Belz Rebbe Blesses Grandson at Traditional Pidyon Haben Ceremony

On Saturday night, the Belz Hasidic community held a Pidyon Haben (redemption of the firstborn son) ceremony for the Rebbe of Belz's grandson, Moshe Yehoshua Rokach, son of Rabbi Israel Menachem Nahum Rokach. The event took place in the Belz Hasidic court and featured the participation of three Kohanim (priests) who performed the redemption ritual. These included Rabbi Shamai Kaht Gross, a member of the Badatz rabbinical court; Rabbi Shmuel Mordechai Zelfreind from Ashdod; and Rabbi Israel David Ulman, also from Ashdod, who serves as a rabbinical judge and spiritual mentor in the synagogue where the boy's father prays.

The Belz Rebbe personally blessed his grandson Moshe Yehoshua during the ceremony. Thousands of Hasidim attended and received garlic and sugar as a segula (spiritual remedy or blessing). The event was documented by photographer Shuki Lerer, whose gallery captures the traditional and festive atmosphere of this significant religious milestone.

The Pidyon Haben is a Jewish ritual performed when a firstborn son is redeemed from a Kohen, symbolizing a biblical commandment. This ceremony in the Belz community underscores the continuity of tradition and the prominent role of the Rebbe's family within the Hasidic world.