The Big Fat “R”

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Naomi Bilmes

From my blog:

I am presently having an odd experience of disconnect. The premise is this:

Reality to the left. Brain to the right. Keep reading for further explanation.

Bad things keep happening to me. In the grand scheme of life, they are not terrible things: no death, no serious illness, no natural disasters. But sometimes the little things seem even more powerful, especially in a world of rampant individualism and competitive goal fulfillment (but I can only speak for myself. I can’t say the same for you because I’m too busy maximizing my own potential).

Without getting too specific (it’s tempting, but I have to keep in mind that this blog is public), let’s just say that all of the bad things in the past week can be lumped together into one category: Continue reading →

Week 37: The Practical Dictionary of the Pardes Lexicon

Posted on May 19, 2012 by Derek

(X-posted from my home blog, Yinzer in Yerushalayim)

One of the unadvertised perks of Pardes is that after studying holy texts in their original in the Beit Midrash for a whole year, no matter how advanced your Hebrew level, you come away with a black-belt in using dictionaries. Yet I have noticed that for all the dictionaries we have for Jewish religious language, there is, incongruously, not a dictionary of “Pardesian,” that unique jargon you learn upon entering the Orchard. Until now. As a gift to any incoming students who may be reading this and as a memento to those who are leaving, I present this necessarily abridged first edition of The Practical Dictionary of the Pardes Lexicon, heretofore to be known as “The Kwait.” You’re welcome.

Avoda Zara – Idol worship, literally “foreign service.” This is an all-encompassing term used to describe worship of foreign deities and/or the self, and commonly used around the Pardes Beit Midrash to describe any “Jewish” subject that does not involve learning Gemara and/or Halakha. There is a Makhloket about the Tanakh.

Continue reading →

[PEP Student] Wilderness in the Desert

Posted on May 29, 2011 by Tamara

Dear Friends,

This afternoon during my Tanach class I took a poll of students and staff asking the following questions: have you spent (significant) time in the desert? If yes, how did it feel? How would you describe your experience(s) there? The reason I took this poll is because these questions have followed me as I read the parsha.

As I sit to write this dvar Torah, I grapple with the significance of בְּמִדְבַּר (Bamidbar – often translated as desert), as the name of the parsha and this book in the Torah.

Fortunately, I was able to glean deep insight from this survey. Some students noted that the desert evokes a profound sense of solitude and silence. Other commented that the large expanse and open space of the desert awaken in people insecurity and uncertainty: after all, the day is filled with tremendous heat and lack of water and the night is mercilessly cold. And yet, somehow the barrenness of the desert, though it can be frightening, enables its inhabitants to pause and reflect.

To rectify this seemingly contradictory set of responses of how people experience the desert, I turned to an academic source to unpack the etymology of the word מִדְבַּר. According to the Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature, written by Marcus Jastrow, the definition of מִדְבַּר is not limited to ‘desert’. Rather it may also allude to ‘wilderness’. My teacher, Judy Klitsner, correctly points out that the word ‘wilderness’ describes a place that does have within it vegetation and wildlife. Unlike the desert, the wilderness is neither naked or dead; it is living and in bloom.

So I wonder: how is it that the מִדְבַּר can be a place that is both barren and alive? Why is it that some associate this place with tranquility and reflection and others with anxiety and disbelief? Why is the desert rehabilitative for some and destructive for others?

I am certainly no expert on human psychology, nor do I possess a complete understanding of the psyche of the Jewish People as described in the Torah after the Exodus from Egypt. However, I would like to make the claim that the reason the biblical accounts of the Jewish People in the מִדְבַּר are so varied–some tragic and others inspiring–is heavily influenced by their worldview. The Israelites in the מִדְבַּר had the ability to determine their responses to 40 years of wandering in the desert: either one could choose to embrace the wilderness by identifying its beauty and capitalize on the opportunity to strengthen one’s faith and self of purpose in silence; or one could perceive the desert as vastly naked and focus on its difficult conditions of minimal water and extreme temperatures. The book of Bamidbar indicates the both reactions existed in the Israelite camp (although my sense is that the negative perspective was fairly dominant).

So, thinking about this parsha I am reminded of many situations in which can be dramatically transformed based on my perspective. I can decide either to see the good and the potential in trying circumstances or become blinded by my frustration and focus exclusively on the obstacles presented in my situation. I have the ability to view the future as a desert or a wilderness.

I bless us all that we will be able to see the wilderness in the desert– to grant ourselves compassion and recognize the potential for reflection and growth in challenging settings.

Shabbat Shalom,

Tamara

[PEP Student] Establishing an Enduring State

Posted on May 23, 2011 by Tamara

Dear Friends,

This week’s parsha, Parshat Bechukotai, has prompted me to return to the subject of Israel and explore my relationship and understandings of this place as a reality and an ideal. There is a bizarre word in the parsha, which funnily enough I’ve encountered countless times before reading the parsha this week, as it appears in Birkat Hamazon (Grace After Meals).

The word is קוֹמְמִיּוּת (komemiyut) and it emerges at the start of the parsha, after a series of blessings God promises the Jewish People if they keep God’s commandments. The Torah says:

יב וְהִתְהַלַּכְתִּי, בְּתוֹכְכֶם, וְהָיִיתִי לָכֶם, לֵא-לֹהִים; וְאַתֶּם, תִּהְיוּ-לִי לְעָם

12 And I [God] will walk among you, and will be your God, and you shall be My people.

יג אֲנִי ה’ אֱ-לֹהֵיכֶם, אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, מִהְיֹת לָהֶם, עֲבָדִים; וָאֶשְׁבֹּר מֹטֹת עֻלְּכֶם, וָאוֹלֵךְ אֶתְכֶם קוֹמְמִיּוּת

13 I am the LORD your God, who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bars of your yoke, and made you go upright. (Leviticus 26:12-13)

This term (komemiyut) does not appear anywhere else in the Bible. (In academic study of the Bible, a word that is written only once in the Bible is called a hapax legomenon.) As such, it is even more difficult to discern the meaning of this word since it does not appear in any other biblical texts. Nevertheless, we shall endeavour to uncover the significance of this term and hopefully gain insight into the contexts in which the word (komemiyut) is employed.

First, let us examine the immediate context of this word. In the parsha, God has just listed a series of blessings God will bestow on the Jewish People as long as they are faithful to the Torah. Moreover, God promises that God will relieve the Jewish People of their burdens and “make them walk/go komemiyut“. So what kind of relief is God bringing the nation here? What does God plan to do after the yoke has been lifted off of them? Once the Jewish People have been liberated from physical and spiritual bondage of Egypt, what’s next?

The Torah seems to suggest that the transition from Egypt to a life operating on the principles and practices of the Torah is a difficult one. Therefore, God reassures the people that God will be with them and assist them in tackling the world as they endeavour to live a meaningful Jewish life, and maybe especially establishing that life in the Land of Israel.

Although somewhat of a dense work, The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon sheds some light on this subject with numerous definitions of the Hebrew root ק-ו-מ which is found in our hapax legomenon of קוֹמְמִיּוּת.

Possible Definitions of קוֹמְמִיּוּת based on the Hebrew root ק-ו-מ

to become powerful, to revolt/be hostile, impose (v.)
establishment (n.)
to persist (v.)
carry out, give effect to an oath or covenant (v.)

קוֹמְמִיּוּת

standing up, enduring (adj.)
uprightness – upright, i.e. as freeman (n.)

So, what are we to make of all of this academic unpacking of the word קוֹמְמִיּוּת?

I think קוֹמְמִיּוּת means all of these things listed above. It means endurance and establishment, and maybe even with some hostility and force at times. But it also expresses a desire to persist and to carry out a legacy, a covenant. In order to do so, one must stand firm in one’s beliefs, confident that goodness will surely follow.

I believe that the language of קוֹמְמִיּוּת exemplifies my relationship to and vision of Israel and the founding of a Jewish State. More specifically, Birkat Hamazon also illustrates this objective, as it says:

הרחמן הוא יוליכנו מהרה קוממיות לארצנו

O Merciful One, who will bring us speedily in קוֹמְמִיּוּת to our land.

In this text we ask God to show us mercy and enable us to live out the values and norms laid out in the Torah, and specifically in the Land of Israel. And I suppose in some sense this is how I experience Israel: it is a place that requires tremendous persistence and drive to live up to the standards set forth in the Torah. But it is also a place which enables a life of meaning and consequently elevates my soul. Yet, it is not always easy to experience this elevated spiritual existence personally and/or in the public realm. And so, we strive to endure in this place not for its own sake, but for the sake of what it represents. Every day we aspire to re-establish the State, cultivating our highest values such as compassion, dignity, justice and peace.

As I think about transitioning my life here to North America, I am concerned that I will not be able to recreate the sanctity and spiritual elevation that I experience here. But I suppose this parsha gives me comfort in knowing that this is a struggle that the Torah anticipated. More than that, God offers to support the Jewish People in their venture to live a sanctified life.

I hope and pray that God will bless us all, giving us strength and wisdom to stand upright and firmly realize our vision for Israel, with limited hostility, so that the legacy of the Torah and the Jewish People will endure.

Shabbat Shalom,

Tamara

Why I learn Talmud

Posted on May 19, 2011 by Bogo

A Testimonial by Avigail Hurvitz-Prinz

About a month ago my Talmud class did an exercise where we shared our reasons for studying Gemora. Everyone had their own reasons, and my list came up to a total of 21 reasons as wide ranging as “intellectual challenge” and “to have a sense of the Rabbinic world” or “to find myself a teacher” – but the top of that list was empowerment.

As an adult who first seriously encountered this quintessential Jewish book one-on-one only a few months ago, building skills in Jewish text study was one of my major goals when I came to learn at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies this fall. I wanted to know how to access sources, make sense of them in relation to each other and answer how it is that the Jewish world we live in came to be the way that it is. Imagine my surprise when, at the beginning of the semester, I was actually learning a few different Hebrews all at once (Tanakhic and Mishnaic Hebrew) decoding a new typeface (Rashi script) and a whole new language, Aramaic! My limited modern Hebrew was only minimally helpful. Thankfully, every day my chevruta (my learning partner) and I get a little practice and I get a little more familiar with where to go for help. And you need lots of help when you’re a beginning Talmud student!

First stop, the dictionaries. Is this a technical Talmud term? If yes, turn to Frank (The Practical Talmud Dictionary by Rabbi Yitzchak Frank). If not, try the Jastrow (A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Bavli, Talmud Yerushalmi and Midrashic Literature by Marcus Jastrow). Is the little snippet of what you’re learning right now mentioned? Yes? Well, then, dingdingding! You’ve just found a Jastrow Jackpot and you and your chevruta should high-five across the table. But if you didn’t find your answer in Jastrow, try your neighbors who are in a level above you. The Beit Midrash study hall is a cooperative place, where learning happens not just from teachers but from fellow students – and hopefully they can help to point you in a good direction. Interruptions are part of the fun of learning in the Beit Midrash and the place has a totally different atmosphere than the silent library carrels of my undergraduate days. The Beit Midrash at Pardes is also an incredible place for its uniqueness among the landscape of yeshivot and midrashot – men and women learn together. There are times when I forget just how radical that is – but the truth of the matter is that women have not had consistent access to these Jewish texts for very long, nor is it commonplace for us to be able to sit with male learning partners. At Pardes that is the norm, and it still strikes me as hugely important to the community’s ethos.

The more I learn, the more I realize how much more there is to know. I have spent the last 9 months learning only the most basic tools of what is intended as a life long endeavor. I’m lucky for the time I have spent finally doing Jewish learning not just from handouts prepped by informal Jewish educators like me, but straight through a chapter of Masechet Megilla and all of the tidbits it contained. Among my gleanings: the answer for why we repeat a verse in the special Torah reading for the new month, sources for why women may or may not read Torah publicly (depending on your interpretation of the sources) and some insights into behaviors Jews in the Mishnaic period considered heretical (round Tefillin or dressing like “separatists” only in white or wearing no shoes!). Many of these gleanings are interesting to me anthropologically, as they describe the history of Jewish practice. But even more important to me than some of the particular facts I’ve learned is the way I am able to simply open the page and make my way through the Talmud, albeit slowly and with lots of support. My work is not done, but my pursuit of Jewish literacy got a huge boost from the time I have spent at Pardes. Learning from my teachers, my peers and from the sources has been an invaluable way to spend my year – and one whose treasures I look forward to discovering as my Jewish journey continues.

Avigail Hurvitz-Prinz learned at Pardes in 2010-2011. Avigail grew up in San Diego County, and ventured to the great Northwest to attend Reed College where she graduated with a degree in Religion and subsequently worked as Senior Assistant Dean of Admission. From January 2008 until her time at Pardes, Avigail worked as a program associate on Hazon’s Food Programs.

Starstruck

Posted on February 8, 2011 by Pious Antic

Rabbi Yitzhak Frank gave a lecture on Aramaic grammar at Pardes last week.

The casual reader of this blog could be forgiven for failing to leap out of his chair in excitement after reading the above sentence. I, however, was simply giddy when I walked into the beit midrash and saw Rabbi Frank standing there in flesh. I’ve kept my cool with personages orders of magnitude more famous than this scholar, but then again, none of them have been authors of books that I have occasion to consult with such regularity (with the possible exception of Wallace Shawn). The Frank dictionary, which explains the usage of the most common words and phrases in the Talmud, has been an almost indispensable tool in my studies for the past two years.

His lecture covered some of the basics of Aramaic grammar, which are often overlooked or misunderstood by even advanced students of the Talmud. This rather dry topic had me squirming with excitement. As someone whose ability to parse biblical passages is rooted in a strong understanding of Hebrew grammar (Thanks, Rabbi Posner!), I have found it frustrating to muddle through Aramaic texts with little sense of what form or what tense each verb is in. Though most of Rabbi Frank’s lecture was review for me, I was glad to get some ideas for how to go about learning and teaching the subject from the man who literally wrote the book on Aramaic grammar.

Resources

Posted on May 2, 2010 by Naomi A.

Well, we seem to have taken a bit of a vacation here at These and Those, but I think it’s high time that the blog gets back in action.

A few weeks ago, I was innocently walking down the hallway when I heard a phrase that will always strike fear into my heart – “Naomi, can I see you in my office please?”

Dean Bernstein called myself and a fellow student, Ben, into his office to speak about putting together some programs focused on life after Pardes. There were some interesting ideas tossed around – programs focused on teaching prayer skills, informal education, “coming out” as halachic Jews to our friends and family, etc. After a few brainstorming sessions, a survey, and asking around for assistance, the first of our sessions happened last Thursday during lunch.

Tamara, one of the students in the Educators program, offered to lead a session called “Learning Outside of the Mazda Dealership” focused on individual study and learning outside of Pardes. For those of you missing Pardes, or looking for a way to get a little more Talmud in your life, here are some tips and tricks from our session:

Learning Talmud Outside the Mazda Dealership…

Tips for Finding a Study Partner

Speak to as many people as you can about learning together – family members, friends, coworkers, people you interact with on a day-to-day basis – a lot of people are interested in learning Talmud\TaNaCH and are also looking for someone to study with.
You don’t have to be in the same place to maintain a chevruta – you can study together over the phone\Skype.

Individual Learning

Most of us are used to the chevruta\shir model, but it’s not the only model for learning – you don’t necessarily need a chevruta, or to learn in shir.
ArtScroll is NOT CHEATING (ask Zvi Hirschfeld)
Jastrow talmud dictionary is available online (google Talmud dictionary)
Buy a copy of the Frank dictionary!
The internet is a fantastic resource – shiurim, podcasts, and live feeds available

For someone who has done a lot of independent study, what is the best way to structure your time?

It depends on the person; Shabbat can be a great time for learning.
Alternate Jewish and non-Jewish books
Sign up for a daily halacha\Torah e-mail (like the URJ 10 Minutes of Torah project)
Many shlichim in North America are partially supported by a religious movement, so they have time to dedicate to studying – ask one to study with you!

Where can I purchase less-expensive sfarim in America?

You can buy used sfarim online (jewishusedbooks.com, discountseforim.com)

Sometimes, the best way to learn is to teach – maybe leading an informal discussion group

DAF YOMI
Many communities have the custom to learn a double-sided page (daf) of Talmud daily. This practice is known as DAF YOMI (“page of the day”). It’s a great way to keep up with your Talmud individually while feeling part of a larger community of learners!

RESOURCES
User-friendly books:: Artscroll & Steinzaltz editions of the Talmud

http://dafyomi.org/

http://www.dafyomi.co.il/sanhedrin/insites/sn-dt-002.htm

http://www.ouradio.org/daf

TOPICAL STUDY

http://www.webyeshiva.org/shiurim.php

http://www.onlineshiurim.org/shas.shtml

http://www.vbm-torah.org/

http://www.jtsa.edu/Conservative_Judaism/JTS_Torah_Commentary.xml

http://www.aish.com

http://www.mechonhadar.org/yeshivat-hadar1

Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies

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