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Childbirth

Giving birth is one of life’s great privileges. It allows us to partner with the divine in the act of creation. Historically, Judaism provided scant opportunity to mark this occasion, especially for the arrival of a girl. Here, we offer prayers and rituals for celebrating this unique and wondrous experience.
 

Photo posted with the permission of Rabbi Daria Jacobs-Velde

Nes Gadol Haya Sham: A Great Miracle Happened There

Shared by Rabbi Rachel Greengrass | Reading

A reading for a baby naming on Hanukkah [more]

Found In: Covenant & Naming Rituals, Childbirth, Pregnancy

Tags: conception, naming

Belly Buttons and the Torah

By Donna Tabas, CNM | Ritual Component

Capturing the Tree of Life pattern by creating a placenta print [more]

Found In: Childbirth

Tags: placenta

Birkat ha-Gomel

Prayer

Traditional prayer of thanks for a mother after delivering a child, or for one who has recently escaped danger or returned safely from a journey [more]

Found In: Childbirth, Traveling, Healing & Hard Times

Tags: gomel

Covenant of Creation

By Tikva Frymer-Kensky, z"l | Poem

A modern poem based on biblical texts [more]

Found In: Covenant & Naming Rituals, Childbirth

A Prayer When a Child is Born

By Naomi Levy | Prayer

A prayer to be said immediately following the birth of a child [more]

Found In: Childbirth

Tags: Rabbi Naomi Levy, welcoming

Prayer for Mother Who Gave Birth

By Rabbi Arnold Stiebel, Phd | Prayer

A prayer to be said in synagogue for a mother who has newly given birth [more]

Found In: Childbirth

Tags: mi sheberakh

Sacred Screaming

By Lori Hope Lefkovitz | Article

The author describes the absence of ritual at the birth of her daughters and suggests new rituals for conception, pregnancy and childbirth. [more]

Found In: Childbirth

Simchat Yoledet

By Naomi Bromberg Bar-Yam | Complete Ceremony

A ritual to be performed in a women's group focusing on the new mother [more]

Found In: Childbirth

Tags: gomel, shehekheyanu

Meditation on Birth

By Reuben Zellman | Poem

Read at a Simchat Bat or Bris by the mother who has just given birth [more]

Found In: Childbirth