40004.••

Turning On Tzedakah

Some kids
take the
mitzvah
in bar/bat
mitzvah to
heart.

Ruthan Brodsky

Special to celebrate!

8 celebrate 2007

•9.14•0•••0,,,

f it's Tuesday evening, you're likely to
find 13-year-old Jacob Bice at St.
Joseph Mercy Hospital in Pontiac. Jacob
has a black belt in Tai Kwon Do and he
helps teach a weekly class for Kids Kicking Cancer.
"I learned a lot these past months, not only
about teaching, but also how karate can help
people even when they're very sick',' says Jacob.
"I'll probably keep doing this for a while because
it's fun to do and I'm glad I'm doing it."
Jacob, son of Wendy and Gary Bice of
Bloomfield Hills, selected the opportunity with Kids
Kicking Cancer as part of preparation for his bar
mitzvah this month at Temple Beth El.
Rabbi Joseph Krakoff of Congregation Shaarey
Zedek says mitzvah refers to the 613 command-
ments in the Torah. "The terms bar and bat mitzvah
literally mean 'son or daughter of the command-
ment,' the time when children are obligated to
observe these commandments." The rabbi adds,
"The bar mitzvah ceremony formally marks the
assumption of that obligation."
"Today, many synagogues and families require
bar/bat mitzvah candidates to do tzedakah proj-
ects, emphasizing the concept that as adults they
are obligated to practice Jewish ritual as well as
live their lives as a participating member of the
community. Although the term 'mitzvah' is also
expressed as an act of kindness, to perform mitz-
vot at any age, as individuals or as families, is to
continue to fulfill God's commandments."
Some take the obligation seriously. Wendy or