Saul and Mira’s Simchat Brit

Welcoming our twin son and daughter into the Covenant

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Welcoming Saul and Mira

We strove to welcome our boy/girl twins into the

Covenant in an egalitarian, expert, and authentic

manner

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Egalitarianism was achieved by designing a ritual for Mira that paralleled Saul’s Brit Milah (or, as it worked out, Hatafat Dam Brit).

Welcoming Saul and Mira

Expertise was demonstrated by calling upon the strengths of the participants (parents are a cantorial student and a physician), and by creating excellent materials for participants and guests

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Welcoming Saul and Mira

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Jewish Authenticity was achieved by maintaining traditional rituals, innovating in those places where there is no prescribed tradition, and grounding those innovations upon text and precedent

Personal Authenticity was achieved by selecting rituals that are meaningful to our family

Welcoming Saul and Mira

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Ceremony StructureWelcome and EntranceGrandparents' Reading

Mira's RitualMiriam's Chair

Text – Ezekiel 16:8-12

Foot WashingK'riyat Shem

About her name

Saul's RitualElijah's ChairHatafat Dam BritKiddush K'riyat ShemAbout his name

Birkat HaGomel Parents' Blessings

Mira Celeste

�ה ְל�ָב�ָנ ה ֵמ�ִאיָר�

Saul Liev ְל�ייָב ש�ֵמ�ש

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Mira’s Ritual: Miriam’s Chair

We chose to set out chairs for both Elijah

and Miriam.

Elijah’s chair was draped with Yoram’s

talit Miriam’s was draped

with Melissa’s talit.

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Jewish Authenticity:

Invoking Miriam along with Elijah has

become common at other times of

transition, such as the Passover Seder and

Havdalah

Mira’s Ritual: Miriam’s Chair

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Personal Authenticity:

Melissa’s Hebrew name is

Miriam Batsheva.

Yoram’s Hebrew name is Eliyahu Aharon.

(Yes, this is confusing, as “Yoram” is a Hebrew name.)

Mira’s Ritual: Miriam’s Chair

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Mira’s Ritual: Foot-WashingWe chose to do a ritual foot-washing for Mira, using

a mixture of water from our respective hometowns, from our current town, and from the Mira River in Nova Scotia, Canada

Note on the pronunciation of “Mira”

Sounds like “clear-cut”

mɪrə

Sounds like “spiral”majrə

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Mira’s Ritual: Foot-WashingWe chose to do a ritual foot-washing for Mira, using

a mixture of water from our respective hometowns, from our current town, and from the Mira River in Nova Scotia, Canada

Jewish Authenticity Abraham washed the feet of the visiting angels

who announced the future birth of Isaac Levi’im washed the feet of the Kohanim in Temple

times The mixing of waters is reminiscent of building a

chuppah from trees planted at time of birth

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We chose to do a ritual foot-washing for Mira, using a mixture of water from our respective hometowns, from our current town, and from the Mira River in Nova Scotia, Canada

Personal Authenticity: Melissa is a bat Levi Mira’s maternal Great-Great-Great-Grandparents,

Abraham and Reza Leah Mirkin, left Lithuania and settled in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, along the Mira River.

We were inspired by a ceremony at a friend’s Catholic wedding, where they drank from a Native American Wedding Vase containing water from the bride and groom’s homes.

Mira’s Ritual: Foot-Washing

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Mira’s Ritual: Ezekiel 16:8-12

Rather than including a Kiddush both here and during Saul’s ritual, we decided to use an alternative text, Ezekiel 16:8-12.

These verses appear amidst a cursing of Jerusalem, which is described as a maiden who turns to harlotry.

They are, however, quite lovely out of context...

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Mira’s Ritual: Ezekiel 16:8-12� ח �ְך ��ה ִע�ֵּת� �ה�ֵּנ �, ְו �ֵא�ְר�ֵא�ְך � ְו �ֵא�ִע�ֹב�ְר ִע�ַל�ִיְך   ְו

�ֵא�ַכ�ֶּס��ה �, ְו �ִפ�י ִע�ַל�ִיְך ��ֵּנ �ֵא�ִפ�ְר�ׂש� ַכ ים, ְו ��ִד� ִע�ֵּת ִד�ֵא�ֹבְו�ֵא ֹב�ֹב�ְר�יֵּת � ְו �ֵא�ׂש#��ֹב�ע ַל�ְך �; ְו �ֵּת�ְך ִע�ְר�ְו

�ה�ִיי-ַל�י. �ֵּת� �ה--ְו �הְו �י י �ֵא'ם ֵא�ִד�ֵּנ �, ֵּנ ֵא�ֵּת�ְך

8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, and, behold, thy time was the time of love, I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness; yea, I swore unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest Mine.

� ט ִיְך ��ַמ� �ֵא�ׂש#�ֹט�ף ִד ִים, ְו � ֹב��ַמ�� �ֵא�ְר�ָח�ֵצ�ְך   ְון. �, ֹב��ׂש#��ַמ� ַכ�ְך �ֵא�ֶּס' �; ְו ַמ�ִע�ַל�ִיְך

9 Then washed I thee with water; yea, I cleansed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil.

�ָח�ׂש#; י � ֵּת� �ִע�ַל�ְך �ֵא�ֵּנ � ְר�ְק�ַמ�ה, ְו ��יׂש#�ְך �ֵא�ַל�ֹב   ְו

� ַמ�ׂש#�י. ְך �ֵא�ַכ�ֶּס�� � ֹב��ׂש#��ׂש#, ְו �ֵא�ָח�ֹב��ׂש#�ְך ְו

10 I clothed thee also with richly woven work, and shod thee with sealskin, and I wound fine linen about thy head, and covered thee with silk.

ים יִא יִד� �ה ֵצ�ַמ� �ֵּנ �ֵא�ֵּת� י; ְו �, ִע�ִד� ��ְך �ֵא�ִע�ִד   ְו

.� �ְך ��ְרְו�ֵּנ �ְר�ֹב�יִד ִע�ַל-ְּג �, ְו ִיְך �ִד� ִע�ַל-י

11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.

�יַל�ים, יָב �ִע�ְּג �, ְו �ְך �ם, ִע�ַל-ֵא�ִפ� �ֶז �ן ֵּנ �ֵא�ֵּת�   ְו

.� �ִפ�ֵא�ְר�ֵּת, ֹב��ְר�ֵאׂש#�ְך �ִע�ֹט�ְר�ֵּת ֵּת� �; ְו �ִיְך �ֵּנ ֶז ִע�ַל-ֵא�

12 And I put a ring upon thy nose, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thy head.

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Jewish Authenticity: A precedent for using this text for a covenantal

ceremony is the inclusion of Ezekiel 16:6 in the traditional liturgy for Brit Milah. That verse is also taken out of context for liturgical purposes.

Ezekiel 16:6-7 is also used as a proof text in the Passover Haggadah, however the verses appear inverted (16:7, then 16:6). Again, a precedent for selective editing.

Mira’s Ritual: Ezekiel 16:8-12

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Personal Authenticity: Melissa (a cantorial student) wanted to use a text

that could be chanted in either trop or nusach. As Ezekiel is a prophetic text, Haftarah trop was appropriate.

Keeping in mind the need for accessibility to our guests, Melissa chanted just the first verse in Hebrew, and the remainder in English.

Mira’s Ritual: Ezekiel 16:8-12

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Mira’s Ritual: Ezekiel 16:8-12

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Saul’s Ritual: Hatafat Dam Brit

Because Saul was so small at birth, we were not able to have him circumcised at a traditional brit milah.

We chose to have Saul circumcised at the hospital as soon as his health permitted, with the intention of later performing a hatafat dam brit.

As we were planning our Simchat Brit, with an eye toward both Jewish and personal authenticity, Yoram (a physician) decided to perform this mitzvah himself.

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About This PresentationMuch of the material in this slideshow was

originally presented at a Hebrew College School of Jewish Music Community Meeting on April 27, 2011.

Please contact Cantor Melissa Puius with any questions or comments

melissa.puius@gmail.comcantormelissa.wordpress.com