Bat Mitzvah for Rachel Spitzer Will Be October 20 at Community Hall

Rachel Spitzer holds a torah scroll on the porch of the family's Woodbluff cottage, Szombathély. Several torahs were on the Island for Rosh Hashanah services in September. A torah scroll is a handwritten parchment document that contains the original Bible and the five books of Moses, which are written in the original Hebrew. They have been copied by scribes, one to another, for thousands of years. A reading from a scroll will take place during Miss Spitzer's Bat Mitzvah October 20. (Photograph by Dr. Robert Spitzer) A Bat Mitzvah celebration marking Rachel Spitzer's coming of age will be held October 20, at the Mackinac Island Community Hall. Miss Spitzer is a sixth grade student at Akiva Hebrew Day School in Southfield and is the daughter of Robert Spitzer and Ann Silverman, who have a home at Woodbluff.

The traditional Sabbath services will begin at 9:30 a.m. and will be led by Rabbi David Shepherd, an Orthodox Rabbi from Oak Park.

During the service, Miss Spitzer will read in Hebrew from the prophets, called the haftorah reading. The Torah, written by Moses, is the bible and it contains the five books of Moses. In the past, Jews were subjected to persecution and forbidden to read from the Torah. The haftorah section, comprising readings from the prophets, was added to the prayers at that time and is now added to the readings from the Torah. Traditionally, the week's current haftorah is read by boys at their Bar Mitzvah and by girls during their Bat Mitzvah.

Miss Spitzer, who enjoys horseback riding, gymnastics, and swimming, has been learning to read and speak Hebrew since she was four years old. She also will deliver, in English, a brief sermon about that section of the Torah.

The celebration marks her entry into adulthood, she said, which means she must follow all of God's commandments. She now will fast at required times, she explained, and the ceremony marks a passage for her to become more spiritually closer to God and more responsible for everything she does. "I'm very, very excited for it," she said of the ceremony. "The day is all about me and I'll be accepted as an adult."

The October 20 date was chosen for the ceremony, said Dr. Spitzer, based on his daughter's 12th Hebrew birthday, which falls on October 18. Jewish tradition calls for the celebration to be held on the first Sabbath day following the birthday.

"The Jewish calendar, which long predates the current Julian or Gregorian calendar by many hundreds of years," said Dr. Spitzer, "is a lunar calendar and was originally maintained by the temple priests in Jerusalem."

A light luncheon, referred to as a kiddush meal, will be served following the service, beginning with a blessing on the wine, which is called kiddush.

Nathan Marsack, who has worked as a chef at Woods restaurant for last three summers and whose family lives in Sunset Forest Manor, will be preparing the fully kosher luncheon under the supervision of Rabbi Shepherd. It will include an assortment of bagels, a variety of cream cheese spreads, and the three traditional fish: Lox, whitefish, and herring.

"This is exciting," said Mr. Marsack, who also has Island resident Alex Winkle helping him. "This has been an inspiration for me and a step forward in the culinary industry."

The doors to Community Hall on Market Street will be kept open during the ceremony and the Island community is invited to attend the celebration.