what we do
Jewish Baby Naming
Jewish Baby Naming
The conferring of a Hebrew name is an important ritual for every Jewish family. At Sinagoga Ner Tamid del Sud in Serrastretta (Calabria) Italy, Rabbi Barbara welcomes families from all over the world who want to experience a pluralistic service, open and welcoming to Interfaith families.
Holding grandpa’s tallit (prayer shawl) above Mom, Dad and baby is just one of the beautiful traditions Rabbi Barbara incorporates into the modern pluralistic Jewish baby naming ceremony. Rabbi Barbara works with the Jewish and Jewish interfaith family to personalize the ceremony to include blessings and readings that celebrate the Jewish faith along with the traditions of other faiths and cultures.
During the Jewish baby naming ceremony the baby girl or boy receives her/his first kipah (yarmulke) as well as an official Jewish baby naming certificate, while grandparents, siblings and friends of all faiths all have an important part to play.
Rabbi Barbara recommends that, for baby boys, the circumcision be done immediately after birth, in the hospital setting, under sterile conditions and with an anesthetic in use. The Brit Milah blessing is then incorporated into naming ceremony itself, held at a time when both mother and baby have recovered from the birthing process.
Ceremonies that celebrate the birth of a daughter and her entry into the covenant of the Jewish people are known by a variety of names, including B’rit Bat and B’rit Chayim. They are a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our daughters and are an important part of liberal pluralistic Judaism’s egalitarian approach to Jewish tradition.
Rabbi Barbara will help parents to choose their son or daughter’s Hebrew name and, if the family requests it, she will joyfully co-officiate with non-Jewish clergy, either in the Calabria synagogue or in the family home.
For Specific Information for a Jewish Baby Naming Ceremony
Rabbi Barbara holds baby Isabella from Asia during her Jewish naming ceremony.