The Bris ceremony begins with bringing the newborn into the room.
When the Kvatterin passes the baby to the Kvatter all present say:
Blessed is the one arriving!
Blessed is the one arriving! Happy is the man You choose and bring near to dwell in Your courtyards; we will be satiated with the goodness of Your House, Your Holy Temple. The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Pinchas, the son of Elazar, the son of Aaron the Kohen, has turned My wrath away from the children of Israel when he displayed anger among them in My behalf, so that I did not wipe out the children of Israel in My anger. Therefore say: I grant him My covenant of peace.
The Kvatter passes the baby to the person who will place the baby on The Chair of Elijah (Kisay Shel Eliyahu). Once the child is placed on the chair, the Mohel recites the following:
This is the Seat of Elijah the Prophet, may he be remembered for good. For Your deliverance I hope, O Lord. I have hoped for Your deliverance, Lord, and I haveperformed Your commandments. Elijah, angel of the Covenant, here is yours before you; stand at my right and support me. I rejoice in Your word, like one who finds great spoil. Those who love Your Torah have abounding peace, and there is no stumbling for them. Happy is the man You choose and bring near to dwell in Your courtyards; we will be satiated with the goodness of Your House, Your Holy Temple.
The person who takes the child from the Chair of Elijah lifts the baby and passes him to the father. The Sandek is summoned to sit on the chair. Then the father places the baby on the lap of the Sandek. The Mohel then recites the following blessing:
Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us concerning circumcision.
Following the circumcision the father recites the following blessing while the Mohel proceeds through the Priah:
Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to enter him into the Covenant of Abraham our father.
All present respond:
Just as he has entered into the Covenant, so may he enter into Torah, into marriage, and into good deeds.
The Mohel completes the Bris and the baby is taken from the Sandek’s lap and given to the standing Sandek. The person honored with making the blessings takes the cup of wine in his right hand and says:
Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.
Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who sanctified the beloved one from the womb, set His statute in his flesh, and sealed his descendants with the sign of the holy Covenant. Therefore, as a reward of this (circumcision), the living God, our Portion, our Rock, has ordained that the beloved of our flesh be saved from the abyss, for the sake of the Covenant which He has set in our flesh. Blessed are You Lord, who makes the Covenant.
The person honored with the giving of the name recites the following:
Our God and God of our fathers, preserve this child for his father and mother, and his name in Israel shall be called
(say his Hebrew name)
the son of (say the father’s Hebrew name).
May the father rejoice in his offspring, and his mother be glad with the fruit of her womb, as it is written: “May your father and mother rejoice, and she who bore you be glad.” And it is said: “I passed by you and saw you weltering in your blood, and I said to you: You shall live through your blood; and I said to you: ‘You shall live through your blood.'” And it is said: “He has remembered His Covenant forever, the word which He has commanded to a thousand generations; the Covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac; He established it for Jacob as a statute, for Israel as an everlasting Covenant.” And it is said: “Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.” Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His kindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His kindness is everlasting. May this little infant (say his name) become great. Just as he has entered the Covenant, so may he enter into Torah, into marriage, and into good deeds.
After naming the child, the person who recited the blessings drinks the wine. If the Bris is performed on a fast day the wine is given to a child under the age of thirteen to drink. After the naming, the Mohel and the father recite the following prayer:
Sovereign of the universe, may it be Your will that this (circumcision) be regarded and accepted by You as if l had offered him before the Throne of Your Glory. And You, in Your abounding mercy, send through Your holy angels a holy and pure soul to
(name) the son of (name)
who has now been circumcised for the sake of Your great Name. May his heart be open as the portal of the Great Hall in the Temple in Your holy Torah, to learn and to teach, to observe and to practice; grant him long life, a life imbued with the fear of sin, a life of wealth and honor; and fulfill the desires of his heart for good. Amen, and so may it be Your will.
The Mohel then recites the following:
May He who blessed our fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Moses and Aaron, David and Solomon, bless this tender infant
(name) the son of (name)
because
(name) the son of (name)
pledged charity for his sake for Bikkur cholim. In this merit, may the Holy One, blessed be He, hasten to send a complete recovery to all his two hundred forty-eight bodily parts and three hundred sixty-five veins, and raise him to Torah, to marriage, and to good deeds; and let us say, Amen.
If there is a Kohein present, it is customary to have him recite the Priestly Blessing:
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, Thus shall you bless the children of Israel, say to them: “The Lord bless you and guard you. The Lord make His countenance shine upon you and be gracious toyou. The Lord turn His countenance toward you and grant you peace.” And they shall set My name upon the children of Israel, and I shall bless them.'”
