About Dr. Emily Blake

Emily J. Blake, MD, is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist who has performed thousands of circumcisions. Dr. Blake was profiled in the New York Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Israeli TV series "The New Jew" with Guri Alfi. The “Loyal Mohel,” as one of her families dubbed her, Dr. Blake regularly travels beyond her Tristate area base to New Haven and Philadelphia in the course of her work.

Mohel Emily’s approach to the brit milah ceremony is a very personal one. She works directly with the family in creating a participatory service that is shaped by the specific needs and desires of the parents, intended to involve and include as many members of the family as possible. Realizing that family dynamics may be complex and delicate, Dr. Blake makes a special effort to acknowledge and accommodate situations that are “different” or difficult. She is sensitive to issues that may arise in connection with divorced/blended families, gay and lesbian partners, interfaith relationships, and conversions.

Dr. Blake’s caring, nurturing manner and gentle handling of the baby have helped to comfort many anxious parents, who are already dealing with the challenges of a new arrival, in addition to the sometimes mixed emotions that may accompany the anticipation of circumcising their son. Trained in both the Conservative and Reform traditions, she is also able to offer counsel in the halachic elements of brit milah.

The well-being of the baby is central to Dr. Blake’s approach to performing the circumcision. In preparing the baby for the ceremony, she uses several proven methods of pain relief and a time schedule intended to maximize the baby's comfort. She begins by arriving early and giving the baby a sugar solution spiked with a dash of Manischewitz sweet wine. In many hospitals, the current practice for pain relief in a newborn undergoing a medical procedure, is use of a sugar water solution. Sugar (in the wine as well as the granules) triggers the production of beta endorphins, which are the body’s natural morphine. Dr. Blake also recommends use of EMLA cream (a topical lidocaine formulation) and a dose of infant Tylenol, prior to the ceremony and circumcision. EMLA provides numbing to the area, and is a preferable alternative to giving an injection of lidocaine.

Following the bris ceremony, Mohel Emily remains with the family through the first diaper change, explaining the care needed for the infant and helping the parents to feel comfortable performing it themselves. She speaks with the family that night to check on how they and the baby are doing, and follows up through the next week, making sure the healing process is continuing normally.

Certainly Brit Milah is not simply a surgical procedure, but an ancient ritual with an almost mystical quality, literally embodying the Covenant (Brit) of God with the Jewish people. The gentleness, caring and skill that Dr. Blake brings to the performance of the rite is coupled with her personal philosophy of Brit Milah, which is founded in her deep commitment to Judaism. Through her medical training, Dr. Blake became skilled in performing circumcision, but her Jewish identity led her to “explore the difference between a medical circumcision and the Brit Milah.” She was then moved to obtain the religious training that allowed her physician’s abilities to be guided by a profound spiritual intent.

Mohel Emily’s desire is to make the ceremony, in her own words, a “gentle, joyful occasion for the whole family, an experience that makes us proud and happy to be Jewish.” And, as she concludes, “this what I strive to attain.”

 
Dr Emily Blake, mohel, gives a toast (L’chaim) to the family.png

Religious Training

Reform Mohel Training
Hebrew Union College
Jewish Institute of Religion
New York, NY

Conservative Mohel Training
Brit Kodesh program
Rabbinical Assembly of Conservative Judaism
Jewish Theological Seminary
New York, NY

Rabbi Gary Atkins (Apprenticeship)
Norwich, CT

Certified by:

  • New York Board of Rabbis

  • Board of Rabbis of Greater Philadelphia

  • NOAM (National Organization of American Mohelim)

Medical Training

Columbia University
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Dept. of Human Genetics and Development
New York, NY

M.A., M. Phil.

Columbia University
College of Physicians and Surgeons
New York, NY
M.D.

Pennsylvania Hospital
Philadelphia, PA
Obstetrics-Gynecology residency

University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey
Newark, NJ
Fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility