Tip Front

Brit. Hold The Milah

JULIE WIENER
Staff Writer

L

a blessing for entrance into the
covenant, this first ceremony included
variations of the seven blessings said at
weddings.
Some proponents of girls'
covenant ceremonies have intro-
duced physical acts, such as feet
washing and immersion, to parallel
the act of circumcision. In the
1970s, one Jewish feminist even sug-
gested creating a ritual act of break-
ing the girl's hymen.

Jewish families
develop rituals to
welcome newborn
daughters into
the covenant.

ast Sunday, Rabbi Aaron and
Ruth Bergman hosted a pub-
lic ceremony at Beth
Abraham Hillel Moses to
welcome their newborn child into the
covenant of Abraham. It was similar to
a brit milah, but there were two key
differences: no blood and the child
was a girl.
• For thousands of years,
Jewish boys have been offi-
cially welcomed into the
community at a brit milah
(covenant of circumcision)
with the act of circumci-
sion, a traditional welcome
— 'As he has entered into
the covenant, so may he
enter into Torah, chuppah
and a life of good deeds" —
and a celebratory meal.
But naming ceremonies
for baby girls have tradi-
tionally been much smaller
affairs, with no mention
made of the covenant.
Instead, the father is called
for an aliyah at the first
Torah-reading after the
birth and receives a blessing
in which the child's name is
given. A healing prayer is
said for the mother, whose
presence is not required. No
mention is made of the
covenant.
Although most
Conservative and Reform
congregations have adapted Ruth and Rabbi Aaron Bergman start the simchat bat ceremony with a blessing over the wine.
this ceremony by calling the
whole family to the Torah
However, Detroit parents who have
need for a ritual act beyond that, for
on a convenient date after the birth
hosted covenant ceremonies for their
having something physical 'done," said
and giving them an opportunity to
daughters say they have not felt the
Bergman. "[Circumcision] is some-
speak about the child's name, full-
thing God told Abraham to do. For us
need to include a physical act in the
blown simchat bat ceremonies, such as
to make up a physical act didn't hold
ceremony.
the Bergmans' event for their daugh-
"We
didn't
want
immersion
any meaning for us."
ter, Rivka, are relatively rare in the
because
it
smacked
less
of
mikvah
Adat Shalom Rabbi Daniel Nevins
Detroit Jewish community.
and more of baptism," said Ruth
and his 'wife have hosted simchat bat
Over the past 25 years, a small
Bergman. Parents of four daughters,
ceremonies for both their daughters
group of Jews around the country has
the Bergmans have developed their
and congregants. Their ceremony,
opted to develop new ceremonies to
which involves "a lot of singing," starts
own "Bergman family simchat bat": a
welcome daughters into the covenant.
blessing over wine, an official wel-
with a public entrance of the child, a
According to Lifegcles: Jewish Women
song related to the girl's Hebrew
coming
of
the
baby
into
the
commu-
on Life Passages and Personal
nity,
the
presentation
of
gifts
symbol-
name, a blessing over the wine, the
Milestones, a book edited by Rabbi
izing Torah, chuppah and good
naming paragraph used in the brit, a
Debra Orenstein, one of the first
public announcement of the girl's
deeds, and a celebratory meal.
descriptions of covenant rituals for
"We personally didn't feel a real
name, a welcoming into the covenant
girls appeared in 1973. In addition to

and wrapping the girl in a tallit
(prayer shawl).
They, lso include a Torah discus-
sion using passages that are relevant to
the girl's name, publicly give tzedakah
and host a celebratory meal.
"We use some elements of the
brit and some elements of the tradi-
tional baby naming," said Nevins.
While simchat bat ceremonies are
"increasingly common," he said only
about six occur each year at Adat
Shalom.
Rabbi Arnie
Sleutelberg of
Congregation Shir
Tikvah encourages his
6: congregants to make a
family occasion of what
he calls a "brit ha bat."
"It's very much mod-
eled after the brit milah.
It follows all the exact
components — every-
thing except for the
surgery," he said. While
Sleutelberg's ceremonies
do not usually include
physical acts, he says he
has attended ones in
which the baby's feet
were washed.
Although a brit must
occur eight days after a
boy is born, timing for
the simchat bat is flexi-
ble. Sleutelberg encour-
ages people to schedule
the ceremony whenever
it is convenient. The
Bergmans have tried vir-
tually every option:
Their first daughter's
ceremony was eight days
following birth, their second and
third had ceremonies at the month
mark and Rivka's ceremony on
Sunday occurred when she was
almost three months old.
Nevins opted for the month
mark. "Some people want to do it
on the eighth day, but we say it's not
a brit, it doesn't have to be exactly
the same. We did it after a month
because that's the point of viability
in ancient tradition, and since our
family lives out of town, it's nice to
give people a few weeks to get cheap
airfares." DI

21.20
1998

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