Rites of Passage

1. Rites of Passage Unit 4: Judaism HRT 3M1

2. B’rit Milah (Bris) • Jewish baby boys are circumcised when they are eight days old. • The foreskin is removed by a trained rabbi known as a mohel in a ceremony called B'rit Milah (the covenant of circumcision). • It is a time of great rejoicing and celebration. • A male relative has the honour of performing the role of sandek; seated, he holds the baby firmly on his lap, on a cushion, while the circumcision is carried out. • During the ceremony, the child's name will be announced.

3. B’rit Milah (Bris) • Abraham, the great ancestral father of the Jews, who lived some 4000 years ago, was the first to accept the sign or covenant of circumcision as a mark of his covenant with God. • There is no ceremony for a girl, but her name will be announced in the synagogue a week after her birth. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y7fwQ4ci08

4. Bar Mitzvah • In Judaism, a boy is considered to be old enough to take on his religious duties when he is 13 years of age. In the Orthodox Jewish community, boys prepare for their Bar Mitzvah carefully, particularly in learning Hebrew and practicing a reading from a scroll of the Torah in the synagogue. • On the sabbath following his 13th birthday, at the Saturday morning service, the boy will be called up to the Bimah, the central platform in the synagogue, to read from the Torah scroll. It is a great honour and marks his arrival as an adult male member of the community. The title, Bar Mitzvah, means 'Son of the Commandment'.

5. Bar/Bat Mitzvah • For the reading, he will wear a Tallit (prayer shawl). It is his duty as an adult male to say prayers three times a day. • For girls the Bat Mitzvah (daughter of the commandment) ceremony is similar. It occurs when girls reach the age of 12 years. • Orthodox synagogues do not observe this practice. http://www.youtubhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27FSbztRPo8 e.com/watch?v=27FSbztRPo8

6. Kiddushin (Marriage) • The Jewish word for marriage is Kiddushin, which literally menas "made holy." • In a Jewish wedding, the bride stands on the right hand side of the groom. The wedding ceremony takes place under a four-poster canopy called a Huppah (or Chuppah), situated in the synagogue in front of the Bimah. • Sometimes, especially in Israel, the ceremony takes place in the open-air. The Huppah represents the future home of the couple.

7. Kiddushin (Marriage) • Vows are said and then the couple drink from a goblet of wine. The groom places the ring on the right index finger of the bride. • Marriage, in Judaism, is a contract, and the ketubah sets out the contractual duties and responsibilities of the husband towards his wife. • The rabbi then pronounces seven blessings, following which the groom stamps on a glass to smash it. This represents the destruction of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE.

8. Kiddushin (Marriage) • Mazel Tov! • Means “good luck” in Hebrew • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfcywUB1ziA • http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xmiyyq_jewish-wedding-from-wedding-crashers-2005_shortfilms

9. Death & Mourning • In Judaism, the dead are always buried. • When a Jewish person dies, the family show their grief by tearing a piece of their clothing. • A candle is lit and one of the family remains with the body, possibly reciting psalms. Funeral arrangements are made immediately for, if at all possible, the body must be buried within 24 hours. • The body will be washed and, in the case of a man, wrapped in his tallith (prayer shawl). The fringes which symbolise the 613 commandments will have been removed since the earthly obligation to keep them will have ceased with the death of the person. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLZWaZKFQnA&feature=related

10. Death & Mourning • After a brief service in the home conducted by the rabbi, in which scriptures will be read and prayers said, a further service is conducted in The Prayer Hall at the cemetery. During this service it is usual for a tribute to be given by someone who has known the deceased well. • At the graveside, as the coffin is lowered into the grave, the Rabbi may say, "May he come to his place in peace." All mourners then shovel earth in the grave to fill it. • There is a final service at the Prayer Hall. Before they enter, the mourners wash their hands, saying, "He makes death to vanish in life eternal; and the Lord God wipes away tears off all faces." During this service a prayer called the Kaddish is said, which glorifies God.

11. Death & Mourning: Shiva • After the funeral there is a period of seven days called Shiva, it is meant to be an emotional healing time for the family and friends. • Then, on the anniversary of the death, (Yahrzeit), the Kaddish is said and, on the eve of the anniversary, a candle is lit and burns for 24 hours. • Jews believe in a final resurrection at the Day of Judgement (Yom Din). Their cemeteries are called "Bet Hayyim" - this means House of Life (or Lives). This confirms the Jewish belief that death is not the end.