Savvy Auntie by Melanie Notkin

Author:Melanie Notkin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins

Chapter 5

Festivaunts

FROM THE VERY FIRST DAY you become an auntie, all the days that follow feel a little more special. But of course, some days—birthday, holidays, religious celebrations, family firsts, and commemorations—really are a little more special. And special occasions always call for extra planning, which just so happens to be a Savvy Auntie’s specialty. Let the fetes begin!

Religious Rituals and Observauntses

If your niece’s or nephew’s parents are religious, you’ve probably already heard about the bris, simchat bat, or baptism scheduled to take place after the baby’s born. Then again, sometimes a momentous milestone like birth makes people seek out traditions in ways they didn’t care about before. Don’t be surprised if a nonpracticing parent suddenly insists on a ceremony! As an auntie, there are many meaningful ways you might participate and a few things you should know.

For Jews

The brit milah (Hebrew for circumcision, often shortened to bris) is typically performed on the morning of the eighth day after birth and represents the covenant between God and the Jewish people. The ritual is performed by a mohel, a role often fulfilled by a moonlighting physician. (No matter what his day job, a mohel must always hold special certifications.) It may take place in a synagogue, at home, or wherever the parents prefer. During the bris, your nephew will be given his Jewish name.

Girls get a special occasion, too, a naming ceremony. Your niece may be given her Jewish name on a Monday, Thursday, Jewish holiday, or Sabbath day. While she probably won’t be present at her minicoronation, she’ll get to flaunt that new party dress you got her at her simchat bat (“celebration of a daughter”) or shalom bat (“welcome the daughter”). Unlike the bris, your niece’s naming ceremony can occur anytime during her first year of life.

SAVVY AUNTIE’S ROLE

In the Ashkenazi tradition, the assignment to transfer the baby from mother to father before and after the bris is often bestowed upon a couple trying to have children. The sandek (usually a man with close ties to the family, like the uncle) holds the baby on his lap during the actual circumcision, which is considered the highest honor.

If you’re helping plan the party, which is always a festive celebration replete with bagels, lox, and balloons, consider the location and whether you need to hire a kosher caterer. Once the fun is done, whatever postbris diaper changing you do for your nephew should adhere to any special instructions given by the mohel to avoid infection.

For Christians

A baptism is the rite of passage by which a person becomes a member of the Christian church. As it involves a ritual washing, it also symbolizes cleansing from original sin (i.e., the whole Adam-and-Eve-eating-the-apple thing). Although a person can be baptized at any age, if your niece’s or nephew’s family is Christian, typically she or he is baptized within the first few months of life, inside of a church. The baby wears a white christening gown, signifying purity, and the minister/priest/bishop performs an aspersion, sprinkling your niece’s or nephew’s head with water drawn from the church’s baptismal font.

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