Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on March 16, 2013 by Aaron Voldman
I miss Pardes so much. As I shared with my classmates and teachers before departing, it was a dream to learn in Israel and my experience at Pardes turned out so much better than I ever anticipated! I feel very grateful to my classmates for sharing your insights in class, and for in havruta study Continue Reading »
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 »
Posted on January 12, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
By Mira B. Shore (Summer ’09, ’10; Year ’12) As a self-identified progressive, liberal, secular Jew growing up at Jewish Day School, I spent a lot of my time and energy speaking about why prayer and G-d were NOT a part of my life. I actively ran from prayer. Once I had my bat-mitzvah, there Continue Reading »
Posted on January 3, 2013 by The Director of Digital Media
This week, Rabbi James Jacobson-Maisels discusses Parashat Shemot in “Fear of Sin, Mindfulness, and a Softened Heart.” james shemot Shabbat Shalom!
Posted on January 3, 2013 by Annie Matan Gilbert
Thanks to Joseph Shamash for leading an inspiring Creative Shacharit this morning! We spent time practicing the Desire meditation from James Jacobson-Maisels’ Self, Soul and Text class, then were given paper and pens and markers to express what came up for us in the form of a drawing or a prayer, etc. Here is what Continue Reading »
Posted on December 19, 2012 by Avi Benson-Goldberg
(Part 1, Part 2, Part 3) Pardes was rocked by a shiur clalli (public class) about prayer in the Jewish world, particularly as experienced by three of our teachers: Rahel Berkovits, James Jacobson-Maisels, and Meir Schweiger. It was certainly an honor to see these teachers of ours open themselves up and expose the real humans inside! Continue Reading »
Posted on December 5, 2012 by Shoshana Rosen
By Shoshana Rosen How do I even begin to put into words, an experience that in its essence has no words? Just recently coming back from a silent meditation shabbaton, up north at Kibbutz Hannaton I realize only how much it impacted me by the stark reality of coming back home. Like many have said Continue Reading »
Posted on December 5, 2012 by David Bogomolny
Fixed prayer is a salient element of halakha (Jewish law). Jews committed to halakha pray 3x every day (morning, afternoon, evening), and for many it is challenging to find meaning in the mandated, daily recitation of standardized liturgy. A couple of years ago, I took a class that explored various spiritual practices in Hasidic and Continue Reading »
Posted on November 26, 2012 by The Director of Digital Media
This dvar Torah was written by James Jacobson-Maisels (Pardes Kollel ’01-’03). Today, we know and love James as one of our amazing Pardes faculty, teaching classes such as ‘Self, Soul & Text’, and running our Pardes Spirituality Retreats! One of the great mitzvot, modeled in our recent parshiot by Avraham Avinu, is hakhnasat orchim, the Continue Reading »
Posted on October 10, 2012 by Heather Kantrowitz
Originally posted on Sept. 19: Hello friends and family!! I’ve finally started school, and it’s been keeping me so busy I haven’t had time to update my blog. So, here’s the past two weeks in a nutshell: 1)SO MUCH LEARNING 2)SO MANY NEW FRIENDS! School: It’s been a combination of challenging and rewarding so far. Continue Reading »
