Bar and Bat Mitzvah the commandments . . ." The Talmud gives 13 as the age at which a boy's vows are legally binding, and states that this is a result of his being a "man", as required in . The term "bar mitzvah", in the sense it is now used, cannot be clearly traced earlier than the 14th century, the older rabbinical term being "gadol" (adult) or "bar 'onshin" (legally responsible for own misdoings). Many sources indicate that the ceremonial observation of a bar mitzvah developed in the Middle Ages, however, there are extensive earlier references to thirteen as the age of majority
Women in Judaism can also refer to a woman whose husband disappeared and may or may not be dead. In Orthodox Judaism, only a man is able to serve a "get". In order to prevent the occurrence of the first type, many Jewish couples sign a prenuptial agreement designed to force the husband to serve a get or else be reported to the Jewish court. Although the position of Conservative Judaism toward women originally differed little from the Orthodox position, it has in recent years minimized legal and ritual differences between men and women. The Committee on Jewish Law and Standards (CJLS) of