When Dr. Scheldon Kress was called to the Torah as a bar mitzvah 70 years ago, some important family members were missing from the coming of age ritual: his parents.
Last month, Kress, who never knew his father and whose mother died when he was 8, had a second bar mitzvah. This time, family surrounded him: his wife of 59 years, Rose; his three children; their spouses and his seven grandchildren. The ceremony was held at Har Shalom, a Potomac synagogue.
“It was thrilling to see my children and grandchildren contribute and realize that the event was so meaningful for them. [It was] something that they would remember through their lifetimes, and it would inspire them,” said Kress, who is a physician and still practices medicine.
Boys become a bar mitzvah when the reach the age of 13. Because Jewish tradition says 70 years is a lifespan, the age of 83 is an opportunity to celebrate another bar mitzvah, though not everyone chooses to do so.
“I’ve always planned to have this second bar mitzvah for me,” said Kress. “But, as I approached this momentous occasion, it began to take on even more meaning. Thirteen-year-old boys don’t have an opportunity like … I do … to share this beautiful Sabbath service with three wonderful children, their fabulous spouses [and] seven precious grandchildren, wonderful relatives and friends.”
Kress said the Tallit or prayer shawl used during his first bar mitzvah ceremony was used during his second. “The grandchildren held it over our heads during the Shehecheyanu blessing where you thank God for allowing you to live to that age,” he said. “It was very special.”
Those present described the bar mitzvah ceremony as moving and even emotional.
“I’ve gone through it with my two children, but my dad’s event was much more sweet and much more endearing,” said Michael Kress, who spoke during the ceremony with his sisters Julie Schumacher and Karen Hammerman. “He didn’t have to do this … [but] my dad doesn’t go the easy way through life. What he did at his age is something most people wouldn’t challenge themselves to do because it’s not easy. It’s kind of the way he does everything. He loves the challenges.”