A bar mitzvah is the traditional Jewish celebration for a boy when he becomes thirteen years old. The equivalent for a girl is the celebration of a bas mitzvah upon reaching the earlier age of twelve. These birthdays are special in Jewish law and are indeed a great source of jubilation. The elaborate, expensive parties and receptions to celebrate a bar mitzvah or bas mitzvah, however, frequently lose sight of the essential quality and spirit of this event. Why is there such a cause for celebration? What importance does this birthday hold? The answer lies contained in the literal meaning of "bar mitzvah" which translates as "son of the commandment".

Jewish children are educated and reared by their parents and teachers in mitzvah observance from an early age. Technically, under Jewish Law they are not actually obligated to fulfil all 613 commandments until they entered adulthood.

The age of thirteen marks a boy's entry into adolescence. Bar mitzvah is the landmark age whereupon a boy becomes "son of the commandment" whereupon he willingly embraces Jewish living in mitzvah performance (A girl automatically becomes bas mitzvah or "daughter of the commandment" at the age of twelve).

While no formal ceremony is necessary, the bar mitzvah occasion is joyously celebrated by the boy and family alike. In effect, this is the individual celebration of the historic communal matan Torah, giving of the Torah to the whole Jewish nation at Sinai. The bar mitzvah is his personal Shavuos, the festival commemorating the divine law giving to the chosen nation.

Bar mitzvah is the joy and realization of what becoming a full-fledge member of the Jewish community means. It is not a frivolous occasion and senseless excuse for a party but rather the deeper awareness of the commitment and covenant that the bar mitzvah boy enters into. It is the departure on a journey and existence that is invested with meaning and significance; an existence with G-d as the central focus of man's attention.

In this respect it echoes the Jewish nation collective proclamation at Sinai to embrace the Torah and all the commandments therein. Their love for G-d and covenant saw them proclaim "na'aseh v'nishma, we will do and we will understand" (Exodus 24:7). Each Jew symbolically became the "sons of the commandments" submitting their lifestyle to be guided by the Torah law. In the eyes of Jewish law, the bar mitzvah boy becomes morally and ethically responsible for his own deeds, demeanor and conduct. It is the proud responsibility to his Jewish heritage.

This template of mitzvah observance is echoed by the bar mitzvah boy. He dons tefillin on the morning of his birthday. This particular mitzvah (that cannot be performed by a child) symbolize kabblas oyl malchus shamayim, yoke of acceptance of the heavenly kingship. The binding of the four Torah passages upon a person's hand and around his head signify that he is devoting his actions (hand tefillin) and his thoughts (head tefillin) to avodas Hashem, divine service.

The bar mitzvah is traditionally called up for his first aliyah (literally "going up") to recite a blessing over the Torah scroll removed from the Ark on the Shabbos after his birthday. (Often the bar mitzvah boy will reads one portion or the entire sidrah of that week in addition to being called up).

In many communities, the bar mitzvah boy delivers a Torah discourse at the festive meal arranged on the night of his thirteenth birthday. These are both proclamations of his commitment and interest in the Torah and the accountability it involves.

This celebration at the outset of adulthood sets the tone how Judaism must always hold the foremost attention in his life. Although it may occasional seem like a burden, it is one that he is able to accept and work within its defined framework to fulfil his potential. There is the joyous realization that the lifestyle that he, as the newly-pledged adult, is embracing, is the meaningful path towards spirituality. The warmth and vibrancy of mitzvah observance is the means to living life to the fullest and bonding to G-d, his Father in Heaven.

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