There is nothing in the world like singing to a baby. Many years ago, a friend of mine asked me to watch over her newborn as she put her older daughter to bed. This being one of my first experiences with a baby, I was not quite sure what to do. I did what I do best, I sang to him. “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star…” slowly his eyes riveted to mine. His body softened and then began to drop off. The thirty or so times I sang the song, he kept fighting to stay awake until sleep finally claimed him.
As a cantor, I get to repeat this incredible moment each time I help families welcome their new babies into Judaism during their bris[1] or brit bat[2]. Every time a family welcomes a new baby, it is as if each member of that family becomes a new creation. Each mother, father, sister, brother, grandparent, family member is forever changed, woven deeply into the fabric of a new life forever. This is often the first Jewish lifecycle the family celebrates together in their life as a new unit. A bris or brit bat elevates this time, this experience of new creation. The ceremony serves to welcome a new baby into the covenant of Judaism and honors the bonds created into the past, present and future.
The instant I look into a baby’s eyes and sing to them, blessing them with words that are thousands of years old, is a profound experience. There is a complete connection, a sense that God’s presence is right in the midst of that blessing; that God’s shelter and comfort surround the entire family as the melody washes over them. One holy moment, and a family transforms forever, bound together in a fabric woven from the sands of time. Magic.
Cantors officiate at every life cycle event! It would be my honor to help you welcome your new baby into Jewish life.
Whose baby will I sing to next?
[1] Circumsision and baby naming ceremony for a boy
[2] Baby naming ceremony for a girl
