Giant baskets overflowed with volleyballs, playground balls, baseballs, basketballs and soccer balls. The fabulous decorations were the beginning of a mitzvah project that would live on long after the bar mitzvah boy had read his haftorah, celebrated his milestone, opened his gifts and written all those thank-you notes.
Bert Metter wrote \”Bar Mitzvah, Bat Mitzvah: How Jewish Boys and Girls Come of Age,\” a guide specifically geared toward the b\’nai mitzvah student. But more than two decades later, Metter said the book deserved an update, because it no longer reflects contemporary ceremonies, especially since practices and celebrations have evolved.
The anticipation surrounding Brandon Kaplan\’s bar mitzvah had been growing for months. I was excited when my invitation for the May 26 celebration arrived; it was an honor to be included among those who would witness Brandon becoming a bar mitzvah.
More than 70 years after the beginning of Hollywood\’s Golden Age, when talkies became the rage and Jews routinely Anglicized their names, film factories are playing up the Jewish angle by hosting some of the largest and most unique b\’nai mitzvah parties in town.
So while my brother got punched out at his bar mitzvah — by me — this other kid met God. Of course, some kids start getting into trouble at this age, while others really start to excel as students.
B\’nai Mitzvah Checklist
Picks and clicks.
Nearly 50 years after a group of survivors first conceived the project, the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust (LAMH) has cleared the last legal hurdle to build a permanent home.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.