Jewish Bay Area Lifecycle Resources
Jewish Bay Area Lifecycle resources have offerings for the observance and celebration of Jewish lifecycle events and milestones. This includes birth, adoption, infertility issues, brit milah (bris), circumcision, Bar Mitzvah, Bat Mitzvah, Wedding and funeral. You can find a source here whatever you are searching for. Need a rabbi to conduct a Jewish ceremony such as a Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah, a Jewish wedding or an interfaith wedding, or a funeral? They are here in Jewish Bay Area Lifecycles.
There are also many organizations to help with everything from Jewish adoption, issues around infertility, ritual cleansing (mikvah.) Also contains locations of Jewish cemeteries of various denominations for Jewish burials and cemeteries.
The San Francisco Bay Area is a place where new ideas and creative interpretations of traditional observances are germinated. Then they grown into full-fledge movements. Jewish organizations in the Bay Area are always thinking outside the box to find new ways to enliven their traditions to excite and energize Jews of all ages and their families.
The full range of Jewish denominations and expressions find their home here, within the 10 counties that surround the San Francisco Bay. Jewish Bay Area Resources provides a buffet with the most sumptuous fare displayed on its table. It offers up many ways to express one’s religious and spiritual beliefs and practices. This is evident in the alternative to Brit Milah, the traditional circumcision rite of passage. The area has a non-cutting form of expressing the Abrahamic covenant that is one of the hallmarks of Jewish tradition. With alternative ideas given expression, organizations have sprung up in the Bay Area to provide service and support to those new ways of “doing Jewish.”
Jewish Bay Area Lifecycle Resources
Local congregations, individual rabbis, agencies and organizations provide support, advice, counseling and services to assist individuals and families during various lifecycle events. Congregations and additional religious organizations are listed in Chapter 4, Religious Life.
Provides soulful, personalized facilitation for weddings and funerals. Under the direction of Rabbi Dan Goldblatt, a team of skilled officiants helps individuals co-create rich, meaningful lifecycle ceremonies.
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Resource for interfaith couples exploring Jewish life, providing accessible, in-depth resources that empower couples to make Jewish choices and help their families embrace those choices.
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An innovative and inclusive, alternative online Jewish mindfulness community where ancient teachings meet modern life. Rabbi can assist with all lifecycle events, including conversions, weddings and baby namings.
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Ordained rabbi with a master’s in Rabbinic and Jewish Studies. She is a hazzan and Cantors Assembly member. A caring and dynamic leader with pulpit, educational and pastoral care experience.
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Hosts and guests share in a personalized and heartfelt event. Interdenominational, multicultural, traditional or nontraditional ceremonies throughout the Bay Area.
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General Resources
Provides soulful, personalized facilitation for weddings and funerals. Under the direction of Rabbi Dan Goldblatt, a team of skilled officiants helps individuals co-create rich, meaningful lifecycle ceremonies.
Learn More
Resource for interfaith couples exploring Jewish life, providing accessible, in-depth resources that empower couples to make Jewish choices and help their families embrace those choices.
Learn More
An innovative and inclusive, alternative online Jewish mindfulness community where ancient teachings meet modern life. Rabbi can assist with all lifecycle events, including conversions, weddings and baby namings.
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Ordained rabbi with a master’s in Rabbinic and Jewish Studies. She is a hazzan and Cantors Assembly member. A caring and dynamic leader with pulpit, educational and pastoral care experience.
Learn More
Hosts and guests share in a personalized and heartfelt event. Interdenominational, multicultural, traditional or nontraditional ceremonies throughout the Bay Area.
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Jewish Birth, Adoption & Circumcision
Certified traditional mohel, trained by expert mohelim including Rabbi Chanan Feld z"l. Caring and professional, serves Jewish families of all levels of observance.
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Performs spiritual, meaningful brit milah ceremonies for all affiliations and interfaith couples. Board certified in both pediatrics and pediatric hospital medicine, with more than 25 years of experience performing circumcisions with anesthesia/pain control.
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Provides support and services to adoptive parents and birth mothers during and after pregnancy. Full-service nonprofit licensed adoption agency and open adoption leader. A division of SF-based Jewish Family and Children’s Services.
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Certified mohel and pediatrician providing traditional, personalized and spiritual brit milah ceremonies for 21 years. Welcomes families of all types and affiliations. Uses pain control/local anesthetic. Serves the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento and beyond.
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Serves the Peninsula, San Francisco, Marin and the East Bay. Families of all kinds with babies and toddlers connect, share and celebrate together. Free events held at various locations.
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Nonprofit that supports non-circumcising Jews and educates about the diverse perspectives on Jewish circumcision and its alternatives. Offerings include free baby-welcoming ceremony for non-circumcising families and a directory of welcoming clergy.
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Bay Area urologist/hand surgeon, husband/wife mohelim team, trained and certified by Hebrew Union College; performs personalized, spiritually enlightening brit milah and hatafat dam brit (for previously circumcised converts) since 1991.
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Egg donor and surrogate search service that helps Jewish parents find Jewish egg donors and surrogate mothers.
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Northern California's only full-time mohel. More than 7,000 brissim have been performed. Interfaith and all family types are welcome. Modern pain control, unmatched speed and precision.
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Certified mohel and pediatric circumcision. The rabbi has been performing bris ceremonies and infant circumcisions in the Bay Area for more than a decade, guiding and assisting families through this major milestone.
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Board-certified OB/GYN and board-certified Reform mohel practicing in San Francisco for over 20 years. Personalized brit milah ceremonies joyfully celebrate new life.
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Alternatives to Brit Milah
Ceremony for families opting out of circumcision.
Nonprofit that supports non-circumcising Jews and educates about the diverse perspectives on Jewish circumcision and its alternatives. Offerings include free baby-welcoming ceremony for non-circumcising families and a directory of welcoming clergy.
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Adoption & Infertility
Provides support and services to adoptive parents and birth mothers during and after pregnancy. Full-service nonprofit licensed adoption agency and open adoption leader. A division of SF-based Jewish Family and Children’s Services.
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Egg donor and surrogate search service that helps Jewish parents find Jewish egg donors and surrogate mothers.
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Bay Area Brit Milah (Circumcision)
The ritual of brit milah is performed to symbolize the covenant between God and the people of Israel. The brit (or bris) takes place on the eighth day of a male baby's life (provided there are no health problems). Traditionally, the brit is performed by a mohel, a ritual circumciser familiar with the relevant laws and customs.
Certified traditional mohel, trained by expert mohelim including Rabbi Chanan Feld z"l. Caring and professional, serves Jewish families of all levels of observance.
Learn More
Performs spiritual, meaningful brit milah ceremonies for all affiliations and interfaith couples. Board certified in both pediatrics and pediatric hospital medicine, with more than 25 years of experience performing circumcisions with anesthesia/pain control.
Learn More
Certified mohel and pediatrician providing traditional, personalized and spiritual brit milah ceremonies for 21 years. Welcomes families of all types and affiliations. Uses pain control/local anesthetic. Serves the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento and beyond.
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Nonprofit that supports non-circumcising Jews and educates about the diverse perspectives on Jewish circumcision and its alternatives. Offerings include free baby-welcoming ceremony for non-circumcising families and a directory of welcoming clergy.
Learn More
Bay Area urologist/hand surgeon, husband/wife mohelim team, trained and certified by Hebrew Union College; performs personalized, spiritually enlightening brit milah and hatafat dam brit (for previously circumcised converts) since 1991.
Learn More
Northern California's only full-time mohel. More than 7,000 brissim have been performed. Interfaith and all family types are welcome. Modern pain control, unmatched speed and precision.
Learn More
Certified mohel and pediatric circumcision. The rabbi has been performing bris ceremonies and infant circumcisions in the Bay Area for more than a decade, guiding and assisting families through this major milestone.
Learn More
Board-certified OB/GYN and board-certified Reform mohel practicing in San Francisco for over 20 years. Personalized brit milah ceremonies joyfully celebrate new life.
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Brit Bat/Simchat Bat (Rejoicing for Daughter)
The birth of a baby girl is traditionally marked in the synagogue when her father or parents are called to the Torah on the Sabbath to give the newborn her Hebrew name. The past decade has seen the development of various naming ceremonies for girls. In fact, there is a growing liturgy around the brit bat, and various alternative rituals have been proposed. This ritual is frequently performed on the eighth day of a baby girl’s life.
Pidyon Haben (First-born Redemption)
A pidyon haben, redemption of a son, takes place 30 days after the birth of a first-born baby boy. The tradition is based on the belief that first-born sons were to serve God in the Temple. To redeem them from that obligation, five shekels were given to the Temple priests, who then served in the Temple instead. The ceremony today usually involves a symbolic charitable donation.
Circumcision Alternatives
Bar & Bat Mitzvah
Typically celebrated in the synagogue, the bar/bat mitzvah marks a young person becoming an adult member of the community. Traditionally, the 13-yearold is called upon to recite the Torah blessings and to read a Haftorah, a selection from the prophets. Variations on the ceremony exist. Study programs are also available throughout the community for adult men or women who missed the opportunity to celebrate a bar/bat mitzvah as a teenager. Synagogues provide bar and bat mitzvah training. See "Religious Life
& Organizations."
Confirmation
For Reform and some Conservative Jews, the confirmation year (10th or 11th grade) represents a special time of celebration and commitment. It includes study and meetings with the rabbi, culminating in a special service, often held during the Shavuot holiday, which commemorates the receiving of the Torah by the Jewish people.
Chanukat Habayit
In the traditional ceremony of “dedicating the home,” a mezuzah is put up within 30 days of moving into a new home. A mezuzah is a small container that holds a handwritten scroll of parchment with Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21 on the front side and the word Shaddai (Almighty) on the back. The passages contain the Shema, considered the watchword of Jewish faith, proclaiming the oneness of God. The mezuzah is placed on the upper third of the doorpost, on the right side as one enters.
Mikvah
A ritual pool of fresh "living" water, the mikvah is used for spiritual purification. For some Jews, married life involves laws of taharat hamishpacha (family purity), which require a wife's monthly immersion in a mikvah after menstruation before she reunites with her husband. The mikvah is used today by some brides and grooms before their wedding. Jews-by-choice traditionally visit the mikvah as part of their conversion process.
Nightly women's appointments, available by phone or online.
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No attendant on duty. Please email for an appointment.
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Nightly women’s appointments available by phone, text or online.
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By appointment. Please call Guila at the number above.
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The Levy Family Campus welcomes the use of its mikvah for all Jewish religious and spiritual life transitions and passages.
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For those seeking rejuvenation, this mikvah offers nightly appointments for married women from all Jewish backgrounds, along with classes for brides and beginners.
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By appointment and for women only. Please call at least three days in advance. A $20 donation is requested. Please prepare at home and bring your own towel, etc.
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Available by appointment only. Schedule an appointment online.
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Marriage
Marriage within the Jewish community is packed with familial, social and religious considerations. Jewish weddings are often a joining not only of two individuals and their families, but also of different parts of the community. Above all, a wedding is a simcha, a commandment in which the bride and groom rejoice. The main elements of a wedding are kiddushin and erusin (sanctification of betrothal), the betrothal blessing, presentation of the ring, reading of the ketubah (marriage contract) and its presentation to the bride, recitation of the seven marriage blessings, drinking of wine to sanctify the marriage, and breaking of the glass (to remember the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem even on joyous occasions). Additional traditions are the bedeken, in which the groom places the veil over his bride’s face, and the encircling of the groom by the bride. Although a Jewish wedding need not take place in a synagogue, most Jews planning to marry turn to a rabbi or synagogue for some aspect of the wedding.
Marriage preparation classes are offered in many branches of Jewish Family & Children’s Services, listed in Chapter 6, Social Services.
Hosts and guests share in a personalized and heartfelt event through a welcoming style. Interdenominational, multicultural, traditional or nontraditional ceremonies offered throughout the Bay Area.
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Marriage Officiating
Also see Chapter 4, Religious Life & Congregations.
Hosts and guests share in a personalized and heartfelt event through a welcoming style. Interdenominational, multicultural, traditional or nontraditional ceremonies offered throughout the Bay Area.
Learn More
Divorce
Couples contemplating divorce are urged to consult with a rabbi regarding the advisability of obtaining a religious divorce in addition to a civil divorce.
Rabbinical Court arranges for the get—the halachic divorce document—to be executed in a manner recognized as legitimate throughout the world, including by the Rabbanut in Israel.
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Jewish Death
The Jewish traditions related to death and mourning are intended to recognize death as a part of life. Burial takes place as soon after death as possible. Traditional caskets are of plain wood, embalming and viewing of the body are shunned, and flowers are discouraged. Rabbis should be consulted for specific questions about burial and mourning practices such as the observance of shiva, recitation of the Kaddish, yahrzeit observance and attending yizkor services. Funeral homes and chevra kadishas (burial societies) can also answer questions.
Clergy provide guidance and spiritual support to families experiencing a loss. Ritual cleansing provided by the chevra kadisha group.
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Consecrated cemetery owned by Congregation Beth Israel. Located at Mission Memorial Park in Seaside.
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Burials take place in two cemeteries run by Temple Beth El in Santa Cruz County: Beit Shalom (Home of Peace), consecrated in 1877; and Beit Olam (Eternal Home), a Jewish section of historic Soquel Cemetery.
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Counseling and support in a compassionate Jewish context for those grieving the loss of a loved one.
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Orthodox burial society and cemetery. Administered by Beth Jacob Congregation.
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The Bay Area’s nonprofit Jewish funeral home offers compassionate guidance, dignified interment options and supportive resources rooted in Jewish values. Honored to accompany families through moments of loss.
Learn More
An 82-acre nonprofit Jewish memorial park in the Briones open space in Contra Costa County, offering congregational gardens, flush markers, and an on-site chapel in a serene, natural setting.
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Founded in 1865 and owned by Sinai Memorial, Home of Eternity, serves all Jewish people and their loved ones. This historic space offers traditional burial, mausoleum entombment, cremation niches, and a midcentury chapel.
Learn More
Orthodox cemetery and burial society administered by Beth Jacob Congregation.
Learn More
Endowed-care cemetery established in 1868 with a rich history and parklike setting. Many of Hayward’s notable pioneer families are buried here, including the city’s founder, William Hayward. All faiths welcome.
Learn More
Newly opened and the first consecrated Jewish cemetery established in Alameda County in more than 100 years, serving the entire Jewish community regardless of degree of observance.
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Comprehensive grief and bereavement services for those coping with loss. Services include individual counseling, grief support groups, information and referrals.
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Offering compassionate, practical support for mourners, including three complimentary counseling sessions, community resources, and gatherings that foster connection and healing. No one should have to navigate grief alone.
Learn More
The Bay Area’s nonprofit Jewish funeral home offers compassionate guidance, dignified interment options and supportive resources rooted in Jewish values. It has accompanied families through moments of loss since 1901.
Learn More
Oldest Jewish cemetery in Sonoma County, dating back to 1868. Includes an interfaith section; call for details. Now offers an area for Jewish cremations.
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Custodian of the Pioneer Jewish Cemeteries in the California Gold Country, dating to the 1850s: Sonora, Mokelumne Hill, Jackson, Placerville, Nevada City, Grass Valley and Marysville.
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To honor the dead and strengthen the living. This community-based chevra kadisha is available to all Sonoma County Jews, regardless of affiliation or level of Jewish observance.
Learn More
This sacred section of Fernwood was established to serve the Jewish community as a place of rest rooted in nature and guided by tradition.
Learn More
Bucolic Jewish cemetery serving both affiliated and unaffiliated Jews who wish to be buried in an inclusive Jewish cemetery. Mixed faith burial available, call for details.
Learn More
Serene cemetery in Pleasant Hills Memorial Park, Sebastopol. Available to the entire Jewish community: Ner Shalom members and non-members, Jewish and non-Jewish spouses and family members. Sites for both full-body and cremated remains.
Learn More
Located within the scenic 160-year-old St. Helena Cemetery, this community cemetery section is open to Jews and their families, regardless of affiliation.
Learn More
Located atop a knoll in San Rafael with magnificent views of the Bay and Mt. Tamalpais. It is an ideal choice for those who love natural beauty.
Learn More
Newly expanded and landscaped cemetery serving the needs of the South Bay Jewish community. Unaffiliated individuals are welcome. Single and double-depth burials, cremation options. Natural setting.
Learn More
Serving the Jewish community of the Peninsula. One of Northern California's most picturesque memorial parks, overlooking the coastal hills. Maintained by Peninsula Temple Beth El.
Learn More
Honoring the Jewish community's traditions with an attractive and affordable space in Shalom Garden. Burial, cremation and a wide variety of permanent memorialization options are available.
Learn More
The only full-service Jewish funeral home and Chevra Kadisha serving the entire Jewish community for more than 120 years. Community-owned, nonprofit membership organization.
Learn More
A 25-acre nonprofit Jewish cemetery in Colma offering traditional, green and Orthodox burial, along with congregational areas, a Holocaust memorial, The Memory Garden for perinatal loss and an onsite chapel.
Learn More
Serving the Bay Area's Jewish community since 1850.
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Serving the Bay Area's Jewish community since 1850.
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Serving the Bay Area's Jewish community since 1877.
Learn More
The Bay Area’s only full-service, nonprofit Jewish funeral home offers compassionate guidance, dignified interment options and supportive resources rooted in Jewish values. It is honored to accompany families through moments of loss.
Learn More
An elegantly landscaped memorial garden in San Jose preserved as sacred ground. Provides Jewish burial sites and pastoral solitude to mourners.
Learn More
Orthodox Jewish volunteers will prepare any Jewish deceased in the Greater South Bay Area for burial at the request of the family. Tax-deductible donations are welcome to help cover expenses and funerals for indigent Jews.
Learn More
Jewish-owned cemetery, mausoleum and columbarium serving the entire Jewish community since 1853. Owned and operated by Temple Emanu-El.
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Ritual Preparation
Clergy provide guidance and spiritual support to families experiencing a loss. Ritual cleansing provided by the chevra kadisha group.
Learn More
Orthodox burial society and cemetery. Administered by Beth Jacob Congregation.
Learn More
The Bay Area’s nonprofit Jewish funeral home offers compassionate guidance, dignified interment options and supportive resources rooted in Jewish values. It has accompanied families through moments of loss since 1901.
Learn More
To honor the dead and strengthen the living. This community-based chevra kadisha is available to all Sonoma County Jews, regardless of affiliation or level of Jewish observance.
Learn More
Orthodox Jewish volunteers will prepare any Jewish deceased in the Greater South Bay Area for burial at the request of the family. Tax-deductible donations are welcome to help cover expenses and funerals for indigent Jews.
Learn More
Cemeteries
Consecrated cemetery owned by Congregation Beth Israel. Located at Mission Memorial Park in Seaside.
Learn More
Burials take place in two cemeteries run by Temple Beth El in Santa Cruz County: Beit Shalom (Home of Peace), consecrated in 1877; and Beit Olam (Eternal Home), a Jewish section of historic Soquel Cemetery.
Learn More
An 82-acre nonprofit Jewish memorial park in the Briones open space in Contra Costa County, offering congregational gardens, flush markers, and an on-site chapel in a serene, natural setting.
Learn More
Founded in 1865 and owned by Sinai Memorial, Home of Eternity, serves all Jewish people and their loved ones. This historic space offers traditional burial, mausoleum entombment, cremation niches, and a midcentury chapel.
Learn More
Orthodox cemetery and burial society administered by Beth Jacob Congregation.
Learn More
Endowed-care cemetery established in 1868 with a rich history and parklike setting. Many of Hayward’s notable pioneer families are buried here, including the city’s founder, William Hayward. All faiths welcome.
Learn More
Newly opened and the first consecrated Jewish cemetery established in Alameda County in more than 100 years, serving the entire Jewish community regardless of degree of observance.
Learn More
Oldest Jewish cemetery in Sonoma County, dating back to 1868. Includes an interfaith section; call for details. Now offers an area for Jewish cremations.
Learn More
Custodian of the Pioneer Jewish Cemeteries in the California Gold Country, dating to the 1850s: Sonora, Mokelumne Hill, Jackson, Placerville, Nevada City, Grass Valley and Marysville.
Learn More
This sacred section of Fernwood was established to serve the Jewish community as a place of rest rooted in nature and guided by tradition.
Learn More
Bucolic Jewish cemetery serving both affiliated and unaffiliated Jews who wish to be buried in an inclusive Jewish cemetery. Mixed faith burial available, call for details.
Learn More
Serene cemetery in Pleasant Hills Memorial Park, Sebastopol. Available to the entire Jewish community: Ner Shalom members and non-members, Jewish and non-Jewish spouses and family members. Sites for both full-body and cremated remains.
Learn More
Located within the scenic 160-year-old St. Helena Cemetery, this community cemetery section is open to Jews and their families, regardless of affiliation.
Learn More
Located atop a knoll in San Rafael with magnificent views of the Bay and Mt. Tamalpais. It is an ideal choice for those who love natural beauty.
Learn More
Newly expanded and landscaped cemetery serving the needs of the South Bay Jewish community. Unaffiliated individuals are welcome. Single and double-depth burials, cremation options. Natural setting.
Learn More
Serving the Jewish community of the Peninsula. One of Northern California's most picturesque memorial parks, overlooking the coastal hills. Maintained by Peninsula Temple Beth El.
Learn More
Honoring the Jewish community's traditions with an attractive and affordable space in Shalom Garden. Burial, cremation and a wide variety of permanent memorialization options are available.
Learn More
A 25-acre nonprofit Jewish cemetery in Colma offering traditional, green and Orthodox burial, along with congregational areas, a Holocaust memorial, The Memory Garden for perinatal loss and an onsite chapel.
Learn More
Serving the Bay Area's Jewish community since 1850.
Learn More
Serving the Bay Area's Jewish community since 1850.
Learn More
Serving the Bay Area's Jewish community since 1877.
Learn More
An elegantly landscaped memorial garden in San Jose preserved as sacred ground. Provides Jewish burial sites and pastoral solitude to mourners.
Learn More
Jewish-owned cemetery, mausoleum and columbarium serving the entire Jewish community since 1853. Owned and operated by Temple Emanu-El.
Learn More
Bereavement
Counseling and support in a compassionate Jewish context for those grieving the loss of a loved one.
Learn More
Comprehensive grief and bereavement services for those coping with loss. Services include individual counseling, grief support groups, information and referrals.
Learn More
Offering compassionate, practical support for mourners, including three complimentary counseling sessions, community resources, and gatherings that foster connection and healing. No one should have to navigate grief alone.
Learn More
Funerals
The Bay Area’s nonprofit Jewish funeral home offers compassionate guidance, dignified interment options and supportive resources rooted in Jewish values. Honored to accompany families through moments of loss.
Learn More
The only full-service Jewish funeral home and Chevra Kadisha serving the entire Jewish community for more than 120 years. Community-owned, nonprofit membership organization.
Learn More
The Bay Area’s only full-service, nonprofit Jewish funeral home offers compassionate guidance, dignified interment options and supportive resources rooted in Jewish values. It is honored to accompany families through moments of loss.
Learn More
Orthodox Jewish volunteers will prepare any Jewish deceased in the Greater South Bay Area for burial at the request of the family. Tax-deductible donations are welcome to help cover expenses and funerals for indigent Jews.
Learn More
Monuments
