A special Bar and Bat Mitzvah group celebration took place in the northern Galilee community of Safsufa earlier this month, for the third year in a row. The Bar Mitzvah boys and Bat Mitzvah girls were young immigrants from Ethiopia living at the Jewish Agency's Ayelet HaShachar Absorption Center.
A Jewish boy traditionally observes his Bar Mitzvah on the occasion of his 13th birthday, accepting the Jewish commandments as binding, and a Jewish girl observes her Bat Mitzvah at age 12.
The traditional reading of the Torah and the subsequent celebration took place at the ancient synagogue located in the center of Safsufa. The local community donated everything necessary for the event, from food to gifts to tallitot (prayer shawls), tefillin (phylacteries), and Shabbat candlesticks. An owner of a local mineral water factory surprised the young immigrants as they left the synagogue, presenting them each with a brand new bicycle.
The event was organized with the help of Machon Shevut, an institution assisting immigrants from Ethiopia.