Thank you for visiting my web site.

Here you will find a wealth of information about the Brit Milah (or Bris) ceremony for boys, and the Baby Naming (Simchat Bat or Zeved Habat) ceremony for girls. Much of this information is repeated in different ways throughout the web site. I hope it will give you a good sense about my philosophy and approach to these beautiful rituals.

NOTE: Beginning December 1, 2021, the Schedule of Fees is changing. My fees have remained the same for the past seven years. Costs have increased significantly during that time and even more so recently. A nominal $75.00 increase will be applied to all fees.

Covid-19 and Brisses: Update: 2/20/23

I hope you and your family are safe and well.

If you are still concerned about Covid, one can take all of the necessary precautions to have a proper and beautiful Bris in the safety and comfort of your home. I leave it up to parents and their comfort level regarding masks, the number of guests to invite and whom to include in the ceremony. With the increase in Covid, RSV and Flu cases, I still recommend being cautious.

I am fully vaccinated including all of the boosters. My goal is to maximize safety and minimize the risk for everyone involved. I continue to wear a mask. I would like you to be confident in the steps I am taking to ensure a safe and gentle Bris for your baby. Also, I am the mohel that doctors call upon to perform the Brisses for their children, grandchildren and their patients’ children. They do not want hospital or doctor-mohel circumcisions.

The Bris can still be performed with just the parents, the baby and the mohel. A minyan is not required for a Bris. All of the Honors can be performed by the parents. Everyone else can attend virtually. You should have a festive meal following the Bris no matter what. If you wish, you may also celebrate with many guests and a large party or anything in between.

Hopefully, you will make arrangements for your son’s Bris with an observant traditional rabbi or cantor mohel. If you are thinking of having the baby circumcised in the hospital, please email me and I will send you information. It is important to me that parents make a fully informed decision.

Most parents have no idea how a circumcision is performed in the hospital or by a doctor. A circumcision performed by a doctor-mohel or in the hospital can take anywhere from fifteen to forty-five minutes (!) with your naked baby boy strapped down to a molded plastic board. The parents are not allowed to be present.

The traditional Bris performed by Rabbi or Cantor mohel takes under 20 seconds with the baby held by the warm, loving hands of a grandparent, relative or friend.

Allow me to be direct: Don’t circumcise your baby in the hospital or use a doctor-mohel.

If your baby is circumcised in the hospital before the eighth day, by a non-Jewish doctor or a doctor who is not Sabbath observant, your son will need another procedure to turn the hospital circumcision into a Bris. That is called a hatafat dam brit which is the drawing of a drop of blood from the circumcision site to enter the child into the Covenant of Abraham. Why subject your child to two procedures when you don’t have to?

For babies that were circumcised in the hospital or did not have a proper Bris performed by a certified rabbi or cantor mohel, I can perform a Hatafat Dam Bris ceremony to turn that circumcision into a Bris. It will be a complete ceremony including the Honors, the announcement of your son’s Hebrew/Jewish name followed by a festive meal if you choose to make one. At the point in the ceremony where the circumcision would have taken place, the hatafat dam brit, the drawing of a drop of blood from the circumcision site, will be performed. The discomfort to the baby is minimal and momentary. (He will probably cry more when his diaper comes off and his legs are held.) This will ensure that your son will have been properly entered into the Covenant of Abraham. Doing this will allow him to have a Bar Mitzvah or get married someday unimpeded. If your son decides to follow a more traditional Jewish path in life, this will also remove any obstacles. A certificate will be issued attesting that the requirements of the Bris have been fulfilled in accordance with Jewish law. It will be recognized by all the movements of Judaism and in Israel.

NOTE: It is important to determine beforehand that the hospital or doctor circumcision was done properly. I have had several families who wanted the Hatafat Dam Bris ceremony, but there was so much skin left that their babies did not look circumcised. They have to be re-circumcised before they can have a Hatafat Dam Bris Ceremony.

All of my instruments are heat-steam sterilized in an autoclave. Everything else is disposable. I use a new, sterilized pack of instruments for every Bris. The following protocols are still in place for Bris families:

  • The person who holds the baby for the Bris (the Sandek) and the other participants in the ceremony may wear a mask—again, depending on the comfort level of the parents.
  • Make sure all the technology (Zoom, Skype, FaceTime, etc.) is set up in advance and everyone is online and ready to begin fifteen (15) minutes prior to the start time of the ceremony. I recommend recording the ceremony (except when the baby’s diaper is off) for future viewing. I am happy to begin a few minutes early if everyone is ready.
  • Parents—please read and review the Post-Care instructions before the Bris.
  • Brisses may be held outdoors weather permitting. If it is raining or snowing; too hot, too cold, too windy or too humid, the Bris will be held indoors.

Summary:

  • Have a proper, traditional Bris for your son performed by a traditional Rabbi or Cantor mohel. It will be quick, gentle, compassionate and recognized by all the movements of Judaism and in Israel.
  • Allow me to repeat myself: if you are looking into non-traditional doctor-mohels or a hospital circumcision, please email and I will send you additional information. This is extremely important and parents should have as much information as possible to make a fully informed decision.

If you belong to a mommy blog or any other group or know someone that might benefit from this posting, please share it with them.

If you would like information about Brisses, Baby Naming ceremonies for girls, availability and fees, please email me. I will send you additional information to help you prepare for those joyous events. If you had your baby, Mazel Tov! If you are expecting a baby, best wishes for an easy delivery and a beautiful, healthy baby. I look forward to seeing you at a simcha (happy occasion) soon!

Cantor Philip L. Sherman
Mohel

Passover 2023/5783

Passover celebrates the Exodus from Egypt and the freedom of the Jewish people. Scheduling Brisses can be very challenging in view of the Passover holiday. This year Passover begins on Wednesday night, April 5th and the first two days, which are holiday days, are Thursday, April 6th and Friday April 7th which is then followed by Shabbat. All emails received from Wednesday night, April 5th after 6:00 PM through Saturday night, April 8th will be returned Saturday night, April 8th after 9:00 P.M. I will try to respond to as many emails as I can before Passover begins on Wednesday, April 5th.

No traditional, Sabbath observant mohel will be able to contact you until Saturday night, April 8th.

The biggest concern with a multi-day Jewish holiday that runs into Shabbat is that many families will panic and want to schedule the Bris on the Passover holiday or on Shabbat with a doctor-mohel. Please don’t do that. If you want a proper and kosher Bris for your son or grandson—please wait until Saturday night. Don’t schedule the Bris on the first two days of Passover or on Shabbat with a doctor-mohel. Your patience will be rewarded with a beautiful, gentle and compassionate Bris performed by an expert certified rabbi or cantor mohel that will be recognized by all the movements of Judaism and in Israel and never be subject to question.

It is religiously preferred to delay scheduling the Bris or performing the Bris to obtain the services of a traditional, certified Sabbath observant rabbi or cantor mohel so that you son or grandson will have a proper and kosher Bris.

A baby born by C-section cannot have a Bris on the Sabbath or a Jewish holiday. Any babies born by C-section Wednesday night, March 29th through Sunday, April 2nd will have their brisses on Sunday, April 9th which will be a “make-up” day. Four days (!) of Brisses will have to be scheduled on that Sunday! I will be scheduling Brisses geographically on that Sunday in order to accommodate as many families as possible. Some Brisses may spill over into Monday. Many believe that the Bris must take place on the eighth day. That is not the case. There are many exceptions to the eighth day rule. Again, it is religiously preferred to delay the Bris beyond the eighth day to obtain the services of a traditional, certified Sabbath observant rabbi or cantor mohel so that your son or grandson will have a proper and kosher Bris. Patience and flexibility are very important and will be greatly appreciated.

Please email me only if you are willing to wait until after the Shabbat or holiday has concluded to make arrangements with me.

The following week, the last two days of Passover, which are holiday days, are from Tuesday night, April 11th through Thursday, April 13th. All emails received from Tuesday, April 11th after 6:00 PM through Thursday night, April 13th will be returned Thursday night, April 13th around 9:00 P.M after the holiday has concluded. I will try to respond to as many emails as I can before the holiday begins on Tuesday, April 11th. Friday, April 14th will also be a “make-up” day. Only three days of Brisses will have to be scheduled on that Friday.

Again, a baby born by C-section cannot have a Bris on the Sabbath or a Jewish holiday. Any babies born by C-section Tuesday night, April 4th through Thursday, April 6th will have their brisses on Friday, April 14th which is another “make-up” day. I will be scheduling Brisses geographically on that Friday in order to accommodate as many families as possible.

Similarly, many families may be scheduled for those “make-up” days (or beyond) if they live outside of a certain area. Riding or driving on the Sabbath or Passover holiday is not allowed. The intermediate days of the holiday (April 19th through April 11th) are like regular weekdays with no restrictions related to C-sections or travel.

Please do not make any arrangements until you have confirmed with me the correct day of the Bris and make sure only one person is making arrangements with only one mohel.

Please email me only if you are willing to wait until after the Shabbat or holiday has concluded to make arrangements with me.

Waiting until after the Shabbat and/or holiday has concluded will ensure that your son or grandson will have a beautiful, proper and kosher Bris. It will be scheduled properly, performed on the correct day and it will be universally recognized by all the movements of Judaism and in Israel. The down side is that Bris arrangements made on the Sabbath (Shabbat) or Jewish holiday will result in a questionable and/or halachically problematic Bris. Although it may not be a concern for you, it may have significant ramifications for your son or grandson in the future. I look forward to hearing from you and would love to be part of your simcha. Thank you and best wishes for a joyous and sweet Passover holiday!

Cantor Philip L. Sherman
Mohel

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