Yom Kippur

Growing up, Yom Kippur was a day that was set apart from the rest of the year: I got a day off from school, making my non-Jewish friends sick with envy (suckas!); I sat through services at synagogue, hungry, grouchy, and trying to not talk smack about people in the congregation; and the tradition concluded with going to my cousin's house in Philadelphia to break the fast, with ridiculous amounts of food and loud conversation. Yom Kippur was, and always will be, a time to spend with family.

But after studying Yom Kippur for the past few weeks, I have a new appreciation and reverence for this very holy day. Yom Kippur is translated as the "day of atonement." It is the culmination of the period of time in which we ask for forgiveness for our sins. For 25 hours, we communally confess our sins, we physically afflict ourselves (fasting), and we petition to be inscribed in the symbolic "Book of Life" for the coming year.

We stand before God, and essentially say, "I can do better. I want to do better. Please help me to do better."

I learned many things over the past month about the laws and philosophies of the High Holy Days. It's all very fascinating, and gives me a greater understanding and insight into what the day is really about. But the most meaningful learning that I did was a "Practical Repentance Workshop." 

We were asked to write down our answers to a series of questions. Here is a selection of them:

• How can I be a better daughter/son? A better sibling? A better roommate? A better student?
• Who are two people (that love me) that I should ask for forgiveness from?
• Who are two people (that might not love me) that I should ask for forgiveness from?
• Two things that I did this year that I'm most proud of.
• Two things that I did that don't reflect the "real me."
• How can I go about becoming the best me?

The word for "sin" in Hebrew can also mean to "miss the mark." This workshop was a time to honestly reflect and ask myself: How have I missed the mark this year? What are the areas that I need to improve in the coming year? And what are the practical steps to do this?

"I can do better. I want to do better. Please help me to do better."

For all of you out there who are observing the holiday, I wish you an easy and meaningful fast. And as all the buses in Israel now say, g'mar chatima tova! May you be inscribed in the Book of Life!

Happy Shiny People

Here is a picture of my morning class! We are celebrating having just finished our first unit of study. 

In this class, Introduction to Mishnah, we studied the Jewish laws surrounding Rosh HaShanah, in very intricate detail.

We answered questions that I never would have thought to ask, like how many blasts musts be sounded through the shofar (horn) on Rosh HaShanah? What should a shofar be made out of? Who can legally blow the shofar?

And even more bizarre and seemingly pointless questions, like, on Rosh HaShanah, can you get your shofar from under rubble? Or from up in a tree? Or from across a lake? Spoiler alert: You can't. Just check out this handy and hilarious drawing that is found in our books:

I'm still getting used to this new way of learning, and also, trying to articulate (to myself as well as my friends and family) why I find it important, relevant, or meaningful. Luckily, I have another 8 months to figure it out...

Rosh HaShanah Recap

Here is what my schedule consisted of for the past few days:

Pray
Eat
Sleep
Pray
Eat
Nap
Pray
Eat
Sleep
Pray
Nap
:Shabbat Begins: 

Pray
Eat
Sleep
Pray
Eat
Nap

It was a holiday full of new friends, good food, and warm feelings! However, I'm glad to be back to school this week, and back into the swing of things...

Shana Tova!

Rosh HaShanah is...

a) The Jewish new year.
b) A time for serious introspection, to reflect on our deeds from the past year and think about the type of person we want to be in the coming year.
c) An opportunity to stuff our faces with delicious food.
d) A chance for nerdy Jewish boys to come together and make impressive-quality parody videos on YouTube (like this one.)
e) All of the above.

If you guessed "all of the above," you are correct!

I'm so thankful to be spending Rosh HaShanah in Israel this year, especially in Jerusalem. The past few days, the streets have been more busy than usual with people scurrying around, getting ready for the holiday. It sort of feels like the few days before Christmas in the states, only people are wishing each other a "shana tova" instead (making my little Jewish heart sing).

Here are a few pictures:

Kyle & Claire at the shuk (the market).

Getting our caffeine fix before some major food shopping. 

Pomegranates! A traditional Rosh Hashana food. One explanation is that it's a wish that "you have as many blessings in the coming year as there are seeds in the pomegranate" (many!).

Kyle shopping in the shuk! We went on Monday afternoon, so it wasn't too crowded. Since Jerusalem will basically shut down for 3 days, everyone has to get in all their food shopping now.

Mmm, spices! I feel like the shuk is an attack on all of my senses, but especially my sense of smell.

All of the buses in Jerusalem are flashing "Shana Tova," which means "Happy New Year!"

Wishing all of my friends and family (who I miss dearly) a happy new year! I hope that it's a year full of happiness, peace, and all good things :).

PSHHH

At my school, whenever someone says something particularly insightful or wise, it is customary to make the noise "PSHHH." Apparently, this is somewhat common in the Jewish community, as an alternative to applause; a way of saying "good job!" or "I agree!" or "you go, girl!"

Personally, I think this is kind of weird. But, you know, when in Rome*....

Anyway, I just finished my third week of classes, and wanted to share something that I found particularly memorable from this week. I am taking a class called "Personalizing Prayer" as an elective for two hours each week. Most of my classes look at Jewish text from an academic standpoint, whereas this class talks about how to make Judaism relevant and meaningful in our own daily lives, through prayer. Being the hippie that I am, I consider this class my favorite of the week.

First, we looked at some text from the modern Jewish philosopher, Abraham Joshua Heschel (Nerd Alert: I love and recommend his book, "God in Search of Man"). A common theme in his teachings and writings is the idea of radical amazement, that we should live our lives in a state of wonder, of awe, of amazement:

“Our goal should be to live life in radical amazement. ....get up in the morning and look at the world in a way that takes nothing for granted. Everything is phenomenal; everything is incredible; never treat life casually. To be spiritual is to be amazed.”-AJH

What does this look like in practice? This is what we talked about today in class. It is easy to appreciate and give thanks for the big things that happen to us: an "A" on an exam, a new addition to our family, a Penn State football win, etc. But what about the things we do daily, the things that become mundane? Like being able to physically stand up in the morning? Or the ability to dress ourselves, or to even afford the clothing?  Shouldn't we give thanks for these things, too?

Judaism says, "yes!"

An example that we looked at is the prayer that can be said after using the bathroom, something that we do several times a day. You might be thinking, "Ew, gross! There's a prayer for using the bathroom?" There sure is.

In class, we looked at going to the bathroom through the lens of "radical amazement." Our teacher gave us handouts on the digestive system, and each of us had to share with the class what we found "radically amazing" about it:

• In our bodies, we have over 22 feet of intestines, that somehow fit into our small human frames!
• After we swallow, the muscles in our esophagus push down the food in a wave-like motion, and we don't even notice it!
• Our body is able to sort the "good things" and "bad things" from our food and send it to different parts of our body for energy!

The exercise seems silly, now that I'm writing it down, but it was a creative way of showing how much needs to happen in order for us to do something as seemingly simple as going to the bathroom. I don't think that I'm going to say this prayer after every single time I use the bathroom, but I am going to be more aware of the amazing-ness and wonder of my everyday life.

PSHHH.

------

*Or Jerusalem.

Love Thy Neighbor

Jerusalem is diverse. Really diverse.

There are people from all walks of life here; different cultures, races, religions, political views, etc. It's not uncommon to see a secular Israeli soldier with a gun walking down the street, or an ultra-Orthodox man hurrying to study in synagogue, or to hear Muslim prayer coming from the walls of the Old City. These things all add to the beauty and uniqueness of Jerusalem (also the complexity, but that's a different blog post).

Characters

There are also a lot of characters. One of my favorite things in Israel is to witness this.  These men are followers of a rabbi from the 1700s, Rabbi Nachman of Breslov. They drive around in decorated vans and play trance music with the name "Nachman" interspersed in it. At intersections or crowded areas, they get out and dance, as a way to spread joy to people. Apparently, a lot of Israelis find this really annoying. I find it quite comical.

Expectations

I had an interesting experience last night. After dinner with friends, I was walking home to my apartment, when a Haredi man at a bus stop asked for directions. Haredi Jews are a pretty distinguishable subset of the population; black hats, beards, long coats, a gaggle of children, etc. My experience with the Haredim has been very limited, as they are a pretty insular community.

It turned out that we were walking the same direction, so we got to talking. He didn't know English, so we spoke in Hebrew. With my elementary-level Hebrew, we pretty much just talked about where we are from, the weather, and the feral cats that run around Jerusalem.

Since most Haredim won't even look me in the eye because I am not religious, I was happy to have come into contact with this delightfully awkward gentleman. I am finding things to be pretty "black and white" in Jerusalem, but every so often, something shakes up my expectations.

Top of the Morning to You!

We get a lot of traffic on our street. On several occasions, I have been the target of "cat-calling."

This is relatively harmless, but kind of unsettling because they are yelling in Arabic, and I can't understand. So, I usually just make up my own translations:

"Lovely evening, isn't it?"
"Top of the morning to you!"
"My, you look beautiful today!"

In all seriousness, I am finding this city to be challenging in terms of diversity. There is a major lack in communication between different groups of people (not just Jews and Arabs.. but all people). I feel a tension; whether it's in the arguments I hear on the street, or simply the silence between people. Obviously, I knew that it would be this way, but it is still a challenging transition.

Toto, we're not in State College anymore.

City of David

“For three thousand years, Jerusalem has been the center of Jewish hope and longing. No other city has played such a dominant role in the history, culture, religion and consciousness of a people as has Jerusalem in the life of Jewry and Judaism. Throughout centuries of exile, Jerusalem remained alive in the hearts of Jews everywhere as the focal point of Jewish history, the symbol of ancient glory, spiritual fulfillment and modern renewal. This heart and soul of the Jewish people engenders the thought that if you want one simple word to symbolize all of Jewish history, that word would be ‘Jerusalem.’”  — Teddy Kollek

---------------------------------------------

On Thursday morning, my school took mini-field trips around Jerusalem. We had the option of visiting the Old City, the City of David, or the Israel Museum. I chose the City of David. It was the site that I knew the least about, and the tour description said that we would be walking through water tunnels. Yes, please!

The City of David is the archaeological site of the original city of Jerusalem, built just a short 3,000 years ago. According to tradition, it is where King David built his palace and established Jerusalem as the unified capital of the tribes of Israel.

We were able to explore the area, see some of the archaeological findings, and walk on the original stones from thousands of years ago. We also took a 30 minute walk through the underground water tunnels that were carved out about 2,700 years ago. Whoa.


We talked about the complexity of the area. The City of David is located next to East Jerusalem, specifically the Arab city of Silwan. There is quite a bit of conflict in the area over the control of the archaeological and residential aspects of the city. Jerusalem is a very, very complicated place, with many people and groups claiming rights to the land. Just within our group there was a whole range of opinions as to what should happen in this area.

Overall, it was a great day, and a nice change of pace for the week! Here are some pictures:

City of David, here we come!

This is my roomie, Laura! We both enjoy Chaco sandals, eating mangoes, and occasionally (accidentally) dressing like twins.

New friends on the bus!

Andrew and Jordan on the way to the City of David.

A view of the Old City of Jerusalem.  

View of Silwan in East Jerusalem

Me and my handle-bar mustached friend.

Part of King David's palace.

Touring...

Touring...

Rocks....

Some more rocks...

Andrew and Laura ready to walk through tunnels! Nice headgear.

A water drain from the Second Temple period.

Andrew walking on what is believed to be the "pool" that was the main water-drawing source in biblical times. This is also where many people met their significant others. Sha-sha. 

Group discussion about the complexity of the City of David today.

This field-trip (and the other two that were offered) were mainly to learn about the Jewish connection to Jerusalem. I was excited to hear that we will be taking a field trip later on in the year to learn about the connections that other religions and cultures have to this beautiful city.

And when I'm not studying?

Skype is the best invention ever! Like most technological advancements, I was about 5 years late on discovering it. 

Back to School

School started this week! A lot of people have been asking me what exactly I'm studying. I will try to explain. 

Here is a brief description taken from the school's website:

"The Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem immerses our students in the study of classical Jewish texts. Men and women of diverse backgrounds learn together in a rigorous, challenging and open-minded environment. This learning experience nurtures a deep and personal connection to our Jewish heritage, a love for the Jewish people and Israel, and the knowledge to become leaders in the Jewish community."

As the description says, the student body is truly diverse. There are people from all over the world, who come from all walks of life. There are young and old students, observant and non-observant (in the religious sense), liberal and conservative, and everywhere in between. There are people who are coming right from college, and others who quit their high-paying corporate jobs to study for a year. There are those who want a career in the Jewish community, and others who simply find this kind of study enriching. It's quite a unique community.

So what does "text study" mean, anyway? It means analyzing and interpreting text to not just understand the obvious, but to uncover the hidden meanings within it. Here is an example. For simplicity sake, I chose a selection from the lyrical genius, Justin Bieber: 

"See i never thought that I could walk through fire
I never thought that I could take the burn
I never had the strength to take it higher
Until I reach the point of no return
And there's just no turnin back
When your heart's under attack
Gonna give everything I have 
It's my destiny
I will never say never"

So, if I was analyzing this text, I would ask: What does the Biebs mean when he says "take it higher"? Take what higher? And to what height? Where is the Bieb's "point of no return?" What does "point of no return" mean to me? What does it mean to have your "heart under attack?" I have a hard time believing that the Bieb's will NEVER say never: How would the impact of the song change if the text was "I will rarely say never?"

You get the idea. Except we do this with classic Jewish texts, rather than contemporary song lyrics. You might be thinking, where is the purpose in all of this? To be honest, I don't know that I really understand the purpose in it yet. As of now, I find it enjoyable, interesting, challenging, frustrating, and fascinating. 


This I know for sure: it is exhausting to study for 8 hours a day. Luckily, tomorrow we deviate from our normal schedule and take field trips around Jerusalem. I am going to crawl around the tunnels and discover secrets in the City of David. Bum bum bummm.

My locker at school: Never have I felt more Jewish.

Basil Lady

This week, I have been taking one-on-one Hebrew lessons in the morning. I'm finding it really helpful, because the learning that I did on my own was pretty scattered. I've been trying to speak Hebrew on the street with people, which is a bit frustrating. I will ask a question, and then they respond so quickly that I don't understand. I give them a helpless look that probably falls somewhere between looking frightened and looking like I just ate a sour piece of candy.

I thought all hope was lost until I ran into a nice guy on the street who didn't know English. He looked about 45. Our conversation went something like this (in Hebrew):

Man: What time is it?
Me: What?
Man: What time is it? (pointing to my wrist)
Me: ...Nine.....fifteen.
Man: Are you from America?
Me: Yes
Man: New York?!
Me: Near there.
Man: Do you like Israel?
Me: What?
Man: Do you like Israel?
Me: Yes it's nice.
Man: Do you have a boyfriend?
(Luckily, my Hebrew teacher taught me that when someone asks if you have a "friend" it means a boyfriend. Otherwise, I would have said 'yes, many!'"
Me: No.
Man: I love you. (Picks a flower from off the bush and hands it to me). 

So, that was weird.

Anyway, here is a picture of my Hebrew teacher and me. We looked like twins today (minus the baby bump). Even the same sandals! She is very sweet, and most importantly, very patient with me. She even laughs at my jokes sometimes:

What else? Tonight there was a "meet and greet" at my school. There were a lot of really nice people, and I had some great conversations. When I got home, I looked in the mirror and realized I had a piece of basil between my two front teeth. Awesome. Great first impression, Lauren. Just call me "basil lady."

Here are some more fun pictures from the past few days:

After an overwhelming trip to the grocery store, my friend and I made a home-cooked meal! This was our first attempt at shakshuka, a middle-eastern dish. Let's just say that we have some room for improvement.

 Yum!

Andrew and Kyle play "shesh-besh" (backgammon), a popular game in Israel

Pictures of my apartment and the 'hood coming soon!