Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on July 4, 2011 by Barer
[Re-posted from here…a few days late, I know] In this week’s parsha, one of the most famous of all of the happenings of the Israelites’ forty years in the desert occurs when Moshe hits the rock to produce water. In the absence of his sister Miriam, who has just died, the source of water – Continue Reading »
Posted on June 30, 2011 by Avi Strausberg
this parsha is one that sits heavy with death. for one thing, early on, we get the description of what to do when one comes in contact with a dead body. and then, as if the Torah was simply giving us the procedure in order to prepare us for what’s to come, we learn of Continue Reading »
Posted on June 30, 2011 by Tamara Frankel
Dear Friends, This week, I write to you for the last time sitting in my kitchen in Jerusalem. Or at least this particular kitchen in Jerusalem! Two years of blissful study and personal growth are finally coming to a close, as this is my last Shabbat in Jerusalem for some time. I know that I Continue Reading »
Posted on June 24, 2011 by Barer
[Cross-posted from my blog, where you can find a parsha haiku every week] Reading this week’s parsha with Rashi brought up an interesting point for me, one to do with how the early commentators read the text more than with the topic of this week’s parsha specifically (the haiku reflects the theme of the parsha). Continue Reading »
Posted on June 23, 2011 by Tamara Frankel
Dear Friends, The scene: the Pardes bet midrash. The time: Thursday afternoon, an hour or so after class dismissal. The players: a bunch of students and big pile of books. Oddly I find myself at home in this lonely place. The books and the buzz of learning, although minimal as it is “off season” Continue Reading »
Posted on June 21, 2011 by Avi Strausberg
in this week’s parsha, there is a fair amount of death. entire families are swallowed up by the earth. a raging fire consumes two hundred and fifty men. an infectious plague spreads wildly and kills fourteen thousand and seven hundred people. this is the price for challenging authority. these deaths are all in retaliation for Continue Reading »
Posted on June 19, 2011 by Tamara Frankel
Dear Friends, As some of you may know, I’m still in Jerusalem and about to complete my final project at Pardes. Although it is a bit bizarre to learn in the Pardes building with many of my friends, colleagues and teachers missing, I have enjoyed studying Torah lishma (for its own/Heaven’s sake) and participating in Continue Reading »
Posted on June 17, 2011 by Avi Strausberg
once again the israelites take to complaining, railing against God, moshe, and anyone else who will listen regarding their miserable fate in the desert. last week, it was bitter cries about the camp food, longing for the nostalgized days of the meat and fish galore in egypt. this week, it’s fears that the people will Continue Reading »
Posted on June 12, 2011 by Tamara Frankel
Dear Friends, I hope you are well, recovering from dairy-filled Shavuot meals and enjoying the beautiful weather of summer. Here in Jerusalem, summer has certainly arrived and we managed to make it through only ONE day of dairy meals on Shavuot. As some of you may know, this week was also the graduation of my Continue Reading »
Posted on June 8, 2011 by Avi Strausberg
this week, God instructs moshe to put into place a sound system in order to summon the community and gather the troops. with two different trumpets at their disposal, God establishes a morse code used for relaying information. two trumpets/long blast: everyone gather around. one trumpet/long blast: just the chiefs. one set of short blasts: Continue Reading »
