Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on May 12, 2013 by Andrea Wiese
From my blog: Friday morning was a blur. A scary blur. I didn’t wake up until 6:24 AM when my roommate screamed, “WIESE.” And I jumped out of bed, how could this happen, on a day that was so important to me? Never mind…we jumped in a taxi and I ran down to the women’s Continue Reading »
Posted on January 12, 2013 by Andrea Wiese
From my blog: “An individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law.” ― Martin Luther King Jr. I know this sounds naive, Continue Reading »
Posted on May 19, 2012 by Derek Kwait
(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 Continue Reading »
Posted on April 4, 2012 by J. Belasco
About a month and a half ago, I went to Hevron for Shabbat with a few Pardesniks to visit a fellow student’s wife’s family. His wife actually grew up in Hevron; and her parents still live there today. I was very grateful for the family’s generosity and hospitality, and for the chance they gave me to experience Continue Reading »
Posted on February 25, 2012 by Derek Kwait
(X-posted from my home blog, Yinzer in Yerushalayim) There is a Jewish saying that when the month of Adar enters, joy increases, and another that when Adar comes, the world stands on its head. Officially, Rosh Chodesh Adar was Thursday, but the preceding week gave it a running start. The first day of Women Continue Reading »
Posted on October 31, 2011 by Laura H.
My relationship with the Kotel is in constant flux. To be honest, I struggle with connecting to the Kotel a lot, and have done so ever since I first came to Israel when I was 13 years old. Despite this struggle, every time I come to Israel, I make a point of visiting the Kotel. Continue Reading »
Posted on May 23, 2011 by Aviva P.
Prior to coming to Israel, my mother tried made me promise her three things: I won’t date an Israeli I won’t move to Israel/want to make aliyah I won’t become orthodox While somehow I believed that there was no reason for my mom to be concerned (1) Israelis are difficult, 2) I liked living in Continue Reading »
Posted on April 13, 2011 by Shibley
Last Shabbat I had the pleasure of trying out a new synagogue in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Nachlaot called Kol Rina. Kol Rina meets in a miklat (bomb shelter), and you could easily miss it. Once inside, it appears as if this is a full service synagogue, with a newsletter, committees, a library, events, a Continue Reading »
Posted on December 29, 2010 by Shibley
When living in Israel, one is afforded the opportunity to attend many different places for t’fillot. On every corner there is a beit k’neset (synagogue) which is ready to welcome any passerby. Each one is a little different in terms of spacial arrangement, attendance, and general atmosphere. I’ve referenced on a few occasions the importance Continue Reading »
Posted on November 7, 2009 by Katie
Two wonderful things happened to me this week that made me realize why Pardes was the best place I could be post college. One was that I had an amazing conversation with one of my teachers this past week over lunch discussing feminism and Judaism. We discussed our struggle with being obligated or not, how Continue Reading »
