Blue bar mitzvah set

How to celebrate a bar mitzvah

Bar Mitzvah means « son of the commandment ». Jewish tradition says that when girls turn 12 and boys turn 13, they take on new responsibilities in the community.

It is at this time that boys are expected to begin putting on tefilin and performing daily prayers. Although young boys are trained to keep all mitzvahs even before their bar mitzvah, tefilin is the exception. A boy does not put on tefilin until he is thirteen years old. For this reason, more than any other practice, tefilin has always served as a mark of honor that a boy receives at his bar mitzvah. Traditionally, the purchase of tefilin for a bar mitzvah boy is viewed with special pride by his parents and grandparents.

Traditionally, a boy is honored with an aliya on the first « Torah reading day » after his thirteenth birthday. Some wait until the first Shabbat after the bar mitzvah.

Jewish adulthood carries many responsibilities, but it is also an enormous privilege. One would be hard pressed to think of a more joyous occasion to celebrate than a bar mitzvah. In fact, according to some opinions, hosting a feast in honor of a bar mitzvah is a mitzvah in itself!

Most bar mitzvah celebrations take place right after the synagogue ceremony and include a festive meal followed by music (if it is not Shabbat) and dancing.