Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on October 14, 2014 by Binyamin Cohen
Night Seder Chevrutas Binyamin Cohen and David Wallach join together to reflect on this week’s parshah. Kohelet, the book of Ecclesiastes, which we read on Shabbat Chol HaMoed Sukkot, is a depressing and troubling book. It is written by “Kohelet the son of David, king in Jerusalem” (Ecc. 1:1). Who was this king, and why Continue Reading »
Posted on September 12, 2014 by Dita Ribner Cooper
For many of us at Pardes, the past few weeks have been marked by transition. We have arrived in a new place, moved into new apartments, met new teachers, roommates, and friends, explored new texts for the very first time, and have been awed and overwhelmed by the wealth of opportunities Pardes has to offer Continue Reading »
Posted on August 9, 2014 by Laura Marder
From my blog: Emotions are high as I walk the streets of Brooklyn and even venture into the big city. I just keep walking. Trying to get my mind to catch up with my physical being. I am no longer wandering the streets of Jerusalem. These are not the same people, not the same corner Continue Reading »
Posted on June 22, 2014 by Farrah Udell
Farrah Udell (Year ’11) blogs about life as a new mom on Reflective Mama. She lives with her husband Jeff and son Isaac in Kansas City; and loves baby giggles, social entrepreneurship, coffee dates, and great chevrutas. Find her on Twitter @farrahudell. I used to daydream about building our Jewish family. I would bake challah Continue Reading »
Posted on May 7, 2014 by Dita Ribner Cooper
It is no great secret that to be present in Israel during the week of Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut is one of the most emotional, saddening, joyous, and challenging experiences a Jew can have in the present day. In a span of 48 hours, the Jewish people collectively descend into a state of national Continue Reading »
Posted on April 6, 2014 by Alanna Kleinman
From my blog: A few nights ago I went to a music and light festival in the old city. Earlier that day, I signed a contract for my job next year- working with Jewish communities in the South, based in Jackson Mississippi. I’ve become aware of what little time I have left in Israel, and Continue Reading »
Posted on April 3, 2014 by Josh Pernick
“I’m not totally sure what the appropriate response is” was all that I could come up with in the moment. How could I effectively convey my feelings towards my friend, who had just informed me that she was going to be moving halfway across the country? While moving to new cities has become a way Continue Reading »
Posted on March 26, 2014 by Laura Marder
I am having so much fun with my 7th graders at Hannah Senesh Community Day School. We are learning Bmidbar 13 and 14. These chapters really speak to where the students are in their lives. They, like Bnai Yisrael are close to embarking on a journey to a new land…. The HIGH SCHOOL! The 8th Continue Reading »
Posted on March 1, 2014 by Emet Ozar
I shared these parting words at community lunch on Thursday, and Jess posted them to her blog: In this week’s parsha, Pekudei, Moshe and the Israelites are continuing to work hard to complete the Mishkan according to Gd’s specifications. At the end of the parsha, the very last chapter of the book of Shemot, the Continue Reading »
Posted on February 28, 2014 by Benjamin Friedman
“Without a profound simplification the world around us would be an infinite, undefined tangle that would defy our ability to orient ourselves and decide upon our actions…. We are compelled to reduce the knowable to a schema.” -Primo Levi The above quotation by Holocaust survivor Primo Levi says something profound yet simple about human nature Continue Reading »
