by Rabbi Koval
Every once in a while I have the privilege to participate in an adult Bris. I say "participate" because the real Mohel in these Brisses is an unsung hero, Dr. Rodney Green, a local plastic surgeon, who performs these Mitzvahs as a Chessed in his clinic, together with anesthesia, sutures and a wonderful bedside manner!
These Bris recipients almost always immigrants from the former Soviet Union. The heroism of these adults subjecting themselves to a Bris as an elective surgery is huge, especially considering the minimal exposure to Jewish tradition that they have had in their lives!
Earlier this month, I participated in one such occasion, serving as Dr. Green's assistant for Igor K. As the good Dr. prepared the anesthesia, I shared with igor that the merit of his Mitzvah is so great that it reminded me of a story from the Torah:
The Torah teaches us that many years before Abraham performed a Bris on his new baby boy, Isaac (the father of the Jewish people), he first performed a Bris on his thirteen-year-old son, Ishmael (the father of the Arab nations). The Midrash recounts that Ishmael used to taunt Isaac saying that he, Ishmael, had allowed his father Abraham to circumcise him as a teenager, whereas Isaac's Bris at 8 days old showed no personal self-sacrifice, as he was only an infant. The Midrash comments that, indeed, Ishmael's claim and merit was and still remains a legitimate one for Ishmael and descendants. (The moral of the story is that one never knows the power of a mitzvah, any Mitzvah)!
I mentioned to Igor that the merit of his heroism is so great that it is our (the Jewish people's) answer to Ishmael's taunt. I then remarked to Igor and Dr. Green with an off-the-cuff comment: "Who knows what kind of protection your great Mitzvah will bring to the Jewish people. Perhaps even a terrorist attack in Israel will be averted. You never know how great the cosmic merit of your Mitzvah is!" Dr. Green nodded in agreement and began the Bris.
Eighteen (Chai!) days later, Dr. Green's daughter, a student spending the semester in Israel, walked into a bomb blast in the Central Bus Station of Jerusalem and survived. The Plain Dealer quoted her mother: “It was a kindness from G-d that she wasn’t killed." Who knows which merit brought about this source of Divine protection when Dr. Green's family needed it most...!
