Redemption Of The Firstborn
The commandment to redeem all firstborn Jewish baby boys is found in Numbers 18:15. At the time when the temple stood in Jerusalem, it was practice to offer all firstborn animals to a member of the priestly tribe as a gift.
Firstborn sons would instead be bought back from a Cohen for a fee of five shekels. The ceremony was known as the Pidyon Haben – the redeeming of the firstborn son. Despite the fact that the temple is no more, the ritual is still carried out today. Fortunately for the parents, the Cohen is not allowed to decline the money in favour of hanging on to the baby!
A Pidyon Haben ceremony doesn’t happen all that often though. First of all, the firstborn child has to be a boy. Neither parent can be a direct descendant of the Cohen or Levite tribe. And because the baby has to have “opened his mother’s womb” in halachic terms, he cannot have been delivered via a caesarean birth. As a result, only around one in every 20 Jewish births results in a pidyon haben.
The ceremony itself takes place on the 31st day following the child’s birth. A minyan of ten men must be present. A postponed brit does not mean a postponed pidyon haben though – it will go ahead on day 31 regardless.
A festive meal is served as part of the proceedings. The guests wash and eat some bread, and then the baby is brought into the Cohen. He is usually carried on a decorative silver tray. The jewellery of the female guests is often draped around him. The baby is then redeemed by the act of his father handing the Cohen five special silver coins. The child receives a priestly blessing and is returned to his parents.
During the meal, it is traditional to present the guests with little parcels of garlic and sugar cubes. These foods both have strong flavours – a little goes a long way. Kabalistically, if the garlic and sugar are then cooked and served to others, the merit of Pidyon Haben mitzvah will then be passed on to them as well.
