Rescued Children Undergo Symbolic Circumcision in Moving Ceremony
June 26, 2017
May G-d Place You. Hagaon Harav Ba'adani blesses the children.
Just recently, Yad L’Achim held a symbolic circumcision (hatafas dam bris) for a group of Jewish children who had been rescued from hostile Arab villages. This week, it held a similar ceremony for five additional children who were rescued with their mothers by Yad L’Achim.
Before the ceremony, held in the offices of Yad L’Achim’s headquarters, the children were brought to the home of Harav Shimon Ba’adani, a member of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah, who asked each child to recite by heart the verse “Shema Yisrael” and gave them sweets and a personal blessing.
The Rav showed great interest in the work of Yad L’Achim, asking officials who accompanied the children about the organization’s unique mentoring program. He was moved to hear that each child rescued from an Arab village receives personal guidance from a religious mentor until he enters a Torah school.
Upon hearing the scope of Yad L’Achim’s rescue work, the Rav blessed the officials that they merit to continue to save Jewish souls and have siyatta diShmaya every step of the way.
A special moment came towards the end of the visit, when the mothers asked to receive a blessing from the Rav. Asked what kind of blessing they wanted, each and every mother expressed her desire to raise her son “that he should be a tzaddik and great Rav in Israel.”
From there, the mothers and their children continued to the head offices of Yad L’Achim, dressed in their holiday best. The symbolic circumcision, which is required by Halachah even for those who received a “Muslim circumcision,” was performed by the mohel Harav Yedidyah Yosef from the organization “Brit Yosef Yitzchak.” At the end of the ceremony, the mohel blessed the wine, and gave each child a Jewish name.
Yad L’Achim activists gave each child a personal gift.
After singing Siman Tov u’Mazal Tov, and dancing with the children, Yad L’Achim served a catered seudas mitzvah. During the meal, the chairman of Yad L’Achim, Harav Yisrael Lifschitz, spoke, citing the dedication of the mothers in seeing to it that their children received a bris milah in accordance with Halachah, and encouraged them to continue on their upward spiritual path.
The director-general of Yad L’Achim, Harav Yosef Ganz, who participated in the moving event, had warm words of praise for the mohel, Harav Yedidyah Yosef, who that very morning performed a bris milah in the south of the country for a Jewish baby, whose Jewish mother (the father was an Arab) had been in constant touch with Yad L’Achim for support.
And his name will be called in Israel.
The mohel, Harav Yedidyah Yosef, blesses the wine and gives the children Jewish names.
She’hechiyanu v’kiymanu. After the bris, the chairman of Yad L’Achim,
Harav Yisrael Lifschitz, with the mohel and the children.
