On May 24 we had a Brit Milah (or Bris) for Henry to honor his maternal Jewish heritage.
My grandmother was born in Cairo, Egypt after her family immigrated from Izmir, Turkey to join a larger Jewish community. It was there that she met my grandfather who was an American with the military. When she moved to America at the age of 22, 4 months pregnant with my mom, she slowly stopped practicing Judaism. Over the years I have learned more about my family history and in the process have tried to increase my understanding of (Sephartic) Judaism. Because Scott and I believe it is important and valuable to understand, embrace, and respect family and community we held the Bris for Henry.
The ceremony was so special. The meaning of the ceremony and the words said during the ceremony overshadowed any of the (brief) physical and emotional discomfort that was felt by me and Scott, Henry, and others in attendance. Our friends Emily Gurley and Aimee were there as was our Doula Emily. My sister and her husband and daughter as well as Scott's parents were present. Finally, my friend Joe Bressler with whom I commuted from Washington DC to Baltimore a few years ago came.
One component of the ceremony that I really appreciated was that everyone present played a role either by presenting Henry to the Rabbi and the Chair of Elijah (Sarah and Drew),
holding Henry while he was circumcised (Joe: This special role that must be performed by a Jewish male and Joe was the only one besides the Rabbi),
saying a blessing before the actual Bris (Emily Gurley), introducing Henry's Hebrew name (Emily and Aimee),
saying a blessing while he was circumcised (me and Scott), and saying a final blessing (Phyllis and Bob).
As a final part of the ceremony, Scott said a few words about Henry's English and Hebrew names all of which honor his family.
Henry Emerson: Henry was a common name in both Scott's mother's and father's families. In fact, our Henry could be referred to as Henry the 7th because on Phyllis's side there was Henry George Garbe (his great grandfather); Henry Allan Garbe (his great great grandfather); and Henry Kraft (his great-great-great-great grandfather. On Bob's side there was Henry W Merrill, Jr (his great grandfather); Henry W Merrill (his great-great-great grandfather); and Henry Clinton Merrill (his great-great-great-great grandfather). Emerson is a common family name in my father's family. Henry's great-great-great grandmother was the daughter of Ralph Waldo Emerson. When she had a child who would not have the Emerson last name she decided to make it a first name.
Yaakov Boruch: I asked my grandmother to help us come up with Henry's Hebrew name. She suggested we name him after her father Jacques Braha. Rabbi Rappaport, who performed the Bris, adapted the name into a Hebrew one. Yaakov is an adaptation of Jacob and Boruch (similar to Braha) means "blessing" in Hebrew.
As I mentioned previously, this was a very special day and I am so glad we were able to hold the ceremony. It meant a great deal to us to have Sarah, Drew, and Kaylin, and Phyllis and Bob participate. We would have loved to have more family present but the strict timing is difficult to work around.
