Three lessons.
That’s all that remains for the current cycle of lessons – a cycle that is one year (47 lessons, with space for some special weeks of instruction) in length – before we reach the end and start over again. I have been teaching the bar and bat mitzvah class much of that time. For the first few months, I was part of a two-person team that rotated in once a month. For the past seven months, I’ve been part of a two-person team that handles the teaching pretty much every week.
The book our study revolves around is the gospel of Matthew, with plenty of rabbinic and Torah teachings brought in along the way. It’s a challenging curriculum that even adults could gain knowledge studying. But now we’re reaching the end of Matthew. In the next three lessons, we will cover the death and resurrection of Yeshua, then move into the great commission and then it’s done.
And then, we start over, of course.
We don’t use a lot of multimedia to keep these young minds engaged. We don’t need DVDs or TVs or TV lift cabinets. All we do is expect them all to take part reading through the lesson, answering questions, paying attention, reviewing the material and figuring out (with help) how this all applies to their every day lives.
Because, as we often remind the kids, we could have them attend every single week for two years, push them through a bar or bat mitzvah ceremony and welcome them into the age of accountability with fanfare galore; and if, in that time, it never made a difference in how they lived and whether they thought about how each choice they make either honors or dishonors G-d, then it is all wasted time.