About the Project

You are a Link in the Chain of Generations
The Bar and Bat Mitzvah Project in the Western Wall Tunnels

The occasion of a Bar or Bat Mitzvah is one marking the maturation of a child and his or her joining the Jewish nation as a full-fledged adult.  The Western Wall Heritage Foundation offers a unique and exceptional way of celebrating this auspicious occasion by having the entire family follow the chain of Jewish generations.

The family takes a special tour of the Western Wall Tunnels, planned specifically around the subject of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah.  A state-of-the-art computer program invites the star of the hour and his/her family on an exciting and moving journey through Jewish history, via movies, maps, and other audio-visual means.  The youth connect to the Jewish chain of generations through the stories of their family – grandparents, great-grandparents, and so on – up to the beginning of the chain.

The intensity of the being at Kotel, the special ambience within the Western Wall Tunnels, and the overall view offered by the educational program – all combine to create an unforgettable Bar/Bat Mitzvah experience.

Children Guide the Western Wall Tunnels

The Children Guide the Tunnels project invites Bar/Bat Mitzvah children to a maturing and emotional experience that they’ll never forget. The girls and boys go through special training and learn how to guide the tour through the Western Wall Tunnels.

During the weeks preceding the Bar/Bat Mitzvah, the child comes to the Tunnels for a series of personal meetings with Western Wall Heritage Foundation guides in which they are taught about the different sections along the Tunnels.  Each stop is intertwined with the story of the Jewish people and with the narrative of the Jewish chain of generations.

On the day of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah itself, the children come to Jerusalem, and after a visit to the Kotel, they begin to guide the tour of the Western Wall Tunnels themselves.  The tour, which combines both national and personal history, connects the entire family to the wondrous chain of generations of the Jewish nation which was forced out of Jerusalem and miraculously returned 2,000 years later.

By guiding the tour through the Tunnels, the children experience responsibility, leadership, and a renewed and deepened connection to their families.  When the tour comes to an end, they sign a Jerusalem Covenant document and declare their commitment to the continuation of the Jewish chain of generations.

Feedback:
“It is almost impossible to find the words to describe the uplifting experience that we all felt.  The children experienced something that will accompany them for the rest of their lives, and for the rest of ours!  I have no doubt that this experience will express itself at different crossroads in their lives.”

Every year, tens of thousands of Jews from around the world stream to the Kotel, the Western Wall, to celebrate their son’s Bar Mitzvah.  They come in large groups or accompanied by immediate family; rejoicing and cheering, or shy and reserved.  Am Yisrael, the nation of Israel, makes the pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

All these various families have one thing in common.  They all wish to mark this most important event in a Jew’s life – when one accepts the Torah and joins the Jewish nation as an adult – in the holiest place to the Jewish people, the Western Wall.  All the families without exception make the effort because of the clear understanding that a Bar Mitzvah celebration must be celebrated at the Kotel.

In order to encourage Am Yisrael to mark this occasion at the Kotel, the Western Wall Heritage Foundation offers the following information and assistance FREE OF CHARGE:

• Directions for arriving at the Kotel and parking options
• Times of prayer services
• Information on a variety of traditions
• Instruction regarding the prayer service and the Torah reading
• Lending of teffilin (phylacteries) and Talit (prayer shawl)
• A volunteer guide for the prayer service and putting on the teffilin
• Option for cantor and someone to read the Torah
• Organization of a minyan (quorum) if need be
• Preparatory materials for the Bar Mitzvah boy
• A Bar Mitzvah stand situated at the entrance to the Western Wall Plaza in order to give assistance on the spot.