Ask Rabbi Dan
by Rabbi Dan S. Wiko PhD
Amanda Wolfe asks:
I am having my bat mitzvah next year. I had a question though. I understand that you have a bat mitzvah because you're becoming an adult. But you're really only a teenager.
Thank you.
Dear future Bat Mitzvah,
The purpose of a Bar/Bat Mitzvah is for the youngster to begin to realize that
he or she is now a member of the Jewish people with the responsibility of
following our Torah. A "child" is not yet responsible for following many of the
Commandments, but, at the age of 12 for a girl and 13 for a boy, the rabbis
concluded that these ages were appropriate...12 and 13 is the beginning of the
stage called adolescence. It is during this stage of life that the foundation
for adult behavior is made lasting.
Mazel Tov,
Rabbi Dan
