An indispensable “how-to” guide
for creating lasting memories and special
ceremonies as you
welcome your new Jewish daughter.
When a son is born, every Jewish parent
knows what ceremony will welcome him into the community and
signal his part in the Jewish people—the brit milah. What to
do when a girl is born? How can you welcome your new daughter
in a truly Jewish way, and celebrate your joy with family and
friends? In the past, parents who wanted a simchat bat (celebration
of a daughter) ceremony for their new daughter often had to
start from scratch. Finally, this first-of-its-kind book gives
families everything they need to plan the
celebration.
• History & Tradition—The roots of simchat
bat in Jewish tradition, how
it has evolved, and how the past can be used to bring
today’s dynamic ceremonies to life.
• A How-to
Guide—New and traditional
ceremonies, complete with prayers, rituals, handouts to copy,
and step-by-step instructions for creating your own unique
ceremony.
• Planning the Details—What to call your daughter’s
welcoming ceremony, when and where to have it, setting it up,
how long it should be, how to handle the unexpected, how to
prepare a program guide, and more.
• Ideas
& Information—Practical
guidelines for planning the event, and special suggestions and
resources for families of all constellations.
“All the historical, spiritual and
practical levels you need…. An excellent resource for
those seeking creative yet traditional ways to include girls
and women into the rich tapestry of Jewish lifecycle
events.”
—Rabbi
Elyse Goldstein, author of ReVisions: Seeing Torah through a
Feminist Lens,
and editor of The
Women’s Torah Commentary
and The Women’s Haftarah Commentary
“A fine resource for clergy and
parents alike. A rich selection of readings and blessings is
complemented by an intriguing description of naming ceremonies
in the Jewish tradition.”
—Cantor
Erica Jan Lippitz, Oheb Shalom
Congregation, South Orange, New Jersey
“A comprehensive compendium….
With exquisite sensitivity to Jewish ethnic, religious, and
familial diversity, Nussbaum Cohen offers a great birth present
for parents and girls and a must for every rabbi’s study,
synagogue gift shop, or day school library.”
—Letty
Cottin Pogrebin, author of Deborah, Golda, and Me: Being Female and Jewish
in America
Debra Nussbaum Cohen is a mother and an award-winning journalist whose
interest and specialty is writing on issues related to Jewish
identity and spirituality. She currently writes for the New
York Jewish Week. She has been the religion writer for the
Jewish Telegraphic Agency and has written for many publications
including the Washington Post, New
York magazine, the Village Voice, Moment, the Jerusalem Report,
the Jerusalem Post, Sh’ma and Jewish Family
& Life. Cohen lives in New York
with her husband and three children.
