Bar Mitzvah

Lifecycle

A bar mitzvah is a coming of age ceremony, traditionally marked for Jewish boys at the age of 13. At this age, rabbinic sources indicate that boys become obligated in the commandments and accountable for their own actions. The practice of marking this transition with a religious ceremony can be traced back to the medieval period.

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The Age of Responsibility

MISHNAH

Rabbinic sources indicate that, at the age of thirteen, a Jewish boy becomes obligated to observe the commandments, marking his transition to religious and moral responsibility. Pirkei Avot, a work of ancient rabbinic ethics and wisdom from the land of Israel, outlines the traditional Jewish stages of life, including the age of commandments.

He used to say: At five years of age the study of Scripture; At ten the study of Mishnah; At thirteen subject to the commandments; At fifteen the study of Talmud; At eighteen the bridal canopy; At twenty for pursuit [of livelihood]; At thirty the peak of strength; At forty wisdom; At fifty able to give counsel; At sixty old age; At seventy fullness of years; At eighty the age of “strength”; At ninety a bent body; At one hundred, as good as dead and gone completely out of the world.

Pirkei Avot 5:21

The Age of Responsibility

HALAKHAH

The age of bar mitzvah marks the moment when people become legally responsible for their vows and actions. In his monumental 12th-century legal code, the Mishneh Torah, Maimonides specifies the exact ages at which the vows of boys and girls become binding.

Before this time, even when they say: "We know for Whose sake we took the vow or for Whose sake we consecrated it," their vows and their consecration are of no consequence. After this time [passes] and a male is thirteen years and one day and a female is twelve years and one day, even though they say: "We do not know for Whose sake we took the vow or for Whose sake we consecrated it," their vows and their consecration are binding even if they did not manifest physical signs of maturity. This is the time when vows [take effect] which is mentioned in all sources.

Mishneh Torah, Vows 11:3

Journey to Jewish Adulthood

MIDRASH

The transition to adulthood at age thirteen is marked by a shift in responsibility, as illustrated by the divergent paths of Jacob and Esau. Bereshit Rabbah, an ancient midrash on the book of Genesis, discusses how these two brothers shared the same path until age thirteen, when they began making different decisions about how to spend their time.

“The lads grew; Esau was a man who knows hunting, a man of the field; Jacob was a simple man, a dweller in tents” (Genesis 25:27).
“The lads grew” – Rabbi Levi said: This is analogous to a myrtle and a thorn bush that grew adjacent to one another. When they grew and blossomed, this one produced its fragrance and that one produced its thorns. So, all thirteen years, both of them would go to school and both of them would come from school. After thirteen years, this one would go to study halls, and that one would go to houses of idol worship…

Bereshit Rabbah 63:10

The Transition to Personal Accountability

COMMENTARY

The transition from childhood to adulthood in Jewish law is marked by a specific age when a male becomes personally accountable for fulfilling commandments, including circumcision. Ibn Ezra, a renowned 12th-century biblical commentator, discusses the shift in responsibility for circumcision from the father to the son upon reaching maturity.

AND THE UNCIRCUMCISED MALE WHO IS NOT CIRCUMCISED. Yimmol (is circumcised) is a kal. It is like yiddor (voweth) in When a man voweth (yiddor) a vow (Num. 30:3). It comes from the same root as u-nemaltem (and ye shall be circumcised) in and ye shall be circumcised (u-nemaltem) in the flesh of your foreskin (v. 11). The meaning of the verse is, a male who reaches the age when he is obligated to observe the commandments of the Torah and does not circumcise himself is subject to the penalty of karet (being cut off)…

Ibn Ezra on Genesis 17:14

The Mystical Transformation of Bar Mitzvah

MUSAR

A bar mitzvah is not just a coming-of-age ceremony but a profound spiritual transformation. The Kav HaYashar, a popular 18th-century mussar work, describes the bar mitzvah celebration of Rabbi Elazar the son of Rabbi Shimon, in which the celebrants witnessed wonders demonstrating the spiritual significance of the moment.

Rabbi Elazar said: From the age of thirteen and up, if a person wishes to be a tzaddik he is granted a holy soul from On High, carved out from beneath the King’s Throne of Glory. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai invited penitents and masters of Mishnah to partake in the great bar mitzvah feast that he made for his son Rabbi Elazar. He covered his entire house with precious vessels and seated the scholars on either side, and the rejoicing was indeed great. The scholars said to him, “Why is our teacher’s joy greater on this day than on other days?” Rabbi Shimon answered…

Kav HaYashar 21:7

The Spirit of the Age

CHASIDUT

The soul is not a single entity in Jewish tradition. In his contemporary work, Rabbi Zev Reichman explains the stages of developing different parts of the soul, including the reception of the 'ruach' (spirit) upon reaching adulthood.

The next stage of the soul, ruach, is received with adulthood. When a boy or girl, if they are righteous, celebrate their bar or bat mitzvah, they receive their ruach.

Flames of Faith 8:9

Releasing Responsibility

COMMENTARY

When children reach the age of bar mitzvah, their parents recite a blessing praising God for releasing them from responsibility for their children's sins. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explains the significance of this blessing.

Parents are responsible in Jewish law for sins their children commit. That is why, when a child becomes bar or bat mitzva, a parent makes the blessing thanking God “for making me exempt from the punishment that might have accrued to me through this one.”

Covenant and Conversation; Leviticus; The Book of Holiness, Tazria, The Sacrifices of Childbirth 27

Why Thirteen?

COMMENTARY

The age of thirteen is when a Jewish boy is considered a man and becomes obligated to observe commandments. Rabbi Ovadiah of Bartenura, in his commentary on Pirkei Avot, uses scriptural proofs to explain why thirteen is the age of religious adulthood.

"Thirteen [is the age] for [observing] commandments": As is written (Numbers 5:6), "a man or a women who have done from all of the sins of man." And regarding Shekhem, it is written (Genesis 34:25), "and the two sons of Yaakov, Shimon and Levi, took - each man - his sword." And at that time, Levi was thirteen years old, and [still, the verse] calls him a man.

Bartenura on Pirkei Avot 5:21:3

The Automatic Obligation

HALAKHAH

A boy becomes obligated in the commandments automatically upon reaching the age of maturity, without the need for a ceremony or special blessing. Rabbi Sharon Shalom, in his exploration of Ethiopian Jewish customs, explains the historical and halakhic perspectives on the bar mitzvah.

There is no need for a ceremony or special blessing – when the boy reaches thirteen, he is obligated in the mizvot, like an adult. We have no evidence of a bar mitzvah ceremony until the Geonic period. At that time, the custom was for a boy who turned thirteen to have an aliyah to the Torah in order to publicize his acceptance of the mitzvot, and to announce that he was qualified to join a prayer quorum and to perform other religious duties. According to today’s custom, the boy has an aliyah to the Torah at the time of the bar mitzvah and on the following Shabbat as well…

From Sinai to Ethiopia, Shulhan haOrit; The Halakhah of Ethiopian Jewry, Then and Now, 6 Foundations of the Jewish Home 6:6

Not a Confirmation

TANAKH

With the new obligations to the commandments, the transition to being a bar mitzvah constitutes a new relationship to the Jewish community. But Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explains that it is not actually an entering into the covenant or community, which has already taken place.

Hence one of the most fundamental facts about Judaism. Converts excepted, we do not choose to be Jews. We are born as Jews. We become legal adults, subject to the commands and responsible for our actions, at the age of twelve for girls, thirteen for boys. But we are part of the covenant from birth. A bat or bar mitzva is not a “confirmation.” It involves no voluntary acceptance of Jewish identity. That choice took place more than three thousand years ago when Moses said, “It is not with you alone that I am making this sworn covenant, but with…whoever is not here with us today…

I Believe; A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible, Nitzavim; Why Be Jewish? 6

A Father's Blessing at Bar Mitzvah

LITURGY

The father's blessing during a bar mitzvah acknowledges a shift in responsibility. This blessing declares that the father is no longer liable for the transgressions of the son, marking the son's transition to Jewish adulthood.

Blessing by the father of a Bar Mitzvah The following blessing is said by the father of a Bar Mitzvah, after the lad has been called to the Torah and has recited the blessing following the reading: Blessed (are You) who has released me from the punishment of this [boy].

Siddur Sefard, Weekday Shacharit, Torah Reading 29-31

Coming of Age Explained

COMMENTARY

Until the age of 13, a child's actions are not fully their own, and the father bears responsibility for any sins due to a lack of proper education. The Etz Yosef commentary on Bereishit Rabbah explains the significance of the bar mitzvah, marking the age when a Jewish boy becomes responsible for his own actions.

Because until 13 years his powers are still hidden and he needs to work to reveal them. If so, the sin is not on the child, but on the father who didn't educate. When a child becomes 13 years old, he himself can choose [his actions] so his father is exempt and not punished on his son's behalf.

Etz Yosef on Bereishit Rabbah 63:10:4

Bar Mitzvah Honors

HALAKHAH

The bar mitzvah ceremony customarily includes unique honors of ritual participation in the service, marking the boy's new religious responsibilities. Contemporary scholar Rabbi J. David Bleich describes some of the common practices.

It is now customary in most synagogues to accord a Bar Mitzvah the honor of reading the haftorah on that auspicious occasion. The Bar Mitzvah reads the prophetic portion either from a printed text or, in some synagogues, from a parchment scroll. Frequently, the Bar Mitzvah also chooses himself to read maftir, the final verses of the weekly Torah reading, rather than have the Torah reader chant them on his behalf.

Contemporary Halakhic Problems, Vol II, Part I, Chapter II Blessings and Rituals 10

Bar Mitzvah, Édouard Brandon 1831-1897 {{PD-US-expired}}

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