Bnei Mitzvah Honors Form

Rabbi Caine will customize the following honors in a shared Google doc unique to your bar/t mitzvah.  Here is a preview:

HONORS PLANNING SHEET FOR BAR/BAT MITZVAH SERVICE
For each honor, write in your assignee or write in “BIC Assigns.”

• I will prepare my honorees for their honors.
• I understand that the b' mitzvah is a part of the service, not the other way around.

ENGLISH AND HEBREW NAMES OF TEEN:
Preferred Pronoun(s):
Teen Email Address (that is not a school address, so Rabbi Caine can share the speech document with them):
Teen Cell Phone Number (optional: periodically Rabbi Caine may wish to check in on teens as they go through high school):

FRIDAY NIGHT SERVICE:
If you are attending Friday night services, you are welcome to do a parent and/or Grandparent(s) blessing, and/or a family candle lighting, from the bimah.  

Will you be in attendance at Friday Night services? (Yes or No)
Would you like a grandparent(s) to address the teen for a minute? (Yes or No)
Would you like to have a candle lighting, and if so, who should be called up to do so? (Yes or No)

SATURDAY MORNING SERVICE:
GREETERS
Greeters must be adult members of the congregation, preferably the parent(s) of another student in your class. Greeters should arrive by 9:30 a.m.  They need to remind all men to wear kippot, and they should offer non-members a copy of the Rabbi's Guide to the Service in addition to a program to each group that enters). Greeters' names:  

“CHAIN OF PASSING DOWN THE TORAH” (Optional)
You have the option of having grandparents and parents [or others, but ask the rabbi] “pass down the Torah through the generations” when the Torah is first taken from the ark and handed to the teen.  (Relatives need not be Jewish as long as they have been supportive of a Jewish education, which is the meaning behind this symbolism.) The weight of the scroll is borne by Rabbi Caine while each relative embraces it for a few moments.
 If you would like do so, please list their English names in order for the Rabbi to call up:

FIRST ARK OPENING/CLOSING (Page 168): 
TORAH CARRIER (Teen or another):
Tutor's Name (to be offered 2nd Gabbai honor):

ALIYOT (Torah Blessings, page 172 -- can be found online at: https://sidduraudio.com/torah-aliyah-blessings/

For each aliyah, the rabbi can call up individual honorees by their Hebrew names [Example:  1. Joseph and Doreen Cohen, Yosef ben Yitzchak haKohein V’Rachel, Dorit bat Herschel v’Gittel] or the rabbi may skip the Hebrew names and instead can call them up in Hebrew by the number of the aliyah.

There are 8 aliyot in total.  Since #8 is the bar/t mitzvah teen and #7 is the parent(s), that leaves six remaining.  For these six remaining, you may assign four or five to relatives/friends and you must write in “BIC Assigned” for at least one of them.  If a non-Jewish spouse is joining a Jewish spouse for the Torah blessings, only list a Hebrew name for the Jewish spouse (and the non-Jewish spouse stands at the bimah with them but does not recite the Hebrew blessing since the blessing states that one accepts Judaism as their religion). Also, please write in exactly how you wish the rabbi to describe them to the congregation.  For example, does the rabbi say "I'm calling up Bubbie and Pop Pop for the third aliyah" or does the rabbi say "I'm calling up Aviva's grandfather, Dr. Martin Stein, and grandmother, Leora Stein, for the third aliyah."  The rabbi will read it exactly as you write it.

1.  (Kohein-only aliyah:) Torah reading:              Blessings:
"I'm calling up....                         
2.  (Levi-only aliyah:)  Torah reading:              Blessings:
"I'm calling up...
3.  Torah reading:             Blessings:
"I'm calling up...
4.  Torah reading:             Blessings:
"I'm calling up...
5.  Torah reading:             Blessings:
"I'm calling up...
6.  Torah reading:             Blessings:
"I'm calling up...
7.  Torah reading:           Blessings: [Parent(s):]
8.  Torah reading:           Blessings: Bar/t Mitzvah name in Hebrew:

LIFTING AND WRAPPING TORAH (page 174)
One individual is needed to dress the Torah (Gelilah). You may designate someone as well to lift the Torah (Hagbaha). However, please only assign hagbaha to someone who has done it before and is confident about their ability to do it properly.  Otherwise write in “BIC assigns.”
Hagbaha:
Glilah:

Typically the Rabbi will introduce the haftarah, unless you request the teen do that.  Then the teen recites:

HAFTARAH BLESSING --> HAFTARAH --> BLESSINGS AFTER HAFTARAH --> SIMAN TOV 

Yekum Pohrkan:

ENGLISH PRAYERS
You may assign these to family/friends or write in “BIC Assigned.”

Prayer for our Country (Siddur Lev Shalem, page 177):
Prayer for State of Israel - Hebrew (Siddur, page 178):
Prayer for State of Israel - English (Siddur, page 178):
Prayer for Peace (Siddur, page 178)
Copies of these prayers may be found in the prayer packet: www.dropbox.com/s/d5iugika6grsss9/BNEI%20MITZAH%20SERVICE%20READINGS.pdf?dl=0

ASHREI (181):
YES/NO  Teen leading END OF TORAH SERVICE:
END OF TORAH SERVICE ARK OPENING/CLOSING (Page 183):
TORAH CARRIER:

Teens D'var Torah
Parental address?  NOTE ABOUT PARENTS ADDRESSING THE TEEN: If doing so, please adhere to the folloowing:  1) the total remarks may not last more than 3 minutes [one side of a page] recited by one parent on behalf of both, and 2) the remarks must focus on the role of Judaism/the Jewish People in your family's commitment and wishes for your teen and their future.  Please send the remarks to Rabbi Caine ahead of time.

YES/NO: Teen leads Musaf Prayers  184-203
YES/NO: Ein Keloheinu 204
YES/NO: Aleinu 205

Mourner’s Kaddish:
Rabbi Caine encourages the child to co-lead the Mourner’s Kaddish (for the first time) to honor the memories of relatives (known and unknown).  Would you like the child to do so, and if yes, are there any specific names you would like mentioned at this time (it need not be their yahrzeit)?
YES/NO:  Teen stands with Rabbi Caine and co-leads Mourner's Kaddish
NO/YES - Names Rav Nadav mentions at this time:

Candy:
Would you like candy tossed at the end of Adon Olam?  If so, please list at least three who will be passing it out:

Kiddush from bimah

Adon Olam (p. 211): Please list all those you would like invited up to sing Adon Olam:

Sometimes the teen would like to lead the Friday night service or some of its prayers.  In this case, here is our Friday night prayer structure.  You can let the rabbi know which prayers the teen will lead:

Friday Night Service

Kabbalat Shabbat
1)      Shalom Aleichem
2)      Yedid Nefesh (first and last verses)
3)      L’khu Neranena – Psalm 95  (beginning and end)
4)      Psalm 96 (optional)
5)      Psalm 97 (optional)
6)      Psalm 98 (optional)
7)      Psalm 99 (optional)
8)      Psalm 29 (optional)
9)      Ana B’choach (optional)
10)   Lkha Dodi (all verses or first 3 and last 3)
11)   Psalm 92 (beginning and end)
12)   Psalm 93 (optional)
13)   Mourners Kaddish

Maariv
1)      Barekhu
2)      Hamaariv Aravim
3)      Ahavat Olam (whole paragraph or just chatimah)
4)      Shema with or without VeAhavta
5)      Mikhamokha through Ga'al Yisrael
5)      Hashkeveinu (Hebrew or English)
6)      V’shamru
7)      Chatzi Kaddish
8)      Vaychulu
9)      Konei Shamayim va'aretz + Magen Avot
10)    Eloheinu Veilohei Avoteinu (Hebrew or English)
11)    Kaddish shalem
12)   Kiddush
12)   Aleinu
13)   Mourners Kaddish
14)   Adon Olam or Yigdal