Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on November 17, 2011 by Barer
This week’s parsha, with bookends describing the death of Sarah and the other descendents of Avraham and the descendents Yishma’el, deals mainly with the mission of Avraham’s servant to find a wife for Yitzchak. Reading the text, I was struck by how repetitive the story is. First, Avraham tells his servant what to do in Continue Reading »
Posted on November 15, 2011 by Shibley
Throughout Jewish history, since the destruction of the Second Temple, up to the present day, Jews have longed for a return to Jerusalem. At weddings, in blessings after meals, in the t’fillot, in song, and in literature, the Jewish soul yearns for Jerusalem, the center of the Jewish universe. Two Shabbatot ago, I was in Continue Reading »
Posted on November 5, 2011 by Derek Kwait
(X-posted from my home blog, Yinzer in Yerushalayim) It’s finally hoodie weather here in Jerusalem. It had been getting progressively cooler each day for the past two weeks–at first, it was just cold at night, but this week, for the first time, I needed to wear a hoodie any time I went outside, even in Continue Reading »
Posted on November 3, 2011 by Suzi
Wrote this last night: It’s RAINING in Jerusalem Thanks to all the Jews who’ve been praying for this–but couldn’t you have asked it to wait until I got home? Though it was fun walking up Ben Yehuda and watching everybody dancing in the downpour, getting soaked and not caring one tiny bit about it…the youngsters, Continue Reading »
Posted on November 3, 2011 by Suzi
Interesting experience a couple weeks ago. As some of you know, I’m exploring Jerusalem’s various shuls and traditions. Carlebach, Sephardic, traditional, Modern Orthodox, egalitarian so far. Since I’m in a city with a minyan on every corner, why not! A friend had told me that Kol Haneshama, a Reform kehillah, was holding Simchat Torah services 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 October 29, 2011 by Derek Kwait
Ever since I’ve arrived here there’s been stuff I wanted to talk about but just didn’t have room for in that week’s blog post. Since this was a relatively slow week, I thought this would be a good opportunity to share some of them, but I’ll start with the biggest story from this week: *So Continue Reading »
Posted on October 26, 2011 by Lauren Schuchart
Cross-posted from “Life According to Lauren”: Today, it rained in Jerusalem for the first time this season! Why is this so notable? The middle east faces a chronic water problem. Every bit of water is crucial to the well-being of this arid region, and when there isn’t rain, people suffer in a dangerous way. Continue Reading »
Posted on October 23, 2011 by Shibley
In our efforts to try and find spirituality and deep connections in prayer often lead us to take t’fillah very seriously. Generally, that is a practice which I would commend, and even recommend, since it would theoretically allow us to block out distractions and concentrate solely on our relationship with Gd. Perhaps the best example Continue Reading »
Posted on October 9, 2011 by Shibley
I will be the first to admit that Yom Kippur is one of my favorite days of the year. Between the liturgical poetry, the beautiful nusach, and the freedom from caring about my appearance, or physical sustenance, the experience is a catharsis of emotions and senses. Even with all of the positives, I found myself Continue Reading »
