Personalized Hebrew Name Plate

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Each of Us Has a Name

Each of us has a name
given by God
and given by our parents

Each of us has a name
given by our stature and our smile
and given by what we wear

Each of us has a name
given by the mountains
and given by our walls

Each of us has a name
given by the stars
and given by our neighbors

Each of us has a name
given by our sins
and given by our longing

Each of us has a name
given by our enemies
and given by our love

Each of us has a name
given by our celebrations
and given by our work

Each of us has a name
given by the seasons
and given by our blindness

Each of us has a name
given by the sea
and given by
our death.
     – Zelda, a Hebrew poet (1914-1984)

A Hebrew name is given to Jewish children at their birth and it is customary to be called upon their Jewish names during significant points in their Jewish life such as their birth and when they are called to the torah for their bar/bat mitzvah. Andy’s daughter Caroline’s Hebrew name, Rivkah Sarah, is after her Grandma Betty and Nanny Sophie. His daughter Lucy’s Hebrew name, Leah Hinda, is after her Grandma Lee and Grandma Helen.

Creating a beautiful work of art using a Hebrew name is a fun way for guests to learn about the meaning of their name. These signs double as a unique take home for your guests as well! You supply the materials and supplies and they create. Or, you can have a local artist live on-site at your event to create in front of your guests. Either way this is a unique and magical way to showcase your guests’ names and birthday (a special occasion) at your significant special occasion!

Materials:

Hebrew Name Plate Materials

 

Step1: Choose the Hebrew letters that represent your Hebrew name and
lay them (remember right to left) on your board side by side.

Step 2: Tape down the stencils

Hebrew Name Plate Step 2

 

Step 3: Dip sponge into paint (or paint inside stencil with paintbrush
for a more polished look)

Shibori Challah Cover Step 3

 

Step 4: When paint is dry to the touch carefully remove the stencils

Shibori Challah Cover Step 4

Add any embellishments you choose…..birthdate, name and meaning…..

 

Hebrew Name Plate Final

Lucy’s Bat Mitzvah Speech

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My Torah portion is Genesis chapter 12 through genesis chapter 17. I am specifically reading genesis chapter 17 verses 1 through 10.  But, in order to understand what is going on in those 10 verses, they need to be seen within the context of the whole Torah portion. Genesis chapter 12 begins with God asking Abram and Sarai to leave their native land, kindred, and their father’s house, to a land that God will show them. That journey culminates 5 chapters and 24 years later, with the 10 verses I chant today. In my 10 verses, we’re exploring transformation. The transformation of Sarai to Sarah, and Abram to Abraham. In each person’s name, the letter hay is added in Hebrew, which corresponds to the letter H in English. Their new names are AbraHam, and SaraH. When the letter hay is added to a person’s name in the Torah it signifies the name of God being added to their name. This is because in the Torah Gods name is spelled in hebrew, yud hay vuv hay. Literally, one of the letters of God’s name is being taken, and given to Abram and Sarai.

Ever since I learned about this transformation, it has been on my mind and I have been very curious about what it might mean in my own life, to have the letter hay added in my name. I asked myself this very question; I decided that it could cause me to feel pressured. Or maybe honored. But, if someone I really truly respect gave me an honor, I would want to live up to it. If I had gods name in me, I would know that I was extraordinary. But, I don’t mean better than everyone else, rather what I mean by extraordinary is that I would have the gift of being a part of something far larger than myself.

This summer my family and our friends, the Cutlers, took a trip to Israel. In Jerusalem, we visited the Western Wall. We were standing at the wall, and Randi Cutler asked us if we were feeling a little bit “jumpy”, I didn’t really understand what she meant but then as I stood there longer,  I experienced a strange feeling, a feeling that I had never experienced before. I think this is what Randi meant. The wall is a really powerful place because people have been going there, and having the same feelings as I did for almost two thousand years. The wall has been there longer than I, or any of you, have been around, and will outlive all of us, as well as all of our offspring to come, ulzaraha aharayha, just as it says in my torah portion. To me being extraordinary means to be connected to something larger than myself.

Then I had a second experience which brought another dimension of the passage into focus. This summer I went on a 2 week outdoor adventure program through the mountains in colorado. We had just completed a strenuous first day of our 5 day backpacking trip, and after we had rested a little bit in our tents, our counselors thought it would be fun to do a small hike since it wasn’t that late, and we had nothing else to do that night. There was a small mountain near our camp site, (well, we thought it was small) and we decided to hike it. So at about 9 o’clock at night, my group, which consisted of me, my friend, one more girl, and 9 boys set off on what we thought would be a simple, easy fun, 45 minute hike. After about the first half hour we started to realize that this was no easy 45 minute hike. The top of the mountain was no where in site, and the hike was starting to really wear on us, (keeping in mind we had already had a whole day of backpacking!!) My group of 12 kids started to split up; the few strongest hikers made their way to the far front of the pack, and  the hikers who like to take their time and enjoy the view, (thats me!), were in the middle, and of course there are always those few couple of people who tend to lag behind, so they were in the way back.

After about an hour and a half of hiking with still no site of the top of the mountain, we all started to realize that this hike was very different then we had originally intended. But, being the persevering kids that we are, we kept going, with open minds, thinking that we would reach the top soon enough. The hiking had become somewhat treacherous. It was to the point where I had to lean into the mountain to keep from slipping and falling down. I felt like the mountain was at a 90 degree angle, and I was really scared. I was out of breath, my legs ached, I honestly felt like I was going to pass out. I had no water left, and I had to drink my counselors water which tasted like iodine.

This was not a very pleasant hike, but, I had this image in my mind. An image of me at the top of this mountain, and thats what kept me going. Our whole group was in different places on the mountain. The strongest hikers were way ahead, and my friend Andrew and I were next, and then everyone else was still pretty far behind us. Now we had been hiking for over 2 hours, and I started to loose hope of getting to the top, but I still had that image. When our counsellor, Chris, called up to us and told us that it was getting to dangerous, and that we had to go down, I was really disappointed. The image slipped away from my mind. I felt like I had done all this work, yet had accomplished nothing. I thought it was about getting to the top.

When we reached the bottom I had realized that it wasn’t about getting to the top of the actual mountain, I had realized that I was on a journey. Like Sarai and Abram, I was being taken by God to see something. I thought it was going to be a beautiful view on the top of the mountain, instead, it was about something I was about to learn.

Sometimes the greatest views are not what you see when you look out from the top of the mountain, but what we see when we look inside at our own hearts. In Deuteronomy chapter 8 verse 2 Moses reminds the Israelites that like Abraham, they have journeyed in the wilderness. “Remember the long way that the lord, your God has made you travel in the wilderness. That god might test you, so that you could learn what was in your heart.”

The point of the journey of Abram to Abraham was so that he could discover what was in his heart, and how God might be in his heart, and when he discovered that, he became Abraham. No longer just simply Abram. As a bat mitzvah, I am on a journey to discover what is in my heart. And how I too, might become a person who has God in her heart. The movement from Abram to Abraham, is not about the movement from evil to good, nor is it about the movement from boring to fascinating.  It’s rather about the movement from ordinary to extraordinary.

My torah portion begins with the words, “go forth from your native land, and your kindred, and your fathers house, to the land that I will show you”. When I first read this verse, I thought it was only about a physical land, but, as I began to examine it more closely, I realized that this verse was leading me to a bigger idea. This section is not just about physical space, it is about the concept of emotional space.  An emotional space where you can feel God in yourself, similar to what I experienced at the wall this summer. I felt the presence of God within me. This process of learning how to open to this kind of emotional consciousness of space is what leads to having God’s name in you. This is what my torah portion is all about.

The third experience that I had this summer which helped me to understand my torah portion at a completely different level was actually the hardest for me. I had been working very hard on my bat mitzvah speech, it was pretty much finished. And then, my computer was stolen. And I had no other copies of my speech. I was devastated. Although I am still upset about all of the loss I experienced, I now understand, looking back, that another door opened, because that speech was written before the two experiences that made up this speech. In retrospect, it feels clear to me now, that I have been on a journey. And when one goes on a journey, they experience tests, and losses, and sometimes failures. Often times, great surprises, but most of all, one gets to learn what is in their heart.

I think I am now starting to learn that actually the journey never ends, and that there are always amazing times in store. I want all of you to know that it is possible to go on a journey and find God in your heart. If I could give a gift to all of you, it would be the capacity to see all of the extraordinary hearts in the faces of our lives. My dream is that when I see a face, I learn to see the person’s heart.

 

 

 

 

The Secret Formula to Making a Magical Photo Montage

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The Bar/Bat Mitzvah is rite of passage, but it’s not just the young teen who is going through a journey of sorts.

In a sense, the Bar/Bat Mitzvah ritual is also a rite of passage for us as parents who are beginning the process of letting go: letting our son or daughter transition to adulthood and begin to accept responsibilities for their actions, to be more accountable as a member of their community.

As a parent, I found the process of creating photo montages for both my daughters’ Bat Mitzvah celebrations to be somewhat therapeutic. The project was a milestone moment for me to stop, reflect, revisit and assemble a story of my girls’ journey for birth to bimah (the platform at the front of the synagogue’s sanctuary where prayer is led.)

The Bar/Bat Mitzvah photo montage has been a highlight of many celebrations for years. The execution of the montage has evolved as photography has evolved. In some ways, they’re easier than ever to produce. As a young father, I would spend hours getting photos developed. Then my work began: cutting, pasting, assembling. Today I can create a vibrant multi-media presentation with special effects and music in seconds; or I can create beautiful books using any number of online tools.  But creating has also become more difficult:  Technology and the ubiquity of cameras on our personal devices means that we are faced staggering number of photos to sort through. The entire project can be overwhelming.

Getting started

Sure, you can pay someone to create a photo montage video presentation for you. You can turn over shoeboxes, disks and drives with thousands of photos and wait a few weeks. You can be your own producer and use the latest video editing software adding cool visual effects, glitz and music. But in my mind the best montages are the simplest. They come from the heart. And when you pace yourself and break the process down into small, manageable steps, they’re not very difficult to do. Plus, you experience getting to view hundreds, ok…thousands, of photos for a trip down memory lane. What can be more precious than that?

Whether you’re creating a simple scrapbook, a slideshow or a video montage with music and special effects the preparation is the same. Researching and locating representative photos from each year of life, milestones, family and friends.

It’s easy, right?

Wrong. It’s daunting. But think about the look on your child’s face when they see their life in review. Think how special your family and friends will feel when they see that you chose to highlight them in your montage. You’re creating legacy for your children (and their children) to enjoy for years to come.

Thousands of choices, but what makes a “magical” photo

A magical photo is simply a photo that captures a moment and creates a feeling: happy, sad, thoughtful. There are many elements that go into a good photo, ad everyone’s tastes are different. It’s up to you to know when you’ve captured a magical moment.

A basic formula

This is a basic formula to help you organize your Bar/Bat Mitzvah photo montage. This is meant to give you a starting point. My personal advice: Don’t edit yourself. Don’t get stuck because you can’t decide between one photo over another. Go back and edit yourself later, and then go back and edit again. The best writers aren’t necessarily great writers, they are excellent editors.

  1. Individual pictures of the child, birth through 13 years: 12-18 photos
  2. Immediate family: about 12-18 total photos
    1. Entire family: 4-6 photos
    2. Child with siblings: 4-6 photos
    3. Child with parents: 4-6 photos
  3. Child with grandparents: 4-8 photos; start with the earliest photos and the most recent.
  4. Child with other relatives: 8-12 photos
    1. Child with cousins: 4-6 photos
    2. Child with aunts and uncles: 4-6 photos
  5. Child with (current) friends: 8-10 photos
  6. Child with special people (although we don’t have “god parents” in the Jewish faith, we still have people we consider very close to our family.

Once the “people” category is completed, spend a little time gathering some milestone pictures:

  1. First/last day of school
  2. Family vacations
  3. Family holiday celebration

Now think about organization: you may wish to display your photos in chronological order (my personal preference) or grouped by theme: family, friends, activities, vacations, interests, etc. This is purely a personal preference.

You will have about 70-100 photos. At 4 seconds per photos, you’ve just created a 5-7 minute slideshow montage.

Opinion varies on what an optimal duration is. You don’t want to make your guests sit through a 30-minute presentation while the food is getting cold and the DJ is on the clock. Something short, easily digestible. A 3-5 minute montage is a good starting point.  But for some, a 13-minute video makes sense – that’s one minute for each year. If you are including many of your guests in your montage (pictures of relatives, friends, etc.) they’ll be more than happy to sit through it!

Beyond Bar/Bat Mitzvah

The Bar/Bat Mitzvah won’t be the last time you’ll want to create a photo montage of special people. There will be so many reasons to chronicle the most important moments in life: trips or other milestone events. Whatever the event, the presentation is guaranteed to bring a smile to everyone’s face and a (happy) tear to their eye.

Additional Resources

Photo Butler is a free app that will allow you and your guests to automagically and private share your party photos. It is entirely private. You can choose who gets to see your photos and contribute photos. The best way to enjoy is to set up a Photo Butler stream during your event – all guests who attend can contribute photos. All guests (who cannot attend) can view the event photos during the event. In addition, you will have so many photos from your friends and not have to worry about asking your friends to text / send you photos afterwards. It is basically the technology revolution of the throw away cameras that used to be placed on each table at a party.  Here is an overview video about Photo Butler and here is a link to the app.

Meaningful Mitzvah Projects: Inspiring your Child

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What social action projects has your child planned or done? What might inspire them to act to help heal the world?

Over the last 20 years or so, it has become common for bar and bat mitzvah tweens to engage in a social or environmental action project as part of their learning experience. In fact, many synagogues require young folks to do so as part of the preparation for the bar/bat mitzvah celebrations.

Reflecting on the benefits of such projects, the writer Marjorie Ingall comments:

The intent is lovely: Teach kids about the responsibilities of Jewish adulthood, encourage the values of tikkun olam (healing/mending the world) and giving back, raise funds for good causes, and be so awesome that you don’t even need Ne-Yo in your bar mitzvah video (“Doing Mitzvah Projects Right,” Tablet Magazine, 3/13/2013).

But as Ingall points out, it is crucial for parents and educators to work closely with young people when choosing and crafting these projects (moving from “intent” to “execution” ).

Please share this with your bar/bat mitzvah child:
When thinking about your mitzvah project:
(based on the work of Naomi Eisenberger and the Ziv Tzedakah Fund):

  • What is one issue or that you care about? Why?
  • What talents or skills do you possess that you can apply to this cause?
  • Who can help you address this issue meaningfully?
  • What are 2-3 goals you want to accomplish through this mitzvah project?

In writing about the challenges and opportunities of the mitzvah project, Ingall adds the following points for our consideration:

  • Encourage your child or student to use the year preparing for their Bar/Bat Mitzvah AND committing to their mitzvah project. How can s/he make this happen?
  • If your bar/bat mitzvah is working with an organization, have him/her speak to representatives to understand how it works and how to be most helpful.
  • Explore how this project relates to key values and teachings from Judaism and other sources of wisdom.

As the great Jewish theologian and activist, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel stated repeatedly, “To be is to stand for.” As our tweens prepare to enter Jewish adulthood, taking on a mitzvah project can help them determine what they “stand for” and how to make a difference in the world.

What is the True Meaning of a “Bar” or “Bat Mitzvah”?

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Like other religions and cultures throughout the world, Judaism has developed a variety of rituals to mark important life cycle moments. One of the most well-known of these rites is the bar or bat mitzvah.

Technically speaking, however, to be a bar (male) or bat (female) mitzvah means one is responsible for the performance of the mitzvot, “commandments.” According to tradition, when children enter puberty they are held accountable for their actions. A Jewish boy becomes a bar mitzvah at age 13 and a girl at 12 years old—with or without a service or celebration (some girls do not have their celebrations until the age of 13).

The initiation ceremony is what is commonly referred to as the bar or bat mitzvah. This usually involves a communal prayer service (often, but not always, on Shabbat) at which the young person may do one or more of the following:

  • Be counted in the minyan (prayer quorum of 10 Jewish adults);
  • Recite the blessing before and after the reading of a section of the Torah (this honor is known as an aliyah);
  • Chant a selection from the weekly Torah portion (parashah) and/or prophetic reading (haftarah) and its accompanying blessings; and,
  • Offer a sermon or teaching connected to the parashah or haftarah readings and the experience of becoming a bar or bat mitzvah.

Following the service, there is typically a festive meal and many families also host parties.

It is important to remember that while the bar or bat mitzvah service and celebration can be very powerful — and fun — experiences, these events should be viewed as part of a process in which the young person and his/her family explores what it means to be a Jewish adult, and the opportunities and responsibilities that come with it. This is a subject we hope the bar or bat mitzvah continues to actively explore for many years to come.

Please share this with your bar/bat mitzvah child…
“Bar” means “male” and “bat” means “female”. “Mitzvah” means one is responsible for performing the “mitzvot” or “commandments.” After your bar/bat mitzvah you will be seen as an adult, responsible for all of your actions.

Bar/Bat Mitzvah Gift Ideas

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What is a meaningful gift for a bar/bat mitzvah?

If possible, ask the bar or bat mitzvah and his/her parents what might be an appropriate, useful, or valued gift. Here are several present possibilities (categories and specific items):


TanakhTanakh (Hebrew Bible)
-Jewish Publication Society, JPS Hebrew-English Tanakh, Student Edition

Torah Commentary
-Harvey Fields, A Torah Commentary for Our Times, UAHC Press

Personalized Calligraphy
Personalized Calligraphy Torah Portion Prints

Classical Jewish Literature
-Barry Holtz (editor), Back to the Sources: Reading the Classic Jewish Texts, Simon & Schuster

Plant a Tree in Israel
Plant a tree in Israel in honor of the bar/bat mitzvah

Jewish Religious Practice
-Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath, FSG Classics

Jewish History & Culture
-Bryan Schwartz (Author), Jay Sand (Contributor), Sandy Carter (Contributor), Scattered Among The Nations, Weldon Owen


Judaica BookJewish Sacred & Cultural Objects
-Myra Yellin Outwater (Andy’s mother), Judaica, Schiffer Publishing Ltd.

Jewish Cooking
-Leah Koenig, Modern Jewish Cooking: Recipes & Customs for Today’s Kitchen, Chronicle Books

Big Book of Jewish Humor
Jewish Humor
-William Novack and Moshe Waldoks (editors), The Big Book of Jewish Humor, William Morrow Paperbacks

Jewish Sacred Objects (see, for example, Fair Trade Judaica):
-Shabbat Candlesticks
-Havdalah Candle Holder
-Kiddush Cup (used to sanctify Sabbath and holiday meals)


Tzedakah BoxTzedakah (“Charity”) Box (above)
-Hanukkiah (Hanukkah candelabrum, menorah)
-Yad (“hand”, pointer for Torah reading)
-Shofar (ram’s horn)
-Tallit (prayer shawl)
-Tefillin

Jewish Works of Art (see, for example, Fair Trade Judaica)


Gift Certificates ($18 or multiples of it is a common amount as it equals the Hebrew word for “life,” chai) or charitable donations (this could be related to the bar/bat “mitzvah” project).

Bar/Bat Mitzvah Fast Facts

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Did you know that…

The term “bar mitzvah” first appears in the Talmud, the great collection of oral Jewish teaching more than 1,200 years ago?

The plural form form of bar mitzvah is “b’nai mitzvah“; and the plural form of bat mitzvah is “b’not mitzvah.” Today, it is not uncommon for there to be more than one bar or bat mitzvah celebration on a given Shabbat in a synagogue (particularly large houses of worship). This could include twins (te’omim/te’omot) or different families.

The word bar in Aramaic means “son,” and mitzvah means “commandment” in Hebrew. In rabbinic usage, the term bar mitzvah means “a young man subject to Jewish law.”

The bar mitzvah ceremony did not emerge as a full-fledged ritual until the late Middle Ages, with more additions made throughout the modern period.

The first bat mitzvah celebration was 95 years ago and took place in the United States when Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan (1881-1983, founder of Reconstructionist Judaism) called his daughter Judith Kaplan to the Bimah.

Reform congregations replaced bar mitzvah ceremonies in 19th-century Germany. Instead a Confirmation ceremony was held between the ages of 16-17 because rabbinic leaders felt it was a more appropriate age for this rite of passage. Today, some Reform and Conservative synagogues hold both ceremonies to mark different moments of maturation.

Inside tefillin (prayer boxes or phylacteries) are parchment scrolls inscribed with verses from the Torah. One box is worn on the head and another other on the arm; both have accompanying straps to hold them in place. One traditional observance many young people begin at bar/bat mitzvah age (or in preparation for it) is the donning of a tallit (prayer shawl) and tefillin.

At many bar/bat mitzvah celebrations, the young person is called forth for the first time to recite the blessings before and after the reading of the section of the Torah. The Hebrew term for this honor is aliyah, which literally means an “ascension” or “elevation”. This same term is also traditionally used to describe moving to the Land of Israel.

The haftarah always has a thematic link to it and traditionally follows the Torah reading on Shabbat, Jewish holidays, and fast days. It is common for a bar or bat mitzvah to chant a selection from one of the books of the prophets as part of his/her celebratory service. The word for this piece of the ritual is called the haftarah (from the Hebrew for “parting” or “taking leave,” plural haftarot).

Living with Passion & Purpose: Family Reflections on a Mitzvah Project

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With the help of his family, Jacob Gurdin, an avid youth hockey player from Brookline, MA, undertook a creative, personally meaningful, and highly successful mitzvah project in support of the Travis Roy Foundation. Travis Roy was a gifted young hockey player, whose life was radically altered just 11 seconds into his first game as a freshman at Boston University (1995), when he was paralyzed from the neck down due to an awkward collision. Bravely, Travis turned his personal tragedy into a source of healing and blessing for countless others by establishing a foundation in support of spinal injuries, and through his public speaking and writing. Below are two brief excerpts from the inspiring speeches Jacob and his mom, Lisa, gave during the bar mitzvah ceremony about the project. Jacob’s bar mitzvah celebration included his reading from the Torah portion of Shemini (Leviticus 9:1–11:47), which includes a discussion of various rules of ritual conduct. The theme of personal and collective responsibility, including core values and rules, served to frame the remarks.

Jacob – For my mitzvah project, I organized a youth hockey tournament modeled on the famous Boston Beanpot Tournament to raise funds for the Travis Roy Foundation (TRF). The TRF helps people who have suffered spinal cord injuries by giving them adaptive equipment that allows them to be as independent as possible. Examples of adaptive equipment are voice recognition software, computers, ramps, and specialized vehicles. The equipment can be very expensive and without the Foundation, they would not be able to get that equipment. The TRF also donates funds to research to find a cure for paralysis. One of the most meaningful parts of the experience came in the hour or so before the tournament: When all the teams were getting ready to play, I went with Travis to each locker room, where Travis talked to the kids and coaches about his life and work. Everyone was respectful and listened carefully to him. As Travis spoke, I could tell people were inspired by his words and presence. Just before the first game, I stood at center ice and spoke to the teams and all the fans that came to support us. I was nervous about speaking in front of so many people, but proud to share my excitement about the project with them. The tournament was amazing! Not only did my team—the Jr. Eagles—win it all in shootout, but the silent auction and raffle were a hit. Between the online fundraising and the donations at the event itself, we raised about $19,000 dollars. I am also planning to donate a portion of my bar mitzvah money to the TRF. The whole experience, including getting to know Travis, was amazing. It felt so good to help people who have suffered and cannot do all the things they wish were a part of their daily lives. I feel so lucky to be able to contribute to a worthwhile cause with the love and support of my parents and siblings.

Lisa – The Jr. Beanpot started out as a small hockey tournament with four teams to raise money for the TRF, but ended up being much more. The moment I knew we were on to something life changing for our family was when we were visiting with Travis in his home in Boston. None of us knew what to expect. We met with Travis for about an hour and a half that day. He immediately made us feel at ease. We talked about his foundation and about Jacob’s bar mitzvah and the tournament. We were all taken by Travis’ resilience and his ability to wake up every day in his body and in his life and do good in the world. He perseveres through all the aches, pains, medical issues, and the need to have someone help him 24 hours a day. It made many of our daily complaints seem trivial. Spending time with Travis was heartbreaking, but it inspired our entire family to do everything we could to make the Jr. Beanpot a success and to continue working to help others. The best part of the experience was not the amazing hockey that was played that night, the fact that the Jr. Eagles won it, or that we raised $19,000. The best part for me was that Jacob’s idea—his bar mitzvah project—inspired over 60 kids and their families to return next year for the 2nd annual Jr. Beanpot. Travis says that he lived the first 20 years with a passion and the second 20 years with a purpose and that you are fortunate if you can live with both. I can say with confidence, that Jacob, you will live your life with a passion and a purpose. I’m so lucky to be your mom. Mazel tov!

A special thank you to Jacob and Lisa Gurdin for sharing their story and to Rabbi Or Rose for writing the introduction.

*To Learn more about Travis Roy and the TRF, please visit: https://www.travisroyfoundation.org/about/travis-roy

 

100 Years Ago Judith Kaplan Stood Boldly on the Bimah for the Very First Bat Mitzvah

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Did you know the first Bat Mitzvah took place 100 years ago?

The following article provides a concise introduction to the evolution of the bat mitzvah in American Jewish life. We thank our friends at the Jewish Women’s Archive for allowing us to reprint it (in excerpted form) on Breaking Matzo.

Today, a Jewish girl coming of age is likely to mark her entry to Jewish adulthood with some ceremony. But this was not always the case. The first Bat Mitzvah ceremony in America was celebrated on March 18th, 1922 by Judith Kaplan (Eisenstein), daughter of Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan. This “shocking” event consisted of 12-year-old Judith reading a passage from the weekly Torah portion in Hebrew and English from the printed humash (first five books of the Bible), and reciting the traditional blessings that precede and follow the Torah reading. Though Rabbi Kaplan was an influential leader in the Conservative movement (and later the founder of the Reconstructionist movement), his innovation was not immediately embraced.

In the Reform movement, girls had already been allowed to participate in the confirmation ritual that marked the end of one’s Jewish education. Jews in Western Europe and America had developed the confirmation ceremony in the nineteenth century to adapt their religious practice to that of the majority cultures, and they included girls to prove that Jews were “modern.” By the second half of the nineteenth century, confirmation — rather than Bar Mitzvah — was an accepted rite of passage in the American Reform movement.

Since Bar Mitzvah had become less important in the Reform movement, and since Orthodox Jews considered gender segregation in the synagogue religiously non-negotiable, the rise of the Bat Mitzvah ritual — and the struggle to define what it would look like — primarily took place in the Conservative movement. The Bat Mitzvah ceremony offered congregations a way to acknowledge a desire for women’s social equality and to provide a structure for Jewish education for girls. By 1948, some form of Bat Mitzvah ceremony was held in about one-third of Conservative congregations, and by the 1960s, it had become a regular feature within the movement. Until the 1980s, however, the ritual was usually not a precise parallel of the Bar Mitzvah. B’not Mitzvah ceremonies were often held during Friday night services, when the Torah is not read.

Although it was designed simply to offer public recognition of a girl’s coming of age, the Bat Mitzvah rite raised questions about the status of women within the synagogue. How could a girl be called to the Torah as a Bat Mitzvah and then never have such an honor again? The Conservative movement’s rabbinical body grappled with this issue in 1955, ultimately extending aliyot (the honor of being called to the Torah) to women. This step paved the way for full equality of women within the Conservative synagogue, which gradually prevailed in the 1970s and 1980s.

The rise of feminism shaped the practice and popularity of the Bat Mitzvah ceremony. As girls and women gained rights and equality within secular society, they came to expect — and demand — similar treatment within the Jewish community. This push to acknowledge the equality of women as Jews led every American Jewish denomination from Reform to modern Orthodox to adopt some type of Bat Mitzvah ceremony, among other changes such as the ordination of women as rabbis (1972 in the Reform movement, 1975 in the Reconstructionist movement, and 1985 in the Conservative movement). The form of the Bat Mitzvah rite varies according to the custom of the particular denomination. In recent years, many communities have added other, non-ritual components such as community service projects to the Bat Mitzvah experience.

Some women of earlier generations have, in the past 25 years, also turned to the Bat Mitzvah ceremony as adults to seize an opportunity they lacked as a child, to expand their Jewish knowledge and skills, and to signify their assumption of the rights and responsibilities of Jewish adulthood…

Though Bat Mitzvah has secured a central place in American Jewish communal practice, it continues to evolve, taking on new rituals and meaning in each generation. Furthermore, communities continue to confront challenging and sometimes divisive questions of ritual practice and status within the synagogue. The case of Bat Mitzvah, however, suggests that American Judaism is creative and flexible, with room for many different approaches to addressing changing social needs and mores.

*Photo credit: The Ira and Judith Kaplan Eisenstein Reconstructionist Archives, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College

To read the full piece, please click here.

We also recommend exploring the “My Bat Mitzvah Story” curriculum on the JWA site.

 

 

Wrapping Ourselves in Holiness — Tallit & Tefillin

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Do the clothes make the person? Can religious objects help us experience the sacred?

The tallit (or tallis) is a four-cornered prayer shawl worn by Jewish adults for various prayer services and other sacred occasions. In each of the four corners of the garment are strings wound and knotted in a special manner, called tzitzit. The tradition of attaching strings or fringes to one’s garment goes all the way back to the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). The ancient instruction is to attach tzitzit to the corners of one’s garment as a way of remembering God and the commandments (Numbers 15:39). Therefore, many observant Jews wear a lighter version of the prayer shawl (called a “small tallit” or simply tzitzit) every day under or over their clothing as a way of reminding themselves of their beliefs and commitments. Traditionally, boys begin wearing tzitzit as early as age three. There are different traditions regarding the life stage at which a Jewish adult begins wearing a tallit. In many Jewish communities, it is first worn at bar/bat mitzvah age, while in others at the time of marriage. The tallit can be of any color or size based on custom and preference. We recommend purchasing one that is large enough to wrap yourself (or the bar/bat mitzvah) in as it can help create a sense of being enveloped in holiness. As Rabbi Goldie Milgram writes, “The tallit is a portable spiritual home.” In fact, the traditional blessing before donning a prayer shawl includes the words “to enwrap ourselves in the tzitzit.” The collar or upper band of the tallit is called the atarah (“crown”) and sometimes includes the blessing on it. The tallit is often kept in a special bag that comes with it.

 

Andy's Tallis & Tallit Bag

The tallis and tallit bag Andy received for his Bar Mitzvah, March 21, 1981.

 

Tallit Bags

Max Fish’s (Andy’s great grandfather) tallit bags circa 1921.

Tefillin are leather prayer boxes worn by observant Jews (often beginning at bar/bat mitzvah age) on weekdays for the morning service (or longer). One box (known as the shel yad, “hand”) is placed over the biceps and wound around the arm, hand, and fingers. The second box (known as shel rosh, “head”) is worn on the forehead at the hairline with its straps going around the back of the head, and hanging over the shoulders. Inside each of the boxes are hand-written copies (carefully prepared by a trained scribe) of the four biblical texts that first mention the need to place signs of devotion to God on the arm and head. These include: Exodus 13:1-10, 13:11-16 and Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21; the latter two are part of the famous prayer, the Sh’ma. While it is unclear exactly what it meant to place such markers on one’s body in the biblical context, the rabbis engaged in detailed interpretive discussions about these objects and their ritual usage over many centuries. For example, Rabbi Joseph Caro (16th century) explained that tefillin are placed on the arm, adjacent to the heart, and on the head, near the brain, to demonstrate that these two central organs are required to serve God fully. There is a moving teaching in the Talmud (Tractate Berakhot 6a) that just as Jewish worshippers wear tefillin, God wears a pair of tefillin on which is written God’s love for the Jewish people.

A special thank you to Rabbi Or Rose for his work on this article.