foreign or the Yiddish word bris from the ritual circumcision of a Jewish baby boy on his eighth day followed by bagels cream cheese and schmoozing but the word breeds alone does not actually mean circumcision the word Brit means Covenant and appears many many times throughout the Hebrew Bible but what exactly is a covenant Covenant is just a fancy word for an agreement of commitments and Promises between two sides in this week's Parsha God and Humanity specifically Abraham enter a breed or a two-way Pact what are the conditions of this so-called deal Abraham's commitment is to obedience and righteousness to walk before God and be pure God's promise is to provide children and land God promises to make Abraham the father of a great nation like the multitude of stars in the sky and that they will inherit the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession the sign of this Covenant sealing the deal so to speak is the Brit Mila circumcision of the flesh which Abraham and his household and all his future descendants are commanded to do at the end of this week's Parsha not to worry although circumcision is clearly a very male ritual Abraham's wife Sarah along with her descendants also becomes a partner to the Covenant when God blesses her and changes her name Abraham is physically transformed by virtue of entering the Covenant perhaps this very physical and needless to say uncomfortable change is meant to symbolize that while fulfilling the Covenant promises great reward and blessing it will not come without pain and suffering in fact Abraham's own personal story contains uncertainty struggle and hardship in this one Parsha the poor guy encounters famine infertility family disputes and tribal War Abraham himself questions the conditions of the Covenant he straight up asks God what will you give me since I am childless and you have given me no seed it is a central element of Judaism that Abraham is seen as the father of the Jewish people and that through him this Covenant is transmitted to Future Generations who promise to pursue Justice and righteousness and in return are promised Great Divine Rewards but like Abraham doubt and struggle and even hardship are a part of that package deal [Music]