also so accessible to our guests. They havent stopped talking about how special it was!

Alyssa D

Rabbi Elyssa was absolutely amazing to work with! Our rabbi unfortunately was unable to make the wedding at the last minute, but Rabbi Elyssa stepped in and saved the day. She took...

the time to learn a bit about my husband and I and what we wanted for our ceremony. Our favorite part was when she took us aside for a private moment to do some grounding before the ceremony, which really helped my husband and I connect with each other and take in all the magic of the day. Elyssa did a fantastic job with the ceremony- it was so special and so beautiful. It has been 2 months since the wedding and we are still getting huge compliments from our guests about how much they loved the ceremony! I can't recommend Rabbi Elyssa enough. She is truly wonderful!

Chelsea R

Rabbi Elyssa is truly fantastic. From our initial meeting with her, we could tell by her energy and personality that she was the Rabbi for us. Being that my husband and I are of di...

fferent faiths, we had struggled to find a Rabbi who was willing to work with us and one who was understanding of our situation and different backgrounds. We met with Rabbi Elyssa multiple times leading up to our wedding and by the time our wedding day came, it felt as though we had always known her and as if she had always known us. Planning a wedding can be stressful, but working with Rabbi Elyssa was far from that. She arrived to the venue early and kept the whole day on schedule. So many relatives from our families loved the ceremony and could not speak highly enough of how beautiful it was. My husband and I could not be happier with our choice to get married by Rabbi Elyssa and cannot wait to continue working with her for future celebrations.

Ashley H

Rabbi Elyssa was incredibly supportive throughout wedding planning. She provided one-on-one sessions for marriage counseling and took the time to not only explain the Jewish weddin...

g traditions but helped us create our own unique ceremony. One of our favorite parts of our wedding was our Ketubah signing ceremony where she held space for us to catch our breath before we walked down the aisle. Rabbi Elyssa also did a magnificent job co-hosting an interfaith union. Finally, she made herself available as we navigate our first year of marriage together. We highly recommend Rabbi Elyssa for your future wedding!

Hannah S

There are not enough words to describe how wonderful Rabbi Elyssa was. The whole process was thoughtful, and she provided such a grounding experience on our wedding day. She handle...

d the chaos with grace and humor, and helped both my husband and I feel more in touch with Judaism. I truly can’t imagine the day without her. She is an excellent person who is excellent at her work. 1000000/10

Benjamin W

Rabbi Elyssa was wonderful! She helped us design a ceremony that was meaningful for us, and was comfortable with incorporating some of my bride's Christian faith into the program. ...

It was clear to everyone that we had a personal connection to Rabbi Elyssa, fostered over deep conversations during our engagement. The counseling that she provided was important in helping us realize and reach our goals for our special day and for our life together. I can't recommend Rabbi Elyssa highly enough. Even her singing of the blessings drew rave reviews from some of our guests.

Julia O

Rabbi Elyssa was the MVP of our wedding. We had many stressful things happen in the months leading up to the wedding, but the day of the wedding, Elyssa really took charge to make ...

sure everything before and during the ceremony ran smoothly. She kept us calm, grounded, and focused on each other, all while getting friends and family involved and helping them understand the traditions they were watching and participating in. Elyssa will have you do a bit of homework on your end, but it's all worth it. She uses what she learns from you to craft a ceremony that is very personal. We were, frankly, blown away. My husband and I also decided to do a public ketubah signing, which she turned into a beautiful communal ritual. She made our wedding day so much more special. You can tell how invested Rabbi Elyssa is in the happiness of the couples she works with. She says when she works with a couple, she becomes their rabbi for life, and I look forward to future occasions where we can turn to her for guidance and to share important moments.

Rachel L

My husband and I had a Jewish-Hindu fusion wedding, and we couldn't be happier that we chose Rabbi Elyssa to co-officiate! Rabbi Elyssa not only beautifully officiated the Jewish h...

alf, but she also coordinated with our other co-officiant (a Hindu priest) to make the ceremony feel interconnected and whole. We loved working with Rabbi Elyssa throughout the wedding planning process, as well as on our wedding day, and feel grateful and lucky to have her as a resource in our married life. We recommend Rabbi Elyssa wholeheartedly to anyone planning a Jewish and/or interfaith Jewish wedding!

Marissa H

Rabbi Elyssa made our wedding magical! We’re an interfaith couple and she made both parties feel very comfortable and she helped calm us down throughout the whole process. Our ketu...

bah signing was so perfect and she had our whole wedding party involved which was amazing. Rabbi Elyssa is now our forever Rabbi! She even made some of our non jewish friends want to convert! If you’re getting married you should without a doubt go with Rabbi Elyssa!!! Thank you Rabbi Elyssa!

Monique M

I’m still humbled by how amazing Rabbi Cherney was. We are basking in the glow from our ceremony. She made it so personalized , lovely, warm and intimate. She is not a “rent a rabb...

i,” but rather more of a close counselor who gets to know you as people and creates a completely custom ceremony. She also created a vibe and experience that I have never witnessed at a wedding before- she made spiritual moments accessible to our family and friends and brought everyone in to the love and warmth of the moment. Again, I’ve been to so many weddings and no rabbi has ever stood out to me and Elyssa stands out. She really made our wedding the beautiful moment that it was. It wouldn’t have been the same without her. If you’re on the fence, hire her!!

Jessica T

Rabbi Elyssa was absolutely a great decision and we loved the whole process through our one year engagement!! She really took the time to get to know us as a couple personally and ...

turned it into a beautfiul ceremony that my now husband and I envisioned when we first started planning. We are an interfaith couple with myself being christian and my husband being jewish and Rabbi Elyssa really incorporated our values perfectly and seamlessly into the ceremony. We did a ketubah signing prior and it is now a special memory from our wedding day. All of our guests could not stop raving about how beautiful the ceremony was. If you are looking for a Rabbi/officiant I would not hesitate go ahead and book with Rabbi Elyssa because you will be in excellent hands through the whole process!

Samantha M

My husband & I had the most special wedding ceremony thanks to Rabbi Elyssa. Our family & wedding party along with all our guests continue to rave about what a special and unique e...

xperience our ceremony was. Our ketubah signing will forever hold a special place in our hearts. Thank you Rabbi Elyssa!!!

Julie S

Rabbi Elyssa is the best! My now husband and I come from different religious backgrounds- I'm Jewish and he is Catholic. While it was important for my husband to be married in the ...

Church, but I knew that I wanted to honor my Jewish background in the ceremony as well. I came across Rabbi Elyssa here on The Knot, and from the very beginning I felt a connection! She met with us over Zoom and really got to know us both as individuals and as a couple. She was easy to talk to, had some great insight, and made both my husband and I feel extremely comfortable and also excited to create an interfaith ceremony. The planning process was stress-free, super personalized, and communication was easy. When it came to the wedding day, Rabbi Elyssa couldn't have performed a more beautiful ceremony, which was shared with the priest. She listened to what we wanted and created such special moments within the ceremony. We couldn't recommend Rabbi Elyssa enough and are so happy that she was part of our day! Thank you Rabbi!! :-)

samantha L

Working with rabbi Elyssa was easy, helpful, and smooth. She walked us through the entire Jewish ceremony process, and got to know the both of us and our relationship leading up to...

the wedding. The wedding ceremony itself was perfect. It was personal, meaningful, and eloquently done. When rabbi Elyssa first arrived she reminded my husband & I why we were there, and gave us the perfect moment before the ceremony began. After a crazy day of photos, it was exactly what we needed to start the night & be present in the moment. Our ketubah signing was also meaningful and flawless, and rabbi Elyssa made it a moment we will forever cherish. I would recommend her to any Jewish or interfaith couple, as she made everyone (Jews and non Jews) feel included in the ceremony and ketubah process and explained what every little thing meant to our guests.

Ariana M

We cannot say enough about how much we LOVED working with Rabbi Elyssa!! She was tremendous throughout the entire process, and getting to know her over the last year has been rewar...

ding, enlightening, and such a privilege. When we originally hired her as our officiant, we went in with the standard expectation that she would have a call with us a couple of weeks before the wedding and then officiate the wedding. This is FAR from what we received. Over the span of a year, we met with her over five times (once in person which was awesome!), and each time we had an in-depth couples' counseling session about what marriage meant to us and how we plan to live our lives together. Her questions were always thought provoking, and she was incredibly present in making sure my wife and I were in the best headspace to walk together in marriage. She specializes in interfaith weddings and each of us felt our heritages/cultures/religions were completely respected, encouraged, and amplified. In addition, we are a same sex couple and have never felt more supported by a spiritual leader. We technically got legally married a couple months before our actual wedding celebration, and she graciously offered to officiate that as well (and she went above and beyond)! By the time we got to the "real" wedding ceremony, we truly felt like Rabbi Elyssa knew us well. The ceremony was incredibly beautiful, and we received an endless amount of compliments. She tailored the ceremony to our personalities, our relationship, and our vibe. She added a multitude of thoughtful touches that made the audience feel truly connected to us and for that we will be forever grateful. I highly recommend Rabbi Elyssa to anyone who is interested in having not only an amazing wedding, but an everlasting relationship with their Rabbi. She is now our Rabbi for life, and we cannot wait for the next life milestone to include her in!!

Elizabeth C

Rabbi Elyssa did a beautiful job serving as our officiant. She made sure to get to know us throughout the time leading up to our wedding, which made our ceremony feel even more per...

sonal and special. She completely "got it" - each little detail showed how much she cared (including using white wine for the kiddush in case of spillage on my white dress!!). We absolutely loved how she explained each part of the Jewish ceremony and allowed us to make choices about which parts we wanted to incorporate. This gave us a great understanding of the ceremony itself and made each part even more meaningful. We had so many guests tell us that the ceremony was the most special part of the evening! Thank you thank you thank you!!!

Daniel L

Rabbi Elyssa is the best. It was very important to us to have our friends and family involved in the ceremony and she made that more than possible. The ceremony was beautiful and ...

incredibly meaningful to us and our guests. It doesn’t hurt that she is a terrific singer! My wife is not Jewish (and I am not the most observant person…) so she was very diligent in making sure we understood what we would be doing and why. Most importantly, she was incredibly respectful of what we did not want to do. The counseling sessions ahead of the wedding were fantastic and helped ground us in the commitment we were making. On the subject of grounding, perhaps the most important moment of our whole wedding was when Rabbi Elyssa pulled my wife and I aside ahead of the Ketubah signing to help ground us and wash away the stress of wedding day. I can’t recommend Rabbi Elyssa enough!