Recently I was asked to photograph a Jewish naming ceremony for baby Eli Abraham. The lovely spring snow was present at his grandparents home on this day. Eli’s closest family and friends were present. It was a beautiful ceremony and every part of it was full of meaning. Eli’s parents spoke words of love and hope for their son’s future. Eli’s grandparents also spoke words of love and hope for their grandson. A local Jewish rabbi conducted the ceremony and led the group in various Hebrew songs and Eli’s dad, Larry, sang him “Imagine” by John Lenon. He wore the cutest little Yarmulke on his head and was still so little that he slept through his whole ceremony!
At one point, the rabbi gave every person a yellow rose pedal and then we all placed them in a cup of holy water that was stirred together by one of his godparents by using the stem of the plucked rose. The rabbi anointed parts of his body with holy water and sacred oil flown in by his grandpa from Israel. At the end of the one-hour ceremony, Eli and his parents stood under a chuppah and everyone sang a few more songs in Hebrew. It was a really neat experience for me and I wish Larry and Liz all the best as they raise this special little boy together!
