B’nai Mitzvah

For B’nai Mitzvah students, click here for the B’nai Mitzvah Handbook.

Our Jewish Mindfulness Approach

Our Religious School team is moving toward an immersive approach to B’nai Mitzvah training through the integration of Jewish Mindfulness training into B’nai Mitzvah preparation.  B’nai Mitzvah students will be given the opportunity to learn and connect on a deeper and more spiritual level to their particular parashot, Torah blessings, Ashrei, and other prayers in the years leading up to their B’nai Mitzvah. This will allow students time to develop the confidence and competencies necessary for a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, and instill an ongoing connection to Jewish life.

Setting Your Date

At Congregation Shaarey Zedek, we are pleased to set the date of your child’s Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah six months after your child’s seventh birthday. Approximately one year before, our B’nai Mitzvah families meet as a group to get acquainted and meet the clergy and the planning team. We provide a personalized handbook for your child with prayers and access to the melodies found in the Audio T’fillah on our website.

To set the date or for more information, please contact Saul Rube at srube@shaareyzedek.org.

Audio Files of Prayers

To access audio files of prayers click the links below.

• Blessing before Aliyah
• Blessing after Aliyah
• Blessing before Haftarah
• Blessing after Haftarah:
  • Part 1
  • Part 2
  • Part 3
  • Part 4
  • Part 5
  • Part 6
• Ashrei

Community Service Opportunities

We ask our B’nai Mitzvah to perform 12 hours of community service, which they may select from these three categories.

• Tzedakah – Acts of Righteousness: Donations made by your child to a charity of his or her choice.
• Avodah – Service to the Synagogue: Your child may volunteer to work in various areas of the synagogue, such as summer camp, the mail room, the school office, the library, by babysitting during Shabbat services, and so on.
• G’milut Chasadim – Acts of Loving Kindness: This service of performing good deeds to benefit the community at large includes volunteering at Friendship Circle or a JARC home, a food pantry, a nursing home, Yad Ezra, or another venue in the community.

For more information, please contact Marci Iwrey at miwrey@shaareyzedek.org.

There is no one size fits all.

Not every child learns the same way, in school, or in the religious school setting. We have the means to accommodate all special needs or circumstances. We want your child to experience their B’nai Mitzvah in the most meaningful way.  We work with your family to make the B’nai Mitzvah experience one your child will feel comfortable with, and one they will remember with pride.