Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on July 2, 2013 by Ben Macdonald
Two months ago, I decided to do a little experiment. For those who haven’t heard me talking about it, I decided to take 30 days and live shomer mitzvot. I started on Yom HaZikaron and ended on Shavuot and from the first day in I had a really difficult time. First off I needed to Continue Reading »
Posted on May 12, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
Sarah Margles (Year ’02, PEP ’04) reflects upon preparing for Shavuot… what does “readiness” mean? I remember when I first started at Pardes, I would spend much of Fridays getting ready for Shabbat – shopping, cooking, cleaning. When the siren went to light candles, my roommate would inevitably yell out, while running from the bathroom Continue Reading »
Posted on May 2, 2013 by Laura Marder
What if What if we were all self absorbed and never helped one another? Could you imagine never grasping a hand if you stumbled, or borrowing a bit of money in a pinch. What would our world look like if we never supported each other? Emotionally. Financially. Physically. Spiritually. Would you ever feel empowered or Continue Reading »
Posted on April 8, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
Daniel Shibley (Yr. ’11, Fellows ’12) shared the following: As the clock turned from 9:59 to 10:00, it began. Quietly at first, and then reaching a volume that brings all of Israel to a halt. The siren of Yom Hashoah silenced all other man-made noises, leaving every body to their own thoughts and memories of Continue Reading »
Posted on March 28, 2013 by Stuart Matan Lithwick
Hello! I spent the entirety of last week doing very little but learning so much! Annie and I went on the week-long Jewish meditation retreat, taught by Rabbi James Jacobson-Maisels (think Self, Soul, and Text), and Rabbi Jeff Roth, at Kibbutz Hannaton. Over the entire week, we could not talk to anyone except for participating Continue Reading »
Posted on March 18, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
Damian (PEP ’04-’06) is currently teaching elementary schoolin Even Yehuda, Israel, and taught for four years at TarbutV’Torah before making Aliyah with his family. The time I spent with friends and teachers studying the wisdom of our people at Pardes was a magical time in my life. I was a student, learning every day with Continue Reading »
Posted on March 11, 2013 by Gabby Goodman
Literally running into (or rather, alongside of) DLK‘s team of 10k Jerusalem Marathon route walkers this past Friday morning reminded me all over again of the thrill that was the morning of March 1st – the Jerusalem Marathon. Although I do have to say that as beautiful as the walk must have been a week Continue Reading »
Posted on March 10, 2013 by Naomi Bilmes
From my blog: I am usually a very tolerant person, especially when people are trying to understand human diversity. I will kindly explain that, no, Connecticut is not New York and that, yes, I would rather watch reruns of “Gilmore Girls” than new episodes of “Jersey Shore.” I will gladly explain that I would much Continue Reading »
Posted on January 29, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
From Alissa Thomas’ (Spring ’11) S Blog: Teshuvah is a lifelong work in progress. Every year during Elul and the Yamim Noraim, I find myself digging deep into the process of teshuvah. I think to myself that I would love to feel such an intense spiritual desire toward growth and tikkun year-round. But each year after the chagim pass and I get more entrenched Continue Reading »
Posted on January 23, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
From Lauren Henderson’s (Summer ’09, Year ’10) blog: The d’var torah (more or less) that I gave at Sunday night’s Encounter Leadership Seminar: When I first got to Israel in the fall and started to get acquainted with the current stagnant political situation (for both domestic and foreign issues), I started to actually hope that Continue Reading »
