A new baby at Cedars-Sinai
A bris for your son born at Cedars-Sinai
Mazal tov! Bait Aaron is the closest shul to Cedars-Sinai, and our mohel is Rav Yaakov Nourollah, son of HaRav Moshe Nourollah. If cost is a worry, we will help you find a sponsor or do the bris free. Whether your son is still in the hospital or already home, we will help you plan his bris on the eighth day.
Timing
When is the bris?
Write down the exact time your son was born, and give it to the mohel. It decides the date.
The eighth day
The bris is on the eighth day of the baby’s life, counting the day he was born. A boy born on a Tuesday has his bris the next Tuesday. The Jewish day starts at sunset, so a baby born on Tuesday evening after sunset counts as born on Wednesday.
Born on Shabbat, or by C-section
A bris on its proper eighth day takes place even on Shabbat, Yom Tov and Yom Kippur. A delayed bris is not held on those days, and some births, such as a C-section, can change the rules. The mohel will guide you.
In the NICU, or with jaundice
Health comes first. If the baby has jaundice or is not well, the bris waits until he is healthy. The mohel examines the baby, and the mohel and your doctor decide together.
During the day
A bris is held in the daytime, and many families hold it in the morning, out of eagerness to do the mitzvah as early as possible.
Choose the place
In the hospital, at home or at our shul
Still at Cedars-Sinai on day eight
If your baby is still in the hospital on the eighth day, the bris can be held there, subject to the hospital’s rules. Cedars-Sinai Spiritual Care helps new parents with a bris and a place to celebrate: 310-423-5550, Monday through Friday. Ask early, and tell Rav Yaakov which unit your son is in.
At Bait Aaron, after you go home
Our simcha hall and covered outdoor area are about 0.5 miles from the South Tower Street Lobby, roughly 11 minutes on foot, and about 8 minutes from the Medical Office Towers. Daven Shacharit with the minyan at 7:00am, Sunday through Friday, then the bris, then the seudah, all under one roof. The hall has meat and dairy kitchen facilities and holds up to 300 guests.
At home
Simple, warm and easy for a new mother. Rav Yaakov travels all over Los Angeles, including Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Pico-Robertson, Hancock Park, Beverlywood, Westwood, Santa Monica, Mid-City, Downtown and the San Fernando Valley.
From the maternity floor
Planning the bris from the hospital
- Call or text Rav Yaakov early. Share the date and exact time of birth, whether your son is in the NICU, and where you live.
- Pick the place. The hospital, your home, or our shul a short walk away.
- Choose the honors. The sandek holds the baby during the milah, and the kvatterin and kvatter carry him in, often a married couple.
- Have the Hebrew name ready, with the father’s Hebrew name, for the mohel.
- Order the meal. A morning bris is often followed by a dairy breakfast, bagels, salads and cake. Order from a kosher caterer a few days ahead, or ask us to cater in the hall. See our kosher food guide.
While you are here
Help for the family at Cedars-Sinai
Shabbat and kosher food
Shabbat elevators, electric candles, the Chai Lifeline kosher pantry and kosher patient meals are all on our Cedars-Sinai guide.
A Mi Sheberach
Send the Hebrew names of mother and baby, and they are included in the Mi Sheberach. Send a name.
Family from out of town
Hotels within walking distance of the shul, for grandparents coming in for the bris, are on our kosher hotels page.
Your firstborn son? He may also need a pidyon haben on day 31. See pidyon haben, step by step. Mazal tov on a girl? See naming your daughter at the Torah.
Questions parents ask
Can the bris be held inside Cedars-Sinai?
If your baby is still in the hospital on the eighth day, the bris can be held there, subject to the hospital’s rules. Cedars-Sinai Spiritual Care helps new parents arrange it, so ask early.
Our son is in the NICU. When is his bris?
Health comes first. If the baby has jaundice or is not well, the bris waits until he is healthy. The mohel examines the baby, and the mohel and your doctor decide together.
Our son was born on Friday night. When is the bris?
The Jewish day starts at sunset, so a baby born after sunset counts as born on the next day. A bris on its proper eighth day takes place even on Shabbat, and some births, such as a C-section, can change the rules. Give the mohel the exact time of birth and he will set the date.
How far is Bait Aaron from Cedars-Sinai?
About 0.5 miles, roughly 11 minutes on foot, from the South Tower Street Lobby, and about 8 minutes from the Medical Office Towers. Walk west on 3rd Street to La Peer Drive and enter from the 3rd Street driveway.
Can we hold the bris at the shul after we go home?
Yes. Our simcha hall and covered outdoor area hold up to 300 guests, with meat and dairy kitchen facilities, and you can daven, hold the bris and sit down to the seudah in one place.
Does the bris cost anything?
If cost is a worry, don’t worry: we will help you find a sponsor, or Rav Yaakov Nourollah will do the bris free. No family has to skip a bris because of cost.
Where can family from out of town stay?
Several hotels are within walking distance of the shul. See our kosher hotels page for the list and walking times.
This page is a general guide. Questions about your baby’s health belong with your pediatrician, and the mohel will guide you on halacha and customs. Everything about the bris itself is on our mohel and bris page.
Mazal tov! To plan your son’s bris with Rav Yaakov Nourollah, call or text Bait Aaron with his date and time of birth, whether he is still at Cedars-Sinai, and where you live.
Call or text 310-951-1939Bait Aaron Torah Outreach Center · 301 S. La Peer Dr., Los Angeles, CA 90048 · Mara D’Asra: HaRav Moshe Nourollah, Shlita