Bar Mitzvah In Depth

How can a 12 or 13 year old be considered an adult? What suddenly happens at age 12/13?

Why does Judaism consider a 13-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl to be full-fledged adults? What is there to be gained from blatantly disregarding reality?

“You get a comfortable salary, full health benefits, free daycare and spa privileges, 31 days annual paid vacation. You have no duties and responsibilities—you don’t even have to come to work.” Would you want this job?

Is there any lasting value to this year of study, of running to synagogue for lessons, of nerves and anxiety? The success of a bar mitzvah should really be judged by the value added to a young man’s life.

During a bar mitzvah ceremony, do you ponder upon those last lead-up weeks that the (still rather little) boy has just been through?

It is my Bar Mitzvah this week. I was told this means I am becoming a man. My mother doesn't think so. So, who's right?

Sagacious advice given to a son on the occasion of his Bar Mitzvah.

Myth: A bar mitzvah is an event. Fact: A bar mitzvah is a person. Thirteen bar mitzvah myths uncovered and explained.

When did Jews start celebrating Bar-Mitzvahs?

I've heard that studying the Torah portion that was read on the week of your birth can give you insight into your life. Is there any weight to this?

My sons both have the same portion. Can they read it together?

Why do we become a bar mitzvah at adolescence? Because something dramatic happens to our minds at this time: A sort of awakening, a consciousness, a realization that "I exist"

Why would an irrational, irresponsible and legally questionable act serve as the precedent by which to measure reasonability and legal responsibility?

Calculating the bar mitzvah date, the privileges and responsibilities of the bar mitzvah boy, and laws and customs associated with the bar mitzvah celebration.

Chaim was born 13 years ago, a healthy child to healthy parents. Then one day, out of the blue, Chaim contracted a "virus" (funny, how when they don't know what it is, they call it a "virus"...)

As his 13th birthday loomed closer, my husband and I began to discuss what we should do. At first we thought nothing at all. How could we ‘celebrate’ a ‘Bar Mitzvah’ that wasn’t? But then we realized that there was much that we did need to celebrate.

There are no special requirements for an adult bar mitzvah. Each person is free to create a ceremony and celebration that is meaningful for him.

When a large number of human bones mixed in with pages containing Hebrew words were discovered at a building site in the town of Netishyn, Ukraine, the few local Jews turned to the only rabbi they knew for assistance.

The emotion I felt surprised me; there in this small room so full of holiness was my little boy, not so little anymore.

There is a prevalent custom for boys to read the weekly Torah portion when they become a bar mitzvah. Here's why.