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What is a common blessing given to the father/mother of the child receiving the circumcision when attending a brit milah (circumcision)?

What is a common blessing given to the friends and relatives of the child receiving the circumcision when you are attending a brit milah?

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  • Is there a right answer for this? It seems like it's a very subjective question...
    – Isaac Kotlicky
    Feb 11, 2016 at 14:24
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    @IsaacKotlicky It's quite plausible that, at least within the context of specific communities, there are specific blessings that are conventional.
    – Isaac Moses ♦
    Feb 11, 2016 at 14:34
  • Does the OP refer to a general blessing or to the custom that people approach the Sandaq so that he can bless them. If so, I don't remember ever having seen a formal text for the Sandaq to say. Does anyone know of one?
    – Epicentre
    Feb 14, 2016 at 5:51

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Seriously, the best blessings to give the newborn as well as the parents are already in the Siddur and are said as part of the Brit Milah ceremony.

What blessing can be better than saying:

כשם שנכנס לברית כן יכנס לתורה ולחופה ולמעשים טובים

In the manner that he entered the brit, so shall he enter for Torah (learning and knowledge) the chuppah and the performance of good deeds.

I know that you asked about blessing the parents, but when you bless the child this way, you also bless the parents. After all, they are responsible form his Torah learning and finding him a wife so he can get to the chuppah. (Well, OK. a shidduch resume can help, too...)

There are other praises included near the end of the ceremony listed in the same paragraph. But the one I cited is apparently the best one, because it's recited twice.

Everyone answers "Amen" after that, so in a way, everyone is blessing the child and the parents.

The friends and family don't need a blessing and I haven't seen any given. Their presence at the brit itself IS the blessing. Trust me, there are many britot that I couldn't attend and a few among my immediate family where family members and close friends couldn't attend either, usually because they have to be at work early in the morning.

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  • "Their presence at the brit itself IS the blessing." What does this mean? How is presence a blessing? Do you mean that it's the fulfillment of a blessing -- that someone blessed them that they should merit to attend a b'ris and this is the fulfillment of that blessing? I don't recall ever being blessed by someone in that way, personally, but maybe I'm in the minority.
    – msh210 ♦
    Feb 11, 2016 at 18:34
  • @msh210 You are, perhaps, viewing the term "blessing" as meaning only something verbally expressed. The opportunity to attend a brit brings blessings to the attendant. A father at a brit I attended recently explained that when one attends a brit, by witnessing the "formal" entering of a Jewish boy into the covenant of our people, another boy may become a Talmid Chacham or in some other way benefits the Jewish community. Everyone benefits, thereby. The person who attends the brit was present at the start of this benefit. So, that's receiving a blessing by just being there.
    – DanF
    Feb 11, 2016 at 18:50
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What I've seen? Everyone wishes everyone "mazal tov." That's about it.

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