We look forward to welcoming and including every new member into our community including your newborn son or daughter.  Here are some details about the various customs and rituals and always feel free to call if you need any further help.

Baby Boy

Shalom Zachor
Shalom Zachor translates as ‘Welcoming the male’ and is an informal gathering which takes place in Ashkenazi Jewish circles on the first Friday night after a baby boy is born. The get-together is treated as a happy occasion, and takes place after the Friday night meal, usually at the home of newborn. Light refreshments are served, congratulations are conveyed, and songs may be sung welcoming the newborn and thanking G-d for the birth.

Brit Milah
The Brit Milah is often held in the presence of a minyan but in cases where this is difficult it is not strictly necessary. The service itself can take place in a synagogue or in a private home.  Please contact the Synagogue Office who will be able to provide further information.  Please click on the relevant links, which provide further information about Brit Mila, Registered Mohels.

Pidyon Haben
The Pidyon Haben Ceremony takes place on the thirty-first day of a firstborn son’s life, in front of a minyan of ten men. Even in cases where the Brit Milah has had to be postponed for some reason, the pidyon will still go ahead.  Further details are available from the Shul and the following link may also be of interest Pidyon Haben.  For more general information, please visit the Births section of the Tribe website, the United Synagogue Youth organisation, which offers a free baby gift pack.

Baby Girl

Being ‘Called Up’
At HGSS it is generally the custom for the father of the baby girl to get an aliyah (to be ‘called up’) in shul on the first Shabbat or first Yom Tov after the birth of his daughter, whichever comes first. He will then be able to formally give his daughter her Jewish name.

Simchat Bat
Simchat Bat translates as ‘Celebration for the daughter’ and is a modern ritual for naming infant

Jewish girls
In recent years many families have celebrated a Simchat Bat Party which typically consists of a communal welcoming, quotation of appropriate biblical verses, and traditional blessings.

For more general information, please visit the Births section of the Tribe website, the United Synagogue Youth organisation, which offers a free baby gift pack.

HGSS Baby Blessing Ceremony

At HGSS, we hold an annual baby blessing service is held on a Shabbat in May for all babies born in the previous year.

We invite the babies together with their parents to the Shul to take part in a beautiful ceremony led by our Rabbis. Specially selected sections of prayer and words from the Rabbis lend themselves to a moving experience for all involved.  Of course siblings, grandparents and all other family members are welcome to join us for this special occasion.

For more information about dates of the ceremony and what to do next if you wish your baby to take part, please email Gayle in the shul office or phone on 020 8457 7045.

Suburb Supers

If you have just had or know someone in the community who has just had a baby, we would be delighted to provide a nutritious freshly cooked meal. Please contact Claire Rosen on 020 8455 9516. This is a free service, please don’t hesitate to ask.