March 13, 2008
Identity and connection spur more adult b’nai mitzvah
Follow JewishJournal.com on 
(Page 2 - Previous Page)
The desire to forge strong bonds between parents and children and to create a harmonious Jewish family is probably the strongest motivation for adults to travel the rigorous path of adult b'nai mitzvah, which frequently requires two years of study.Lisette Bauersach was born into a Catholic family. Although she had decided not to convert when she married Marc Gold, president of Heal the Bay, they had a Jewish wedding.
"Once our son was born and we had his bris, we decided to join a synagogue," said Bauersach, 44. "This spurred us on to make our lives more Jewish."
When their second son was born with a heart defect, Rabbi Allen Frehling, then the spiritual leader of University Synagogue, came to the hospital.
"I fell in love with that friendly community," Bauersach said, recounting the inspiration that led her to convert.
Even after her conversion, she felt that "something was still missing," she said. Bauersach went on to study with Cantor Frailich and became bat mitzvah 18 months later.
"Now, I'm literally at the synagogue five days a week," she said. "It all just clicked."
1 | 2 |
