Jeffrey K. Salkin - The JPS B’nai Mitzvah Torah Commentary

The Jewish Publication Society expresses its gratitude for the generosity of the following sponsors of this book:

Wendy Fein Cooper and Leonard J. Cooper, in honor of Noah, Nathaniel, Adam, Rafaella, Ariella, and Liora Cooper.

Rabbi Barry and Debby Schwartz, in appreciation to Gittel Hilibrand and David Lerman for their leadership of JPS .

Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin

The Jewish Publication Society | Philadelphia

University of Nebraska Press | Lincoln

2017 by Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin.

All rights reserved.

Published by the University of Nebraska Press as a Jewish Publication Society book.

Cover designed by University of Nebraska Press; cover image: paint textures iStockphoto.com / OttoKrause / NI QIN .

Author photo Religion News Service photo by Steve Remich.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Salkin, Jeffrey K., 1954author. | Jewish Publication Society.

Title: The JPS bnai mitzvah Torah commentary / Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin.

Description: Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, [2017] | Series: JPS Study Bible | Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: LCCN 2016051243 (print)

LCCN 2016051983 (ebook)

ISBN 9780827612525 (pbk.: alk. paper)

ISBN 9780827613294 (epub)

ISBN 9780827613300 (mobi)

ISBN 9780827613317 (pdf)

Subjects: LCSH : Bible. PentateuchCommentariesJuvenile literature. | Bar mitzvahJuvenile literature. | Bat mitzvahJuvenile literature.

Classification: LCC BS 1225.53 . S 3414 2016 (print) | LCC BS 1225.53 (ebook) | DDC 222/.107dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016051243

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

There are many people who inspired me, and encouraged me, to write this book. Their help and support have been blessings to me, and I raise my voice in gratitude to them.

First, Barry Schwartz and Carol Hupping of the Jewish Publication Society. Ever since Rabbi Schwartz, an old and dear friend, took the reins of this old and venerable publishing company, he has brought new life and vision to its mission. He first suggested this book as part of a larger series of Torah volumes that would focus on different aspects of Jewish life. Without his urging, prodding, and encouragementand that of Carol Huppingthis book could never have been possible. They were, in many ways, the books father and mother, and, because the Ten Commandments lists honor your father and mother in a very prominent place, I must honor them.

Second, Stuart Matlins, the founder of Jewish Lights Publishing. More than twenty years ago, Stuart got me thinking about the meaning of bar and bat mitzvah, along with the many challenges this popular ceremony faces in American life, and he urged me to write my first books about bar and bat mitzvah. Those efforts produced Putting God on the Guest List and For KidsPutting God on Your Guest List. Those books, and the ongoing thought that I have put into bar and bat mitzvah over the years, created the initial spark that became this book. I am ever grateful to him for his encouragement and friendship.

Third, the members of my congregation, Temple Solel in Hollywood, Florida. Although this book was well on its way to completion when I started my rabbinate there, the members of Solel have been most enthusiastic about this project. In particular, I am grateful to my bar and bat mitzvah students, who have used material from this book to create their divrei Torah for their ceremonies. Their insights and suggestions were very important to me, and I pray that the lessons contained in this book will remain with them forever.

Fourth, my wife, Sheila Shuster. This book took years of study, preparation, and editing, and she has always been supportive of my need to bring this book to life. She is my partner in all things, as well as a fellow lover of Judaism.

And fifth, to Jewish young people, their parents, and all those who love and study Torah. This book can only exist if it is read. Without that, it is merely pages on a shelf. Your willingness and eagerness to make Torah your own, and to find old and new meanings in its words, makes this book not only necessary, but important. We call Torah an etz chayyim, a tree of life, because it grows with every passing year.

As long as Jews study and learn Torah, the Jewish people will live, thrive, and rejoice. May this book be a modest offering toward that future.

January 19, 2016

9 Shevat 5776

News flash: the most important thing about becoming bar or bat mitzvah isnt the party. Nor is it the presents. Nor even being able to celebrate with your family and friendsas wonderful as those things are. Nor is it even standing before the congregation and reading the prayers of the liturgyas important as that is.

No, the most important thing about becoming bar or bat mitzvah is sharing Torah with the congregation. And why is that? Because of all Jewish skills, that is the most important one.

Here is what is true about rites of passage: you can tell what a culture values by the tasks it asks its young people to perform on their way to maturity. In American culture, you become responsible for driving, responsible for voting, and yes, responsible for drinking responsibly.

In some cultures, the rite of passage toward maturity includes some kind of trial, or a test of strength. Sometimes, it is a kind of outward bound camping adventure. Among the Maasai tribe in Africa, it is traditional for a young person to hunt and kill a lion. In some Hispanic cultures, fifteen year-old girls celebrate the quinceaera, which marks their entrance into maturity.

What is Judaisms way of marking maturity? It combines both of these rites of passage: responsibility and test. You show that you are on your way to becoming a responsible Jewish adult through a public test of strength and knowledgereading or chanting Torah, and then teaching it to the congregation.

This is the most important Jewish ritual mitzvah (commandment), and that is how you demonstrate that you are, truly, bar or bat mitzvahold enough to be responsible for the mitzvot.

So, what exactly is the Torah? You probably know this already, but lets review.

The Torah (teaching) consists of the five books of Moses, sometimes also called the chumash (from the Hebrew word chameish, which means five), or, sometimes, the Greek word Pentateuch (which means the five teachings).

Here are the five books of the Torah, with their common names and their Hebrew names.

• Genesis (The beginning), which in Hebrew is Bereshit (from the first wordsWhen God began to create). Bereshit spans the years from Creation to Josephs death in Egypt. Many of the Bibles best stories are in Genesis: the creation story itself; Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; Cain and Abel; Noah and the Flood; and the tales of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah. It also includes one of the greatest pieces of world literature, the story of Joseph, which is actually the oldest complete novel in history, comprising more than one-quarter of all Genesis.