Pardes Levavot Family Education for 2007/2008

Our Family Education this year centers on two programs. Every month we have a Shabbat morning service dedicated to learning for the whole family. Please join us for this, and for all our weekly services.

We also have a program Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation. See a full description below.

First Shabbat of the Month

We celebrate the first Shabbat of the month on Saturday morning beginning at 9:00 AM. The first 45 minutes offers a gateway to understanding prayer for all ages. From 9:45 to 11:45 the adults have a deep guided experience through the service itself and interactive Torah study, while the children learn Torah and prayer in their class session. We all come together for the final 30 minutes of the morning for the Torah reading. We end our shabbat celebration with Kiddush. This is a particularly family-friendly Shabbat, with something for everyone and special attention to small children.

Hebrew YAY!

Bar/Bat Mitzvah Preparation

December 5, 2007

We are looking forward to entering the next round of Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation at Pardes Levavot, and are so glad that you and your child are considering this.

The program is designed as a year-long study for both the future B'nai Mitzvah and their parents. In this case, we will begin in January 2008 and continue through December 2008 (with a summer hiatus, of course).

We will meet once a month, on the 1st Saturday, immediately following the Family Shabbat service. January will be the exception to the 1st Saturday rule. Our first session will be on Saturday, January 12th. Please save these dates on your calendar:

• January 12
• February 2
• March 1
• April 5
• May 3
• September 6
• October 4
• November 1
• December 6

Some of you have already experienced our Family Shabbat service, and know that we begin at 9:00 am with a 45 minute look at some part of our liturgy; followed by Torah study and then a learner's service.

All of this will be part of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation.

The service ends at noon, and we'll all participate in the "Kiddush and Kommunity", and then our class will continue at 12:30 -- 1:45 pm. Bring your lunch with you.

Parents will be meeting with Reb Victor, and will be using Reb Zalman's book, Jewish With Feeling, as a study text and to inspire the exploration of spiritual Judaism and its expression in your home. The parent group will also look at issues of parenting adolescents, what the Bar/Bat Mitzvah ritual "really" means, and how to best support your children in their process.

Students will be meeting with Reb Nadya, and will learn about the structure and content of the Shabbat morning service, what it means to be a "Shaliach Tzibbur" (service leader), and how to chant Torah, all the while exploring their relationship to this Jewish path and identity.

Of course, they will continue to strengthen their Hebrew knowledge and skills in their weekly Hebrew class. If you enroll in our Bar/Bat Mitzvah program, Liz Stewart will be in touch with you to schedule the Hebrew class meeting times -- which will begin in January, also.

Becoming Bar/Bat Mitzvah is a process and celebration that takes place in the context of a community. When the young person steps up to the Bimah and leads our congregation in prayer, we expect that s/he will be known to our members, and will feel connected to them. We have a tradition of offering the Bar/Bat Mitzvah a basket filled with messages and small gifts from all the adult members present, who are welcoming a new member into our midst. As this is the moment when a Jew becomes responsible for her/his own choices and actions in the community, the Pardes Levavot community bestows full membership on the Bar/Bat Mitzvah.

We invite you to take this to heart, and to help your child feel part of Pardes Levavot by participating in the life of our community throughout the coming year.

Finally, Rebs Nadya and Victor will be meeting with each family, individually, during the first two months of the program. In that meeting, we'll choose a date for the Bar/Bat Mitzvah service, and discuss individual needs. The date will be sometime in the year following the end of our class. We will determine, at some point along the way, if there's a need for additional tutorial help. Our intention, and great hope, is that the Hebrew and group classes will provide most of the preparation necessary. In addition, during the 6 months leading up to the Bar/Bat Mitzvah service, we will meet with each family to develop their unique service outline; and then with each student, privately, to review the Torah portion and prayers & assist in writing a d'var Torah (speech).

Tuition for the first year of group classes is $300. Bar Mitzvah fees of $500 include the private meetings with the Rabbis and the service, and are to be paid the month before the Bar/Bat Mitzvah.

Please contact Jim Wright at info@pardeslevavot.org to arrange for the tuition payments. If you do not yet have a copy of the text (Reb Zalman's book) that we'll be using, we have new copies in the office which you can purchase for $18.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at rabbis@pardeslevavot.org, or by leaving a message at 303-530-4422.