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Judaism: A Bar Mitzvah It is important for all adult members of a Jewish community to take their religious responsibilities very seriously and to observe the rules given in the Torah. Once he has reached the age of 13, a Jewish boy is considered to be grown up enough to accept his duties and to understand the Jewish laws and live his life according to them. At this point he has become Bar Mitzvah, which literally means “Son of the Commandments.” The ceremony to celebrate this event – also called a Bar Mitzvah – takes place in a synagogue on the first Sabbath (Saturday) following the boy’s 13th birthday. A Jewish girl’s coming-of-age ceremony is called a Bat Mitzvah. Before a boy’s Bar Mitzvah ● The boy must work very hard to learn everything he needs to know before his Bar Mitzvah ● He may have to take lessons in Hebrew and Jewish history with a rabbi (a Jewish teacher and leader) for at least two years before his 13th birthday, possibly followed by an exam During a boy’s Bar Mitzvah The boy is given his tallit (prayer shawl) for the first time and wears it throughout the ceremony ● The boy recites the Hebrew blessing on the Torah (part of the first five books of Jewish scripture) before it is read at his Bar Mitzvah ● If his Hebrew is very good, he may also read a passage from the Torah ● After a boy’s Bar Mitzvah In some Jewish communities there is a party or meal after the Bar Mitzvah, where the boy can celebrate with his friends and family ● From now on, the boy is considered a man and is expected to carry out all his religious responsibilities dutifully ● A Jewish boy reads from the Torah, the Jewish holy book, at his Bar Mitzvah A girl’s Bat Mitzvah Girls become Bat Mitzvah on their 12th birthday. ● In the past, Jewish girls did not have a special ceremony to celebrate their coming of age Instead they tended to be married young, with first their parents and then their husband considered responsible for them ● Current practice is that many girls do have a special Bat Mitzvah ceremony ● In Reform synagogues, a girl’s Bat Mitzvah is very similar to a boy’s Bar Mitzvah, but in some Orthodox synagogues there are differences: the Bat Mitzvah takes place on a Sunday rather than the Sabbath, and the girl recites a special prayer rather than reading from the Torah ●