[net.religion.jewish] Question about Bat-Mitzvah

jug@whuxle.UUCP (Joseph U. Grauman) (02/25/84)

Having spent the first 16 years of my life in Israel (when I was born
it was actually still Palestine), I recall that young ladies celebrated
Bat-Mitzvah at the age of 12.  Can anyone explain to me why, in the US,
Bat-Mitzvah is celebrated at the age of 13?

This is not a criticism.  In fact, it is quite appropriate and consistent
with male/female equality.  I am just interested in finding out the
reason or origin of this discrepancy.

Joe Grauman
ATT-BL
whuxg!jug

rao@utcsstat.UUCP (Eli Posner) (02/26/84)

[]
I personally have never heard of a Bat-Mitzvah at 13, but in any case it's
just plain wrong. Halachically a women reaches 'womenhood' at 12 years and one
day. I assume people have it at 13, for ridiculous "women's lib" reasons.
-- 
Eli Posner
{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!utcsstat!rao

ariels@orca.UUCP (02/26/84)

The original difference is due to the fact that girls mature earlier
than boys do.  This is a medical fact.  Look it up in any text that
covers adolecence.

I suspect the reason that in the US girls celebrate at 13, and not
12, is that 

  1) Girls who celebrate Batei Mitzvah are not Orthodox, but
     Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, or whatever, and it is
     possible that the individual congregations (not the rabbis,
     just the congregations) don't know the 12 vs 13 difference.

  2) 12 year olds of either sex are not as likely as 13 year olds to
     take their studying and preparation seriously, so they wait.

  3)  The brothers would get upset if their sisters got a Bat
      Mitzvah when she was younger than he is when he gets his Bar
      Mitzvah, so it's all to keep family peace.

Please remember that a girl is Bat Mitzah at 12, and a boy Bar
Mitzvah at 13 no matter when OR WHETHER they have a celebration at
the synagogue.  Bat/Bar Mitzvah means that the child's parents are
no longer responsible for the child's spiritual life (sins,
observation, etc), but that the child becomes responsible for
her/him self.

Ariel (never had a celebration, but Bat Mitzvah anyway) Shattan
..!tektronix!orca!ariels

sb@linus.UUCP (Shimshon Berkovits) (02/27/84)

It depends with whom you speak in the US. The Orthodox law says a girl 
becomes responsible for her own religious acts at age twelve while for a
boy the age is thirteen. The difference, I believe, has its origin in a
recognition of the differing rates of maturing exhibited by the male
and by the female of the species.
That some Conservative and all Reform girls celebrate at thirteen, I presume,
derives from a move to be just like the boys. In this, as in many other
things, the move to absolute equality obliterates Judaism's long-standing
recognition of a certain superiority of the female over the male. If the
group is looking for a subject for discussion, Judaism's attitude toward
women should be a wire-burner.

	Shim

dbaker@nwuxd.UUCP (Darryl Baker) (03/01/84)

This is a case of equal rights. The only reason for the Bat-Mitzvah
at all is to be fair to young ladies. It has no basis that I know
of. And I think it was a good idea. As to when it is celebrated it
is more a matter of tradition than law.
					ihnp4!nwuxd!dbaker
					Darryl Baker