The beautiful artwork displayed in our banner depicts a shtetl (village) scene, and was created by the late progressive labour artist Avrom Yanovsky for the Toronto Jewish Folk Choir's production of 'Oyfn Fidl' (On the Fiddle) in the early 1970's.

MWS B'NAI MITZVAH PROGRAM

 

I am a Jew
My roots are deep in the millennia that formed my people's culture.
My people are not chosen; they are unique as are all people.

I am a Jew
The freedom-dream of Moses is my heritage, as are the picket lines of the sweatshops.
I am a descendant of the Prophets, and the uprising in Europe's ghettos and death camps.

I am a Jew
My inheritance is in the songs of Hirsh Glick and Solomon,
in the wisdom of Maimonides, Sholem Aleichem and Peretz...
In the heroism of Masada and Hannah Senesh.

This excerpt from the MWS Graduation Credo, was written by Hershl Hartman, a prominent scholar and leader in the secular Jewish movement.

 

Fundamental to the MWS B'nai Mitzvah program is our definition of a Bar/Bat Mitzvah as a young person who has attained a rich understanding of the meaning of his or her Jewish heritage and identity. The Bar/Bat Mitzvah's attainment of this understanding is celebrated by the community in a ceremony that focuses both on the individual's and the B'nai Mitzvah group's achievements.

Parents of the graduation students work collectively throughout the school year, along with the MWS staff, in planning the details of the graduation ceremony and reception.

 

A Sampling of Graduation Curriculum Themes

  • The meaning of a Bar/Bat Mitzvah and rites of passage to secular Jews
  • Tzedakah, Ethics and Social Justice
  • Holocaust Education
  • Life in the Shtetl
  • Pogroms
  • The Inquisition
  • Immigration
  • Important Jewish figures and secularists
  • Family history and story sharing

 

Research Projects

Under the guidance of the graduation teacher, students research and prepare a written report on a topic of their choice that reflects their Jewish heritage. These reports are then read as the Bar/Bat Mitzvah speeches.

Recent topics have included:

 

B'nai Mitzvah of Remembrance – A Twinning Project

In cooperation with the Holocaust Education Centre of Toronto, students are paired with a child who perished in the Holocaust and did not live to have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Students then incorporate an historical piece about their 'twin' during the ceremony.

The 2005 graduates light candles in memory of their 'twins'.

 

Graduation Ceremony

The program culminates in a formal presentation of the students' research projects. The ceremony includes music, drama, poetry and visual arts, and often has a theme such as "Leaving a Legacy", "Exploring the World of Secular Judaism" and "Looking Back - Moving Forward". The ceremony concludes with speeches by parents and school staff, and the presentation of Graduation Certificates.

The 2005 graduates sing the Hebrew song "Hine Ma Tov" in the round.