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Will Donald Trump Attend Jewish Circumcision Ceremony For New Grandson?

By Patricia Grannum
Published on: 09:44 PST, Mar 30, 2016

Donald Trump‘s next stop may be an unusual one for him. He may be about to go to a Jewish circumcision ceremony. But it’s for a good reason: his new grandson.

USA Today reports that Ivanka Trump’s new baby boy will be participating in the ritual circumcision ceremony soon, which is also called the “bris.”

Baby Theodore. My heart is full. xx, Ivanka #grateful pic.twitter.com/aOux7Nm3BU

— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) March 28, 2016

Ivanka gave birth to the baby boy last Sunday, and according to Jewish tradition, a ritual circumcision is supposed to be done eight days after the birth. So this means that baby Theodore’s ceremony will be held on Sunday April 3.

USA Today said that they tried to contact reps for both Donald and Ivanka Trump to confirm his attendance at the ceremony but they were unsuccessful.

However, if Trump does attend, it’s unlikely that he will participate in the ceremony in a role that’s typically reserved for grandfathers.

According to the article in USA Today, in these ceremonies the grandfathers acts as a “sandek,” i.e. the person who holds the child while he is being circumcised. But the “sandek” must be a practicing Jew, and its unlikely that Trump will convert to take on that role.

This is quite unlike his daughter Ivanka, who converted to Judaism in order to marry her husband, real estate mogul, Jared Kushner. Baby Theodore is Ivanka Trump’s third child with Kushner.

According to E! Online, Ivanka announced the news of the pregnancy in September 2015 via a Facebook video alongside her two older kids, Arabella Rose and Joseph Frederick.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled to share the news with you that I am expecting,” Donald Trump’s daughter wrote on her website at the time of the announcement. “At the end of the day, it’s my family that is at the center of my life — and to be adding another baby to our family is a tremendous blessing… Jared and I are so thankful, and so excited!”

Despite what seems to be a very close relationship with his daughter, Donald Trump has recently taken a stance on abortion that could hurt women in marginalized communities, if he becomes president.

Trump declared – and then recanted – his position that women who have illegal abortions should be “punished.”

The Guardian reports that on Wednesday, MSNBC’s Chris Mathews asked Donald Trump to define his pro-life stance at a town hall in Milwaukee.

“Do you believe in punishment for abortion – yes or no – as a principle?” asked Matthews.

“The answer is there has to be some form of punishment,” said Trump.

“For the woman?” Matthews asked.

“Yeah, there has to be some form,” Trump answered.

When pressed to define what that punishment should be, Trump said that he didn’t know.

This hardline pro-life stance is a far cry to a statement Donald Trump made in a 1999 interview where he declared that he was “pro-choice in every respect.” Although candidates are allowed to change their minds on issues, Guardian notes that this “flip-flop” on abortion is likely to alienate the core Republican base.

The Trump camp later sought to clarify his position on abortion via a written statement.

“This issue is unclear and should be put back into the states for determination. Like Ronald Reagan, I am pro-life with exceptions, which I have outlined numerous times,” he said.

As can be expected, Trump’s call for punishing women who have abortions did not sit well with Hillary Clinton and Planned Parenthood.

[Photo by Jim Watson/ AFP/ Getty Images]

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