These and Those

Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem

Tag Archives: dvar Torah

Dvar Tzedek

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Derek Kwait

In Social Justice, everyone must give at least one d’var tzedek during the course of the semester. Here is my first: I was raised by television. When I was little, we lived on a busy street with no boys, meaning instead of going outside to play, I sat inside watching TV and playing with action Continue Reading »

The Shabbaton

Posted on September 23, 2011 by Derek Kwait

Who we are slideshow What we’re looking at slideshow (X-posted to my home blog Yinzer in Yerushalayim on the side column.)   I can’t write about last weekend’s Shabbaton at the Beit Yehuda Hostel in the southwest of Jerusalem. To properly capture an experience so jam-packed and uplifting, with so much bonding, learning, singing, eating, Continue Reading »

Jewish Pedagogy

Posted on September 6, 2011 by Barer

Having recently returned to studying at Pardes I have noticed that there are two basic types of Jewish pedagogy.  There are countless Jewish texts, from the Torah to the most obscure commentaries, but regardless of the source being drawn on, a teacher can choose to present an idea or set of ideas in one of Continue Reading »

Thoughts on T’Shuva

Posted on April 9, 2011 by Pious Antic

What is t’shuvah? The word is often translated as repentance, but that doesn’t quite capture it. T’shuvah comes from a root meaning to return, and it connotes the idea of turning away from sin and returning to one’s true values, to the best version of oneself, as well as the idea of figuratively returning to Continue Reading »

Mumbling

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Shibley

It is possible to identify Jewish prayer using several physical movements. For more on those movements, I refer you to this article found on My Jewish Learning. However, the article lacks one movement that is central Jewish, or any prayer, the lips. Without the lips, expressing words is very difficult. This is not to say Continue Reading »

What I Learned at Pardes This Week #6

Posted on November 27, 2010 by Pious Antic

This is a cross-post from my personal blog. Earlier this week, in Judy Klitsner’s Bereshit class, we were looking at the issue of Noah’s naming. When he names him, his father Lemech explains the name, saying “this one will give us relief from our work and the toil of our ands from the land which Continue Reading »

[PEP Student] Dvar Torah: Guard Your Ears!

Posted on November 21, 2010 by Tamara Frankel

Dear Friends, Today, I am inspired to write by two of my dear friends and beloved chevrutot (learning partners): Merissa Nathan Gerson and Dana Adler. Thank you Merissa and Dana! Last week’s parsha, Vayishlach, is filled with a lot of difficult questions and interactions. To name a few: Yaakov wrestles with an angel and is Continue Reading »

Questioning the Objectivity of Text Interpretation by Ben Barer

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Eryn

I would like to frame this d’var torah as one in which I am exploring Judaism on my own terms. Much of the new ‘positive’ thinking that I have engaged in since beginning my semester at Pardes – that, on the heels of fairly wide-ranging cynicism that reached new heights this past summer – can Continue Reading »

[PEP Student] The Foundation of Faith

Posted on October 25, 2010 by Tamara Frankel

Dear Friends, I hope all is well with you and that your week has been a productive and uplifting one! Thank God, I can say that mine has been very busy — but with the best of things: Torah study, Torah study, more Torah study, spending time with family and friends and enjoying the beauty Continue Reading »