After a child becomes a bar/bat-mitzvah, the common occurrence is usually to watch that child immediately become disinterested in everything associated with the temple and their Jewish identity. This is perhaps one of the most troubling concerns for contemporary Jewry. I believe that the problem stems from over emphasizing the formal aspect of education as a part of Jewish life up until this pre-adolescent pinnacle (B’nai mitzvoth), and by the time these children reach that zenith, they are overwhelmed by the very idea of Jewish life, because all they know of it is being made to go to religious school, and being made to go to services. It’s not fun for them, and often enough it feels quite burdensome.

We can fix this problem, by showing this age group right away, that there is more to being at temple than going to class or going to services. These kids want to experience their lives as they never have before, and they’re even willing to step outside of their comfort zones to do so. At this point, life is a completely social experience for them, so why should we try to approach the task of engaging them any other way?

For us, JBAT is an opportunity to explore their newly realized social consciousness by introducing them to the exciting scenery of NFTY. The events we will do with this group (about once a month) will incorporate NFTY-style programming, while simultaneously providing these 7th and 8th graders with the simple opportunity to have fun with other Jewish kids their age. It really is very simple … I’ve seen it work before.

Again, it comes down to a willingness from their parents to keep them involved with Temple life despite whatever they may think will be boring about it. Sometimes all it takes is sending them to a single event, and you can’t imagine how quickly they will get hooked. So give it a shot … what do we have to lose?

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