What is a brit?
A. A Brit is a circumcision. It is Positive Mitzvah #215. A newborn Jewish male is joined to the Jewish People by brit on the eighth day of his life.
B. "Brit" means “pact.” Abraham’s faith was tested ten times by G-d, after which G-d was assured that his convictions were unshakeable. The ninth ordeal was to remove the excess foreskin of the male organ, denoting spiritual domination over base compulsion. After all ten, Abraham entered into a pact of mutual faith with G-d that lives forever.
C. While the Torah sets the brit date for Day Eight, if Junior is ill, yellow, or a preemie, the brit is postponed until he's ready.
How is a brit performed?
1. Surgery in the Living Room!
Home birthing isn’t the only medical procedure done in one’s house nowadays—Jews have been conducting Britot in the comfort and convenience of their homes for millenia. In the company of family and friends, the brit is performed by a Mohel, an expert circumcisor who ensures minimal discomfort for the newborn. However, due to space considerations and the fact that most britot are performed in the morning, most britot are held in shuls, immediately after the Shacharit services.
2. The Gory Details
You were expecting that, weren’t you? A brit is actually very sanitary: the infant is brought in on a pillow amid pomp and circumstance, and placed on someone’s lap, usually his grandfather or oldest direct ancestor. The baby bearer is called the kvatter; the lap baby holder is called the Sandek. Verses are recited from the Siddur, the foreskin above the corona is slid into a grooved protective steel plate, and with a razor-sharp blade, the mohel removes it with one swift surgical stroke. Of course, baby cries loudly, but 80 percent of the pain is shock, and of that 20 percent of pain, most of it is due to the cold metal. The skin itself is very soft, the cut takes less than an eyeblink to deliver, and the healing process begins immediately. Most infants show no signs of pain after a day or two. Immediately after the circumcision, the mohel tends to the healing process by applying bandages and salves. The newly-circumcised infant, pillow and all, is lifted from the sandek’s lap and placed in the arms of another family dignitary, called the sandek me’umad. Often a close relative of the proud daddy’s choosing, usually his own father, recites additional verses from the siddur, and calls out in Hebrew: “...and let his name in Israel be called [NAME HERE]...” After the naming, baby is spirited away to his mother, and family and friends alike sit down to a celebratory breakfast, as the brit is traditionally done as early in the morning as possible, denoting enthusiasm for the mitzvah.
Seven symbolizes nature: the never-ending routine of weekdays and weekends... Eight is beyond that. Eight symbolizes the supernatural3. The Power of Eight
Abraham was in his 90s when he circumcised himself—he had the self-control of a Jedi Master. His was a powerful mind—he understood what he was doing, and, understanding the critical importance of the pact, circumcised his first son Yishmael at the age of 13. At that stage, Yishmael was capable of asking intelligent questions. His relationship with G-d thus began with intellect.
Little Isaac was only eight days old when he got “britted.” Eight is one step beyond the natural. Seven symbolizes nature: the never-ending routine of weekdays and weekends, sunrise, sunset, day in, day out. Eight is beyond that. Eight symbolizes the supernatural. As an eight-day-old infant, Isaac had no intellect—just an overarching, permanent awareness of G-d seared into his subconciousness from his earliest days. His relationship with G-d was begun in a supernatural manner.
The survival of the Jewish people is supernatural. No one can explain it. And the Jewish nation’s very nature is supernatural because they descend not from Yishmael the rationalist, but from Isaac the humbly accepting. For this reason, the brit is done on Day Number Eight—the day that symbolizes the eternal supernature of the Jewish Nation.
