B’Nei Mitzvah at Kol Chai are a community event and we are all very proud of our young people as they develop into young Jewish adults. They lead most of their service, read from the Torah, and deliver a talk with their own interpretation (drash). They are guided through this by highly experienced volunteer teachers from our community, or the Rabbi, who offer weekly tuition for six to nine months before the big day.

We have a Kiddush rota supported by parents to ensure that your child is celebrated by food as well as teaching – nourishment for the body and soul! Our synagogue, which can be an intimate setting, can also hold up to 180 people for the service. There are lots of opportunities for family and friends to get involved on the day.

B’Nei Mitzvah is a two-way process at Kol Chai and we do expect a commitment in return. Young people attend our award-winning Religion School, HaMakom, for at least two years before their Bar or Bat Mitzvah, and must attend Shabbat morning services regularly with their parents for at least a year before. We hold monthly service-leading classes on Shabbat mornings at 0930 which they are also expected to attend, the year before their B’Nei Mitzah.