Halachos, minhagim, sources, and explanations

With all the excitement and fanfare that surrounds a boy’s bar mitzvah, it’s easy to lose focus of what exactly we are celebrating. The general concept of a bar mitzvah is well-known: when a Jewish boy halachically becomes a man, thereby becoming obligated in the mitzvos. But what actually occurs on the day one becomes a bar mitzvah, and on a practical level, what is a boy supposed to do at this auspicious time?

In this book, you will find a clear and thorough explanation of all there is to know about a bar mitzvah. From what the simchah is about to the various halachos and minhagim pertaining to it, The Bar Mitzvah will ensure that you and your bar mitzvah boy are well prepared for this beautiful milestone.

• How are we to understand the Chazal that a child first receives his yetzer tov and — if he is zocheh to it — his neshamah as well, at his bar mitzvah?
• Does one need to do anything different when celebrating a bar mitzvah on a day other than the actual 13th birthday?
• What is the significance of a bar mitzvah boy saying a pshetel?
• Why does the father say “Baruch Shepatrani,” and why is this brachah only said for a boy and not for a girl?
• What are the source and reasons for a bar mitzvah boy to lein/receive an aliyah?
• What are the halachic considerations to keep in mind when a bar mitzvah falls out at different times throughout the year, such as Shabbos, Yamim Tovim, Sefirah, the Three Weeks, etc.?

All of these questions and more are answered in this comprehensive yet easy-to-read book, making it an essential read for every bar mitzvah boy and his parents.

By Rabbi Chaim Shmuel Weber, author of The Upsherin