The Blogs: Tradition Meets Medicine: Why Europe’s New Mohel Certification Matters

The news breaking out of Brussels this week caught my eye, and it struck me that what began as a legal crisis in Belgium might just be a blessing in disguise.

According to a report in Times of Israel, European Jewish organizations – led by the European Jewish Association (EJA) and the Rabbinical Centre of Europe (RCE)—have launched the Centre of Excellence for Religious Male Circumcision (CERM). The program is designed to provide practicing mohalim across Europe with structured, hospital-grade clinical and safety training, verified by an international council of urologists, pediatricians, and neonatal specialists.

To many reading the headlines, this looks like a defensive maneuver. Over the past two years, Belgium has become ground zero for legal challenges to Brit Milah, with prosecutors targeting traditional practitioners under the guise of “practicing medicine without a license.” Jews worldwide have been up in arms, another manifestation of the ugly face of antisemitism spilling across our globe.

Defending our fundamental right to perform the covenant of Avraham Avinu is vital. But, frankly, when it comes to the safety and welfare of a newborn child, our standard must be nothing short of excellence: transparent, rigorous, and verifiable.

Reading about this European initiative brought me back to a pivotal chapter in my own journey as a mohel. Years ago, I had the immense privilege of being accepted into an intensive, 30-session advanced training cohort at Bar-Ilan University. Co-sponsored by the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and the Ministry of Health, the program was designed for established mohalim who wanted to master the clinical, physiological, and surgical realities of neonatal care.

To this day, I am profoundly grateful for that training.

We weren’t just reviewing halakhic texts; we were learning directly from pediatric surgeons, hematologists, and neonatal intensive care specialists. Over thirty intensive sessions, we dove deep into:

Advanced Neonatal Anatomy & Anomalies: Recognizing contraindications that require postponing a brit, or surgical conditions that demand pediatric urological intervention.
Coagulation Cascades & Hemostasis: Understanding bleeding profiles, factor deficiencies, and modern surgical techniques for immediate, reliable wound management.
Asepsis & Infection Control: Operating with sterile, hospital-grade protocols to protect the newborn from any pathogen risk.
Emergency Response: Advanced newborn assessment and pediatric basic life support.

Completing that course shaped who I am every time I unpack my instruments. When I stand beside a set of parents, I know that holding the double credential of halakhic authority backed by rigorous academic and ministerial medical training offers them an invaluable peace of mind. In Torah tradition, pikuach nefesh – protecting human life and health – is not a reluctant compromise. It is an absolute imperative that takes precedence over nearly everything else.

A true mohel is never in a rush; our primary duty is ensuring that the baby is robust, healthy, and completely safe before the first prayer is uttered.

What is happening in Belgium today isn’t a retreat – it is a massive step forward. It takes the model pioneered by Israel’s Inter-Ministerial Commission and offers European communities a gold standard of care. It proves to secular authorities and health ministries what our tradition has maintained for thousands of years: that devotion to ritual and adherence to the highest medical science are completely aligned.

To any parent preparing to bring their son into the covenant: you should never have to choose between centuries-old tradition and modern medical safety. The two belong in the exact same hands.