One Mitzvah Leads To The Next
by Rabbi Alan Silverstein

UJC MetroWest is a leader in promoting Religious Pluralism within the State of Israel. For more than a decade, our Jewish Federation has seeded and supported Masorti [Conservative], Reform, Modern Orthodox, and “Non-stream” projects that promote Jewish continuity and mutual tolerance among Israeli Jews. Religious outreach has been made to young adults, families with toddlers, teenagers, new immigrants, patients in medical facilities, people below the poverty line, folks affected by terrorism and by repeated bombings, senior citizens, and many other groups, as well.

An example of the need for pluralistic religious options has been Bar and Bat Mitzvah training programs and ceremonies for children with Special Needs. Most youngsters beset with autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, or mild retardation had been ineligible for these mainstream communal milestones. Traditional Jewish law posits that “the deaf [and the...] mentally challenged... are not obligated by the mitzvot.” Therefore, they cannot lead others in communal prayer. A strict application of this prohibition closed access to Bar Mitzvah for families already distressed by severe limitations imposed upon their children in other walks of life.

Thirteen years ago, courageous Special Needs educators joined with rabbinic leaders within the Masorti Movement to sensitively find halachic solutions to this human dilemma. For example, the youngsters began to be called up to the Torah accompanied by another adult. With the application of diverse technologies for instruction as well as considerable allotments of “tender loving care,” at no cost to the family, more than 3,000 youngsters and their relatives from all walks of Israeli life [with 300 ceremonies more each year] have become Bar or Bat Mitzvah under Masorti auspices. Reporting from a Special Needs Bar Mitzvah ceremony at the Masorti synagogue in Kfar Saba, the July 8, 2008, edition of Yediot Acharonot noted: “Donning tallit and tefillin, and the boys wearing a kippa, 6 autistic children [5 boys and 1 girl] came forward to read from the weekly parasha. The occasion moved onlookers deeply, and there was not a dry eye in the room...”

The great success of this nation-wide program [the only national program of its kind in the Israel] has inspired halachic creativity elsewhere, notably among the modern Orthodox rabbis of the Tzohar organization. Religious pluralism, tolerance, and Jewish continuity have been well served in the process. Moreover, a new genre of pedagogic expertise and family counseling is spreading throughout the Jewish world. This coming fall [October 29-November 2], Susie Dvoskin, one of the daring Special Needs founders of the Masorti program, will visit MetroWest and Congregation Agudath Israel in Caldwell. She will share the tools of this sacred project with Special Needs educators, rabbis, and cantors in our community. “Mitzvah goreret mitzvah” [One mitzvah leads to another]. Doing the mitzvah of supporting Religious Pluralism in Israel has led to the future performance of mitzvot in New Jersey, as well.

Rabbi Alan Silverstein is rabbi at Congregation Agudath Israel of West Essex, in Caldwell.

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