Bar mitzva

First, second Jewish mayors of Providence, Rhode Island, share a bar mitzvah

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley and the former mayor and congressman David Cicilline had been studying Hebrew, parsing Torah portions, and preparing together for the past 16 months.

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley (L) and former Providence Mayor David Cicilline (M) gather for the gathered for our annual St. Joseph’s Day celebration on March 19, 2026.
 Pro-Palestinian demonstrators march past King's College, one of the few colleges that have divested from companies benefiting from the Israeli war.

Hearing Sieg Heil at 76: Why you can't kill the Jew inside - opinion

Bar Mitzvah boys the day before all the excitement begins.

Iran: You are so not invited to my sons’ bar mitzvah

Soldiers praying at the Kotel in 2013.

'I never had a bar mitzvah,' lone soldiers from Ethiopia to celebrate at the Western Wall


Spirit of Herzl: Central Jerusalem hotel with history, comics, and charm

Explore Jerusalem from the Spirit of Herzl Hotel, where Zionist comics line the halls and history meets comfort in a central location.

Welcoming guests.

 Bar Mitzvah in Israel: Why more families are choosing Israel for their Bar Mitzvah celebrations

Bar Mitzvah in Israel.

Iran arrests Iranian-American Jew for visiting Israel - NYT

Hekmati, a 70-year-old resident of Long Island, New York, has been held in Evin Prison since July.

Kemran Hekmati, pictured in a family photo. Iran charged the 70-year-old Jewish Iranian-American for traveling to Israel.

Forty-eight IDF orphans mark bnei mitzvah at Western Wall

Forty-eight children who lost a parent in IDF service marked their bnei mitzvah at the Western Wall in a ceremony of unity and remembrance.

An IDF orphan, wearing a beret from the Nachal Brigade, celebrating his bar mitzvah at the Kotel in Jerusalem, October 20, 2025.

Meet the Jewish star in Jennifer Lopez’s Office Romance

Goldstein was born to a British Jewish family and celebrated his bar mitzvah at The Wimbledon Synagogue in southwest London, a detail noted by Jewish outlets and even the synagogue’s public history.

Brett Goldstein attends Apple's "All of You" New York premiere at The Whitby Hotel on September 17, 2025 in New York City.

From Yarka to New York: An IDF Orphan’s Journey of Healing

The IDF Widows and Orphans Organization’s annual “Superheroes Trip” brings bereaved children together; for counselor Athar Aboreesh, it became a journey of healing too.

Athar Aboreesh worked as a counselor on the IDFWO’s Superheroes Trip.

Border Police opens investigation into soldiers who appeared at Bar Mitzvah with weapons

The soldiers were filmed masked and wearing sunglasses, and were dancing to music performed by singer Lior Narkis, who was invited as a guest to the event.

 Israeli soldiers dance with weapons drawn at businessman Alon Elgali’s son's Bar Mitzvah

123 orphan boys celebrate their Bar Mitzvah at the Western Wall

The war has left hundreds of Israeli families bereaved, and thousands of children facing life without their fathers. This year’s Colel Chabad Bar Mitzvah carried extra weight for boys who lost it all

The Annual Colel Chabad Bar Mitzvah commemoration for orphan boys

Inside the world of high-end bar and bat mitzvahs in Philadelphia

DIASPORA AFFAIRS: “What I always guide my clients to do is not get sucked into the mitzvah machine. And keep the focus on the child,” said Jean Kintisch, owner of Pine Hill Events.

PLANNERS HAVE said that celebrations for bar and bat mitzvahs are increasingly held at unique venues, such as nightclubs in Center City, stadiums in South Philadelphia, or music venues like the Fillmore.

Released hostage Erez Kalderon marks bar mitzva as his father remains in Hamas captivity

The family was prepared to support Erez for his bar mitzvah without his father, who remains in Hamas captivity in Gaza.

 Erez going up to the Torah.