Make the Cut: Finding a Reliable and Responsible Mohel in New York

Having a baby is always an exciting and emotional time. When the baby is a boy, there is the added issue of whether to have him circumcised and, if yes, by whom. In the U.S., a solid majority of all newborn males of all religions undergo the procedure. Many parents choose to circumcise their sons because major medical organizations assert that it holds long-term health benefits and lowers the chance of contracting certain diseases later in life. New fathers who are themselves circumcised almost unanimously opt to have their sons circumcised as well.

Newborn sons are often circumcised in the hospital where they are born, but parents typically are separated from their babies during the procedure and have no information about the circumciser’s qualifications. This experience can be frightening and even traumatic – both for the baby and his parents.

For Jews, circumcision (called brit milah or bris) is an important life-cycle event performed by an experienced circumciser (mohel) eight days after birth. Combining the simple medical procedure with a religious ceremony that symbolizes the covenant that God made with Abraham, the mohel welcomes the child into the world in a beautiful spiritual celebration.

Meet the mohels Rabbi Eliezer Lawrence and Rabbi Zachary Hepner.

Rabbi Eliezer Lawrence

New parents who use Rabbi Lawrence to perform their son’s bris are inevitably impressed by both his professional competency and his caring interaction with everyone involved – the baby, his parents, the extended family and other guests taking part either in person or via Zoom. They also appreciate that he is truly passionate about ensuring an inspiring, joyful ceremony for all those attending, regardless of how they define themselves as Jews. A talented singer, he infuses the blessings with melodies that greatly contribute to the uplifting experience.

“Not only was Rabbi Lawrence professional, pleasant, and very knowledgeable and competent, but he made the procedure deeply meaningful for a small gathering of two scared parents and grandparents across the religious spectrum,” confirms Sarah from Manhattan. Randi, a new mother from Northvale, New Jersey, agrees: “Rabbi Lawrence conducted himself with utmost professionalism. He was extremely personable and made the ceremony easy to understand for all who attended regardless of religious affiliation. He was so warm and inviting, and it was exactly what we needed that day.”

Culturally sensitive and family-centered

Lawrence is a Certified Mohel and Rabbi who serves the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area. His calling in life is to provide a service that many parents seek but can’t always find: a kosher circumcision in a manner that is sensitive to the needs and beliefs of people throughout the Jewish community. “I feel strongly about Jewish continuity. Having a kosher bris enables the child flexibility with his Jewish identity as he grows up. I serve people with many different Jewish backgrounds,” he elaborates, explaining that a bris is kosher if the procedure is carried out by an Orthodox mohel according to the traditional Jewish technique.

Many non-observant Jews want their sons to undergo a kosher bris, including new parents whose partners are not Jewish. “I serve all Jews,” Rabbi Lawrence asserts. “Many people have cultural baggage surrounding the bris ceremony. I’m a myth buster. I explain everything and make sure the ceremony is meaningful.” He is always aware of his audience and knows how to reach out to non-Jewish friends or grandparents so that they don’t feel like outsiders. His cultural sensitivity includes LGBTQ+ parents; he is one of the few mohels who offers an inclusive and affirming ceremony to members of this community.

“I am committed to being open, to listening and to being present and accommodating to the parents’ desires and concerns for the ceremony. I believe in a family-centered ceremony that marks the miracle of life, the centrality of belonging and the power of tradition,” Rabbi Lawrence says. An additional bonus is that he speaks Hebrew, Spanish and Yiddish as well as English.

Giving parents peace of mind

Rabbi Lawrence was trained and certified by the London School of Circumcision, the premier mohel training program in the world, and holds an additional certification from the Beit Shemesh Chief Rabbinate in Israel. His extensive training and experience give parents peace of mind when it comes to the procedure itself as well as the aftercare. In addition to sitting down with the baby’s parents and clearly explaining the aftercare protocol, Lawrence emphasizes that he is always available during the weeks following the procedure. “I take calls at all hours. An important benefit of using a mohel rather than a doctor in a hospital is the continuity of care.”

Jessica, a new mother from Brooklyn whose son was circumcised by Rabbi Lawrence, was especially appreciative of his continuity of care. “Prior to the bris, Rabbi Lawrence was available at any time to discuss what to expect and cater the ceremony to our needs. He was also very respectful of Covid and religious preferences. During the bris, he arrived early to help us prepare, talked us through what to expect, and performed a beautiful, poetic ceremony full of song and celebration. His procedure was done very quickly, and the results have been excellent. He provided detailed aftercare instructions and was available on multiple occasions to check in and view pictures to ensure everything was healing well. He also followed up at the two-month mark with helpful instructions as our baby grows,” she attests with a smile.

Click here for more information and to contact Rabbi Eliezer Lawrence.

In collaboration with Rabbi Eliezer Lawrence
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Rabbi Zachary Hepner

Rabbi Zachary Hepner cannot put a figure to the number of britot milah he has performed since 1997. “A computer virus erased my ledger ages ago, and I have since lost track of the numbers,” he says. “But what matters the most to me is that never once in my decades-long career, has this connecting moment of our Jewish ancestors and our Jewish future, this defining family event, ever become routine for me.

Whether the baby is born into an Orthodox, Conservative, Reform or Reconstructionist family, whether that family is Ashkenazi or Sephardi, secular, intermarried or interfaith, gay or even anti-religious, the life cycle experience is always emotional, always exciting, always meaningful and always a privilege to perform.”

Clean-shaven and approachable, with a fistful of academic qualifications, Rabbi Hepner had a wide choice of career. He has rabbinical ordination and a BS in Physics & Math, both from Yeshiva University, an MS in Engineering from UCLA, an MA in Academic Talmud from Yeshiva University and an MBA from the University of Arizona. It is, however, his rigorous, one-on-one training under Israel’s then-Chief Mohel Rabbi Yossele Weisberg, who selected him as his intern at the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem in the mid-1990s, that has shaped his life.

Certified as a mohel from the Israel Board of Health and with hospital training, Rabbi Hepner works primarily in the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut) — although his reputation sometimes summons him far further afield. “One memorable day, I performed a brit in California in the morning, and a second one in Arizona in the afternoon,” he smiles.

“I’ve spent Shabbat on Kodiak Island, south of Alaska: the brit was on a Friday, and there was no time for me to get home, so the baby’s Israeli father and American mother hosted me for a memorable Shabbat.” The geographical span of Rabbi Hepner’s clients is more than matched by their socio-religious diversity — something, he says, which has received a serious boost from the internet query "mohel near me."

The range is from Orthodox families, “who usually come to me through personal recommendation, and whose primary concern is scheduling,” he says, to nontraditional families for some of whose members he is the first Jewish person they have ever met, and who often have many questions.

Whatever the orientation, he prides himself on making every family he serves feel comfortable with him, and conducting a ceremony that has significance for them and himself. “A brit should be a warm and enriching bonding experience,” he says. “As needed, I translate the prayers and explain what I do so that all family members can be involved, regardless of their Jewish educational level, their religion or their culture.”

What remains constant in every one of Rabbi Hepner’s circumcisions is his experience and expertise. Hospital-trained, his skills are extensive. “I’m the guy people come to for the circumcision of infants with genital abnormalities or for repair of an unsatisfactory job done elsewhere,” he notes. The protocol he has developed includes systemic and local topical anesthetics, proper handling of the baby, speed and technique that maximize precision and minimize pain, and careful instructions for post-circumcision aftercare. “Family members young and old, who are understandably concerned or anxious with new babies need to feel safe, and I do what it takes to ensure this,” he says.

“I reassure them that my equipment is state-of-the-art and my medical and sanitary standards are the very highest — including surgical gloves and autoclave sterilization.” During COVID, making people feel safe took on new meaning. “I remember walking for hours through a locked-down ghost town called Manhattan to circumcise a baby at a brit which had no guests other than myself in a home which hadn’t opened its doors to strangers since the pandemic began,” he recalls. “Whether it's called a bris, a brit, a brit milah, or a Jewish circumcision ceremony, and however it’s held, its importance and its meaning remain undiminished.”

Click here for for more information and to contactRabbi Zachary Hepner

In collaboration with Rabbi Zachary Hepner