Welcoming & Raising Children

Close-up of adult hands with rings holding a childs hand, symbolizing family and unity.

We greet each child with affection and joy. Every baby comes to us full of promise and potential. As parents, we are privileged to welcome them into our families, our communities, and the embrace of the Jewish people. Raising children to adulthood, we encounter many milestones along the way. Children are weaned, lose their teeth, and start school. Some get their driver’s licenses and eventually leave home for good. Here are rituals for welcoming children and for celebrating the milestones on their paths to adulthood.

Latest Rituals

“With you, we see a future we can only begin to imagine”

Mother holding a sleeping baby, standing peacefully by a crib with soft, natural lighting.

“We wrote this ritual to mark the adoption of our son, who was weeks away from his 18th birthday at the time”

A family of three smiling together outdoors, with hills visible in the background.

Ritual haircutting ceremony for children

A woman giving a haircut to a young boy sitting in a salon chair.

“Let imagination flow through these portals”

Three children in a cozy fort, using laptops and a notebook, with a School sign inside.

A prayer for fathers

A smiling man holds a happy toddler in his arms at home.

The Reconstructionist Network

Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement

Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis

Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues

Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives

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The Reconstructionist Network