Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on September 8, 2012 by Leah Kahn
In looking back at our Poland Heritage Trip in January, it’s quite difficult to fathom just how much we witnessed in 5 short days. We began with the colorful tapestry of Jewish life that existed in Warsaw and Lublin, which was hardly a foreshadowing of what was to come. We tapped into the spirituality of Continue Reading »
Posted on May 30, 2012 by Andrew Lustig
Originally posted on the Masa Blog: I came to Israel – to the Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies – 10 months ago, so that I could study and become familiar with Jewish text. I wanted very much to live a ‘Jewish life.’ I just didn’t know what that entailed or meant. Judaism, for 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 March 29, 2012 by Lauren Schuchart
(The fourth in a series of 5 posts detailing my heritage trip to Poland… originally posted on my blog) ___________________ Belzec “Earth do not cover my blood / Let there be no resting place for my outcry” (Job 16:18) When many people think of concentration camps, they think of Auschwitz. Why? Because many of Continue Reading »
Posted on March 27, 2012 by Lauren Schuchart
(The second in a series of 5 posts detailing my heritage trip to Poland… originally posted on my blog) ___________________ Gone Now are Those Little Towns “Gone now are those little towns where the shoemaker was a poet, the watchmaker a philosopher, the barber a troubadour…” –Antoni Sionimski, “Elegy for the Jewish Villages” Tykocin
Posted on February 21, 2012 by Leah Stern
This was it. This was the part of the trip that I had most been afraid of. I had always been afraid of visiting this place, it was part of the reason I had delayed going to Poland until now. The name that is engraved on the heart of every Jew: Auschwitz. I have always Continue Reading »
Posted on February 20, 2012 by Mira
The shift from first semester to second semester started during our week off when half of Pardes went on a tiyul to the Arava desert. I’m not a hiking fan, but I love the desert in Israel and have always felt connected to it. This was a wonderful opportunity for me to reflect on my Continue Reading »
Posted on February 4, 2012 by Derek Kwait
(X-posted from my home blog, Yinzer in Yerushalayim) I decided to challenge myself this semester, to fully take advantage of my time here by trying new Jewish things and getting outside my comfort zones. Since every subject of Torah has its own special jargon, world view, sources, legends, authorities, inside jokes, the result has been Continue Reading »
Posted on January 16, 2012 by Derek Kwait
(X-posted from my home blog, Yinzer in Yerushalayim) As I end my first semester in Israel, I am surrounded by reminders of where I come from and how I got here. It started last Thursday night, when I made halushki, a Central/Eastern European dish popular in Western Pennsylvania, at my friend מיכאל’s (pronounced “Mee-kha-el”) apartment Continue Reading »
Posted on December 4, 2011 by Barer
Deborah grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts, where her family was active in a local chavura, as well as a Conservative shul. When Deborah was eight years old, her mother decided to attend the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC), and her family moved to the Philadelphia area. While studying at RRC, her mother also became very involved Continue Reading »
