Hundreds participated this morning in the brit milah (circumcision) ceremony for the son of combat soldier, Staff sergeant (res.) Elisha Yehonatan Lober, who fell in battle in the Gaza Strip.
Grandfather, Chagai Lober, was the sandek (the person who holds the baby during the circumcision).
The baby was named Amatziya.
Rabbi of Yitzhar and head of the Ro’eh Yisrael Yeshiva, Rabbi David Dudkevitz, said the ritual blessings.
Speaking to Arutz Sheva – Israel National News a day before the brit milah, Chagai Lober said, "I don't think this is a family celebration – it's a national celebration. Yehonatan gave his life for the nation and in a way he and the baby belong to the nation. This brit milah ceremony has national significance, beyond the obligation we all owe to the family of Yehonatan and Aviya, whose enemies killed him, hoping to extinguish the wonderful light of the Jewish people, but they did not succeed. We continue to thrive. Do not despair and do not stop giving birth and celebrating brit milah ceremonies. There is public significance to this event and we are going to celebrate it publicly."
He had a hard time hiding his emotions for the special occasion. "I am nervous about the brit milah and fortunate that my daughter-in-law asked me to be the godfather. This is emotionally challenging - and it is not easy at this moment to see the continuity rather than the loss. It will be an emotional, uplifting and exciting situation. It's really a feeling of Yom Kippur."