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Post by Rabbi Avi Billet, Mohel.

The Topic That Won't Go Away

That's right. Another article in the Forward about... metzitzah.

Here is the link. http://forward.com/articles/213364/is-controversial-circumcision-ritual-dangerous/?p=all

Unfortunately, this article is very long and says very little. It may have some or most of its facts straight, but there are too many questions left unanswered.

Of course, much of this is a response to this article I neglected to post last week.
http://hamodia.com/2015/01/13/dna-tests-clear-mohalim-rockland-calls-nyc-shift-course/


The bottom line is that - as I wrote in my article in the Jewish Week - nothing will change based on the outside. The change must come from within. Rabbis must teach their constituents that this practice is no longer acceptable, and they must insist and demand that the mohels stop performing it.

When the internal community pressure brings about a cessation of direct contact metzitzah, these stories will cease to occur.

We will also rid this horrible "chillul Hashem" from our midst (just see the way the obviously not-Jewish media paints the metzitzah ritual).

The Basic Information - All You Need to Know Consolidated

I get many phone inquiries months in advance of births. Sometimes the baby is a boy, and sometimes the parents don’t know yet. (Obviously those who know they are having girls don’t call!)

I am always happy to discuss all matters in advance of the bris. But for ease of reference, here is all the information you need (some of these links are at the top of the page as well).  Of course, any topic you'd like to research more can be found in the Topical Index.

This is the Process most go through to prepare for the bris before baby is even born (and continuing as outlined below)

If baby has been born and you haven't booked your mohel yet, stop everything and call ASAP: 516-850-9694  [Please make sure only ONE person from the family is hiring a mohel to avoid booking two people for the same job]

                

Here are the supplies you need for the bris, and for the aftercare.

If you want to consider procuring a numbing agent for the bris (most people don't), here is information about analgesics that might be helpful to you - speak with your pediatrician if you need a prescription.

                

Here are the honors you need to think about and assign for the bris ceremony

                

Here is a summary of what a classic bris ceremony looks like.     

                         

Here is a basic summary of what will happen to your baby in the course of thecircumcision, including the methods of circumcision generally used by mohels (I use #2, and I do not own any clamps).

                

Here are the instructions for post-bris wound care.

                

Here is an explanation of how things will look like in the few days and weeks following the bris.

                

Here is a long term care reminder for some babies, and another for babies who gather much baby fat over the next several months. 

Here is a link to the Honorarium page - guide to figuring out what the bris costs. It is different for everyone (there is much flexibility), but costs and considerations are explained here

I have written several letters, either directly to the new Mom, to the husband of that new mom, and even to baby's grandparents who forget their role. All those letters and more are linked here, including how to deal with the unique circumstance of where there is no bris.

In 2018, I penned this SOCIAL MEDIA WARNING, because I discovered that crazy people scour Facebook (and other platforms) to be disgusting towards people who are proud that they are bringing their baby into the Mark of the Covenant. 

Unrelated to Bris, here are two posts on Parenting Tips - which may be helpful to first time parents:

1. Tricks for Changing Diapers, Keeping Things Clean, and Calming a Baby

2. Feeding, Calming, Medicating?, Diaper Rashes, Thoughts on Sleeping

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Update from 2016 - I am including links to the tools of the trade blog posts here - which will give you a great overview of all the things used at the bris, and how they are utilized.

SHIELD              TUBE               KNIFE              PROBE             HEMOSTATS 

MARKER              GLOVES             NUMBING