Commissioned by clients
upon the Bat Mitzvah of their daughter, Rebecca
A Bar or Bat Mitzvah Welcome
~~~
Shabbat
Shalom - a peaceful Sabbath
We welcome you to Temple Shalom as we celebrate
our daughter Rebeccaa becoming a Bat Mitzvah.
The Hebrew word mitzvah means commandment.
A Bat Mitzvah is a Daughter of the Commandment, a person
responsible for fulfilling the commandments of the Torah,
the Five Books of Moses.
Becoming a Bat Mitzvah remains one of society’s
most civilized rites. To qualify, children must master an
ancient alphabet and learn to read the Torah, a sacred scroll,
and the Siddur, the holy prayer book. Rebecca has studied
the Hebrew language since the age of six. She has also studied
Jewish culture, history, and ritual practices.
This Shabbat Service in which Rebecca celebrates
becoming a Bat Mitzvah does not make her a Jewish adult.
To truly become a Daughter of the Commandment Rebecca must
pursue this goal throughout her life. By calling a young
person to the Torah, we recognize the beginning of maturity.
Rebecca is given new privileges and responsibilities. She
will be allowed to read from the Torah and to be counted
as one of ten people, a Minyan, required to hold Services.
When Rebecca reads from the Torah today she will be publicly
affirming her Jewish values and ideals, and declaring her
allegiance to the Jewish people and to our rich spiritual
heritage.
The Torah is considered the foundation of
Judaism. It contains the first five books of the Bible -
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. This
sacred book contains principles of faith, the laws and the
Ten Commandments, and the ancient history of our people.
The Torah has always been handwritten on parchment
with a feather quill by a specially trained scribe and rolled
into a scroll. This tradition stands unchanged today. Unlike
the printed book no vowels or punctuation marks are included
in the Torah, nor are there any cantillation marks to guide
the reader in the correct chant. Rebecca’s preparation
for her reading of today’s passage and its cantillaton
depends on the many months of training she has undergone.
Each week this scroll is unrolled to another
portion so that during the course of each year the entire
Torah will be read aloud. Rebecca will read this week’s
portion from the book of Deuteronomy, Nitzavim. The same
portion is being read today in synagogues throughout the
world.
The Torah is kept in a special place called The Ark, Aron
Hakodesh. Our Ark contains several Torah Scrolls, each one
elegantly covered and decorated to show love and respect.
Each is “dressed like a queen.” Above the Ark
sits the Eternal Light, the Ner Tamid, present in all synagogues
This Light burns continually, symbolizing the perpetual
faith of the Jews.
When the Torah is taken from the Ark in a processional called
hakafah, Rebecca will join in as the Rabbi and Cantor carry
the scroll around the sanctuary. Each congregant may acknowledge
its holiness by touching it with their prayer shawls, Tallit,
or prayer books as it passes by.
The honor of being called to the Bimah to
read or recite the blessings before and after the Torah
reading, is called an Aliyah which means “ascent”.
Being called to the Torah is an honor as the reader ascends
both physically and spiritually.
Following the Torah reading Rebecca will also
chant from The Haftorah, the Prophets, (Isaiah, Chapter
61). The Haftorah always has a connection to the Torah portion
that is read. Public reading of the Torah dates back 2500
years to ancient days when Ezra the Scribe read aloud in
the marketplace. The origin of the Haftorah dates back to
the days of the Greek ruler, Antiochus, who forbade the
public reading of the Torah. This prohibition forced Jews
to read only from the Prophets to replace the weekly readings
of the Torah. When public reading of the Torah was once
again permitted it was generally held that the haftorah
reading should be retained. The blessings said before and
following the Haftorah date back to the ninth century.
Following these readings Rebecca will deliver
a D’var Torah, a brief interpretation of her Torah
portion.
As you look around the sanctuary you will
see people wearing small skull caps called a Kippa or, in
Yiddish, a Yarmulka. For Jews it is a sign of respect for
God to cover their heads in his presence. Many people will
also be wearing a Tallit, or prayer shawl which represents
the commandments, and evokes the warmth of the tradition,
and of family. For Rebecca, the Bat Mitzvah, this marks
her first formal wearing of the tallit.
One of the concluding prayers to the Service
is the Kaddish. No prayer in Jewish liturgy arouses greater
emotion. Kaddish is a great expression of faith and hope
which serves as the culmination of our reverence for God.
The Mourner’s Kaddish is used to reaffirm faith in
God in memory of deceased loved ones.
The conclusion of Shabbat morning worship
is Kiddush, the blessings over wine and the Sabbath bread.
Thank you for sharing this very special
occasion in our lives.
