These and Those

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

Tag Archives: God / Hashem

[Pardes From Jerusalem Podcast] Ki Tissa 5773: Breaking the Tablets

Posted on February 28, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media

This week, Rabbi Meir Schweiger discusses Parashat Ki Tissa in “Breaking the Tablets.” Ki Tissa ’73 Shabbat shalom!

Eretz HaQedoshah

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Michael Sassoon

I shared these words with the Pardes community at Community Lunch last week before my (temporary!) departure: My experience here in Israel and at Pardes has been breathtaking. I feel the following verse playing itself out here for me in terms of things I’ve done, places and people I’ve seen, delicacies I’ve tasted: אנכי ה` Continue Reading »

[Alumni Guest Post] Sara Brandes – A Purim D’var Torah (a spoken word piece)

Posted on February 11, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media

Rosh Chodesh Adar is almost over, but Purim is coming soon! A Provocative Purim Poem by Sara Brandes (Year ’01, Fellows ’02, Elul ’05) ENJOY! Rabbi Sara Brandes lives in Los Angeles, CA, with her husband Hyim, and two children, Michal (5) and Gavi (2). She is West Coast Regional Director at Moving Traditions, and Continue Reading »

My Dvar on Mishpatim from Chabad House on Campus’ Student Shabbat 2011

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Derek Kwait

The University of Pittsburgh’s Chabad House, run by two of my heroes, R. Shmuel and Sara Weinstein, is one of my favorite places on earth and one that has had an inestimable impact on my identity as a Jew. Once, when in late January 2011 they took a very rare Shabbat away, we students decided Continue Reading »

[PCJE Dvar Torah] Mishpatim: Seeing our Personal God (by Leah Kahn)

Posted on February 7, 2013 by Leah Kahn

In last week’s Parsha, Yitro, we left B’nei Yisrael at Mt. Sinai, having just received the Ten Commandments directly from the mouth of God. Most would agree that they are reasonable commandments, which aim to help this newly freed people maintain order and positive values as a newly minted nation. Switching gears immediately from the Continue Reading »

[PCJE Dvar Torah] Yitro/Reuel Midrash by Annie Matan Gilbert

Posted on January 31, 2013 by Annie Matan Gilbert

This week’s parsha, Yitro, mentions Moses’ father-in-law (known by seven names in Tanakh.)  In Yitro, he swoops in, Jean-Luc Picard style, to teach Moses how to delegate and manage his community more efficiently and then swoops out again. This midrash was written at Pardes in 2009-2010 and tells the story of their meeting and how their Continue Reading »

What is a prayer? [pt. 3 in a series]

Posted on January 28, 2013 by Avi Benson-Goldberg

(Part 1, Part 2, Part 3) It’s been quite a long time since we last checked in. As you might recall, in parts one and two, we looked at what Meir and Rahel had to say about praying. The arrangement of the shiur was fascinating, because we heard first from a very capable prayer, and Continue Reading »

[Pardes From Jerusalem Podcast] Beshallach 5773: The Manna

Posted on January 24, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media

This week, Rabbi Michael Hattin discusses Parashat Beshallach in The Manna Beshallach 5773 Shabbat shalom!

[Student Profile] Ben Gurin & Sydni Adler

Posted on January 21, 2013 by David Bogomolny

Sydni Adler (Year ’13) and Ben Gurin (Year ’13) met during the Summer of ’10 in Washington DC, as participants on the Mechon Kaplan program of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. Together with their cohort, they took classes on Social Justice and Judaism, and each interned for an NGO; Sydni worked on campaign Continue Reading »

[PCJE Dvar Torah] Jeff Amshalem — Circles and Lines: the Maor vaShamesh on Parshat Beshalach

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Jeff Amshalem

An abridged version of a teaching from R. Kalonymus Kalpan Halevi Epstein, the Maor vaShamesh. וַתִּקַּח מִרְיָם הַנְּבִיאָה אֲחוֹת אַהֲרֹן אֶת הַתֹּף בְּיָדָהּ וַתֵּצֶאןָ כָל הַנָּשִׁים אַחֲרֶיהָ בְּתֻפִּים וּבִמְחֹלֹת: וַתַּעַן לָהֶם מִרְיָם שִׁירוּ לַי־הֹוָ־ה כִּי גָאֹה גָּאָה סוּס וְרֹכְבוֹ רָמָה בַיָּם                 Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, Continue Reading »