Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on March 13, 2013 by Annie Matan Gilbert
This Rosh Hodesh was my second time attending Rosh Hodesh davenning at WoW. Last month, I was glad to check it out and feel like I was part of something important but between the cameras and security, I struggled to feel like I was davenning. This Rosh Hodesh, two amazing things happened. 1) I got 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 March 1, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
Ben Barer (Fall ’11, Fellows ’12) shares his thoughts on MK Ruth Calderon’s inaugural Knesset speech: I had never watched an inaugural Knesset (Israeli Parliament) speech before Dr. Calderon’s (Hebrew; English). However, I, and many in the Jewish world, watched new MK Ruth Calderon’s speech with interest. A member of the rising Yesh Atid (There Continue Reading »
Posted on February 17, 2013 by David Bogomolny
On Saturday, I returned to the Kotel to daven at the minyan that I’d happened upon the previous Shabbat. Once again, the group was friendly, and one of the participants noted that I had arrived on time, which he encouraged me to do again. On my way through the Old City to minyan, I found myself Continue Reading »
Posted on February 12, 2013 by David Bogomolny
Over the course of the past several years, I’ve come to learn that it’s not entirely clear whether praying in a minyan is halakhically required or not. Granted, most sources agree that praying in a minyan is at least encouraged & laudable… but ultimately, my halakhic obligation is to pray the correct services (morning, afternoon, evening) at the correct times. Outside of Continue Reading »
Posted on February 3, 2013 by David Bogomolny
I can’t speak highly enough of Ben Barer (Fellows ’12), and I am consistently appreciative of his blogging. His recent post on ‘Picking Our Battles’ gave me pause because Ben and I agree on many things, but we’ve chosen different sides of the “Orthodox Community” – he’s chosen to be outside of it, and I’ve Continue Reading »
Posted on February 1, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
Posted by Ben Barer (Fellows ’12): When you stop to consider the problems plaguing our world (now, as in any other time in history), it can be daunting to the point of being immobilizing. How can I possibly choose, based on such imperfect knowledge, where to most effectively apply myself, and, even if I do, Continue Reading »
Posted on January 22, 2013 by David Bogomolny
After joining AmeriCorps, getting a graduate degree in public policy, and working for several years at the U.S. Department of Energy, I’ve developed a fascination with politics. I read a lot about U.S. politics, which I’m very familiar with, on a regular basis even though I’ve actually been living in Israel for the past several Continue Reading »
Posted on January 10, 2013 by Andrea Wiese
From my blog: We were all awake long before we finally received the email from Pardes to tell us that school was canceled. We all knew, there was a blizzard coming down outside our windows! The city had already shut down the afternoon before because of some hail. We quickly rallied and got a group Continue Reading »
Posted on December 14, 2012 by Andrea Wiese
Originally posted on my blog: I recently learned about Women of the Wall and their struggle for equality at the Kotel, the Western Wall, the most significant religious site for Jews. Every Rosh Chodesh they go to the Kotel to pray together in a minyan (technically, a group of 10 Jewish men, but for them, Continue Reading »
