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The Mikvah is the forerunner of baptism; but in Jewish tradition, this ritual is reserved for women after menstruation and childbirth, for women before marriage, for men before the High Holy Days, and by converts to Judaism. Jews do not prosyletize - converts are either adults who choose to become Jewish or children from some mixed marriages. In Judaism the religion is transmitted through the mother; therefore children of a Jewish father and non-Jewish mother are converted before the Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah ceremony. The use of the Mikvah is the last stage in the conversion process.

All Mikvahs are built from the same plan and filled with free flowing water obtained from rain, spring, lake or river water. The ritual is a private one - only one person of the same sex is present to ensure that the ritual is completed. The body is thoroughly cleansed during a bath or shower and all decorations (nailpolish, makeup, jewelry, clothing, bandages, stains) are removed. The person then immerses him or herself in the water three times and says a prayer - the person goes in clean and comes out ritually pure.

The first Mikvah in Saint John was built in the Ahavith Achim Synagogue as the first project under the direction of the Daughters of Israel. They raised the money for construction through a weekly subscription and a few of the ladies personally donated furnishings for the room. Preparations were complete by August 1899. For the women who were members of the Orthodox form of Judaism this would serve an essential role in their lives.

The second Mikvah in the city was built in the early 1950s in the Saint John Jewish Community Centre on Wellington Row and was dedicated in September 1953 in memory of Rose and Morris Cohen and the parents of Myer Budovitch. It was used on a regular basis for more than a decade. By the mid-1980s it had fallen into disrepair and had to be restored for use by a bride. Over the next twenty years it was used by two more brides and by a number of families to convert their children to the Jewish faith.

The Mikvah was also a popular exhibit for the Saint John Jewish Historical Museum as it shared a tradition which has fallen away in many other communities across the continent.

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Jewish Community Centre - Mikvah (ritual bath)
1950s-2008
Saint John, New Brunswick

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Mikvah - Budovitch Plaque
1950s
Saint John, New Brunswick


Credits:
Saint John Jewish Historical Society

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Mikvah - Cohen plaque
1950s
Saint John, New Brunswick


Credits:
Saint John Jewish Historical Society

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Mikvah - Diagram 1
1980s

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Mikvah - Diagram 2
1980s