My Father’s Speech at My Bris

My father, Bill Straus, gave speeches at every major family occasion – Passover gatherings, weddings, memorials, significant birthdays – and he always spoke from the heart. There was never, ever a dry eye in the room.

Turning 53 years old yesterday, it suddenly occurred to me that my father probably had given a speech about my birth. So I rummaged through the dusty boxes in the attic, and actually found the speech which he read on the day of my bris (the ritualistic Jewish circumcision), when I was just 8 days old. (Until a few hours ago, I had never read it or even known it existed).

It was April 6, 1967 (a Thursday), and gathered in a room in our farmhouse stood a small group of Dutch and German family and cousins, all of whom had barely escaped the Holocaust (unlike most of their relatives). The drawing above was the announcement card created by my mom … from Left: Vivien, Mini Me, Albert and Miriam.

(Please note: Any comments related to personal beliefs about the ritualist practice of circumcision will be deleted).

Many of you will know what the Shulchan Aruch is. Literally, it means a table set with food. It is a book first published in 1565, giving decisions for a religious life in such an easily understandable manner as food is eaten at a table. It is not written for smorgasbord dinners, they did not have them in 1565, so you must forgive us if we provide you today with our own Shulchan Aruch.

The religious and moral values which have come down to us over the centuries have been sustained by the strict adherence to the Tora. Only in the last century has this adherence been weakened increasingly, and often abandoned, and we live in a world in which we have to teach our children in a more difficult way what these values are. And how much do we need these values in this confusing world of ours. You will know that Ellen [my mom] and I are strong believers in a living tradition, a tradition adapted in a way to our times. This is not easy, but it is made easier by living a life as we do, on a farm, and by trying to find the peace of mind to give our children the basics of where they came from, what our ancestors lived for, what we ourselves believe in  and strive for, and what we would like our children to live for, in a world which requires the very best which is within them.

Today we have asked you to welcome our new son to this world and to witness his officially becoming a Jew. This Brit is a pact made between God and the Jews, as is said in the Book Genesis where God commands Abraham to circumcise all males as eternal sign of a covenant between God and the Jews.

We are greatly honored and deeply grateful that you all came to welcome our son – you, our family, you, our dearest friends. And we do thank you very, very much. We do thank Chasan Cohen for being the Mohel and coming all the way to do the Brit. We are honored to have the spiritual leader of the Petaluma Jewish Community, our friend, Irv Newman with us. He teaches Albert and Vivien [two of my older siblings] Hebrew. It must not be an easy chore.

As Sandak, meaning Gevatter [who holds me while the Mohel performs the Brit], we thank our cousin Alfred [my god father] who came from Los Angeles to represent not only the Goldtree and Liebes families, but also as friend and joining me in memory of our grandfather who we honor today with a new great grandson.

It is wonderful to have Mother [aka Oma, my mother’s mother] with us today – for our children have their grandmother – and also for me. In two weeks our Mother will be 70 years old and this day serves in part as a celebration in her honor. Our son was born on the same day as Mother’s brother Ludwig Abraham. And we are glad that this day will again be celebrated in our family.

It is since a long, long time that such a gathering of so many Straus cousins has taken place. Of the seven males cousins of my generation with the name Straus, six are here today. I like that. Joe came from New York, Ernst [a colleague of Einstein] from Los Angeles, Albert from San Luis Obispo, and George and Emanuel from Oakland, and I.

This delegation is headed by our one and only aunt, and let me tell you a little about our Tante Erna. When she was 67 years old, she got her Masters Degree at U.C. [Berkeley]. At 75, she published her husband’s work abou the economical and sociological history of the Jews; at 77 she took a most severe operation in stride, and a few months later she sat in the Opera House to hear the San Francisco Symphony perform the First Sympony of Krke Mechem – dedicated to her. And now she is very busy writing her family history … quite a woman.

You realize that we attach importance how we name our children. Our eldest daughter we named Vivien Eve after life itself. Our daughter Miriam Frieda after my mother, and our oldest son after my father. Whoever knew my father and mother knows that they represented the very best there is in mankind.

Our second son is named Michael Hugo Micha Straus.

We named him Michael after my grandfather Morris Goldtree, whose original name was Michael Goldbaum. I grew up in his house and he took my father’s place as I was only 4 years old when my father died. He came to California 100 years ago and many of us here today are here because of this fact. He was a very quiet man, a “royal merchant” as they used to be called and looked, in his later years, like John Peirpont Morgan. Few people came to know him well. He and I got along fabulously. And I owe him much, very much.

I must admit we wouldn’t have called our son “Michael” so willingly if we wouldn’t like the other two Michaels here today as much as we do, Michael Thompson and Michael Stern.

We named our son Hugo after Ellen’s father who died a year and a half ago. We are proud to have another Hugo in the family and we hope he will learn from the example of his grandfather, the best Opa a child can have, and grow up as honest and straight and hardworking a man as he was.

We named our son Micha after the Prophet Micha, who was a simple man, using simple, often harsh words criticizing the low morals of his time. One of his words I have used often:

Higid L’cha, adam, ma tov uma adonay doresh mimcha, ki im assot mishpat ve’ahavat chessed ve’hazne’ah lechet im elohecha.

He has told you, Man, what is good and what He is asking of you, namely:  Only to act justly, to be kind, and to walk humbly before God.

Michael Hugo Micha Straus, ach mi Vivien Eve Chava, Miriam Frieda ve Albert Imanuel Straus, ben Ellen Tirza Lotte ve William Sh’muel Straus, ben Frieda Goldtree ve Rabbi Albert Aharon Me’ir Straus, be Isabella Feuchtwanger ve horav Rabbi Sh’muel Straus, ben Rabbi Eliyahu Straus, ben Rabbi Zadok Aharon, ben Rabbi Eliyahu, u’ben Gnendele Straus, bath morenu horav, rarabbi hakodosh Rabbi Yitchak Arjeh Ha-Ba’alschem Michelstadt:

Yevorech’cho adounoy veyischem’erecho

Yo’er adaunoy ponov elecho vichuneko

Yisso adaunoy ponov elecho

V’yossem l’cho Soholuam

Gott segne dich und behuete dich

Er lasse leuchten sein Antglitz dir zu

Und sei dir gut.

Er wende sein Antglitz dir zu

Und gebe dir – use allen – Frieden.

V’noman amen.