How to Write a D'var Torah (Without Staring at a Blank Page)
A d'var Torah — literally "a word of Torah" — is a short teaching about your Torah portion. At your bar or bat mitzvah, it's the moment you stop being the kid in the front row and become the teacher.
That sounds intimidating. It isn't, once you know the recipe. Every good d'var Torah, from a nervous thirteen-year-old's to a rabbi's, has the same four ingredients.
The four-part structure
1. The hook. Start with something that grabs attention — a question, a weird detail from your parsha, or a moment from your own life. "Have you ever been blamed for something your whole group did?" beats "My Torah portion is Shelach."
2. The Torah. Summarize the key moment of your parsha in 3–4 sentences. Not the whole portion — the one scene your idea hangs on. Assume some guests haven't opened a Chumash in decades (or ever). Then bring one question about it: something strange, unfair, or confusing in the text. The question is the engine of every d'var Torah.
3. The teaching. How do the commentators answer your question? This is where you bring in one source — Rashi, a midrash, a modern rabbi, whatever your tradition uses. One source, explained in your own words, is worth five sources quoted.
4. The "so what." Land it in real life — yours. What does this teach you, at thirteen, in your school, on your team, in your family? Then close with a takeaway your guests can carry out of the room.
Total length: 3 to 5 minutes, about 500–700 words. Your rabbi or tutor will tell you the custom at your synagogue.
How to find your idea
Read a summary of your parsha and watch for the moment that makes you feel something — confusion, unfairness, recognition. That reaction is your d'var Torah. Some reliable questions to ask any portion:
Why did this character do that? Why does the Torah repeat this word? Why is this law right after that story? What would I have done?
If your portion feels impossible (a list of sacrifices, a census, skin diseases — it happens), don't panic. Generations of commentators had the same problem and left great material behind. Some of the best divrei Torah come from the "boring" parshiyot, because the question "why is this in the Torah at all?" is a genuinely good one.
A word about sources — and about ChatGPT
Here's the thing your rabbi will check: are your sources real? If you ask a generic AI chatbot for help, it will confidently invent midrashim, misquote Rashi, and occasionally assign you the wrong parsha entirely. Rabbis have seen a wave of these, and they can tell.
If you use any help — a book, a website, a parent, an AI — the rule is the same: understand what you're saying, check that the source exists, and make the final words your own. A d'var Torah you don't understand isn't yours, no matter who wrote it.
Sounding like yourself
The most common note rabbis give: "This doesn't sound like you." Fixes:
Read it out loud and change any word you'd never say. Keep one joke if it's natural to you — you don't have to be solemn. Say "I think" and "what bothers me is" — first person is allowed. You're not imitating a rabbi; you're being a thirteen-year-old who learned something true.
Start with a real draft, grounded in real sources
Shpiel writes a d'var Torah draft from your parsha — it finds your portion from your date, pulls real commentary from the tradition you choose (secular to Chabad), and never invents a midrash. You add your stories and edit line by line until it sounds like you. Free to write and preview.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a bar mitzvah d'var Torah be?
Usually 3–5 minutes (500–700 words). Ask your rabbi — customs vary widely between synagogues.
Do I need to quote sources in Hebrew?
No. Quoting in English (or giving the Hebrew with translation) is standard almost everywhere. Match your community's comfort level.
What if my parsha is a double portion?
Pick one of the two portions — or better, one scene from one of them. Nobody expects you to cover both.
Can my parents help me write it?
Yes, and they should — along with your tutor or rabbi. The tradition of learning with someone else (chavruta) is older than the bar mitzvah itself. The test isn't "did you write every word alone," it's "do you understand and mean every word you say."