A Columbus Orthodox rabbi has called for the abolition of the Bar Mitzvah ceremony in American Judaism on the premise that “nothing has contributed more to the adulteration of faith and the confusion of intellect than the Bar Mitzvah training program in America.”
Rabbi David Stavsky, spiritual leader of Beth Jacob Synagogue, also contended that “nothing has stifled and strangled Jewish education in America” more than the Bar Mitzvah program. He declared that if the whole ceremony was abolished, “there is a slight possibility that the child may go on in Hebrew school to age 17 or 18.” He asserted that “what people do not realize is that Bar Mitzvah is a myth, that there is nothing sacred or ritualistic or important about having a boy memorize a chapter in the Prophets and repeat a canned speech or prayer.”
“Millions of dollars are spent annually for this myth, and with it comes the death blow to Jewish education and learning, ” Rabbi Stavsky said. “The Bar Mitzvah training program, either by private lessons or afternoon Hebrew school, guarantees that the boy’s Jewish education will end a week after the gifts are counted.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
