Sorry for the lack of updates. The holidays kept me busy! It's terrible!
Before I divulge into the wonderful Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur experience I had, I want to share some final reflections. I came to the realization that this year is my last year as a "participant" or "congregant" in these services. Starting next year, I will be in a pulpit and 99% likely will be leading both days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This was my last chance to observe someone else take the lead and take a passive role. Next year, I get to program the "music," I get to lead the hearts of my congregation to repentence / t'shuvah, and I get to be like Al Jolson and sing "Kol Nidrei." :)
The High Holiday period has a number of major milestones. One could argue the season starts with the month of Elul, the final month of the year, when Jews are supposed to formally begin the process of seeking forgiveness, reflect on the past year, and set goals for the new year. Sephardy Jewry prays S'lichot every day during the month of Elul. Others could argue that the period begins the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah when Ashkenazi Jewry prays S'lichot.
What is S'lichot?
Coming from the same root as "I'm sorry" or really "Pardon me" S'lichot offers a time for individuals to collect thoughts. Typically S'lichot are said before Fast Days except Tisha B'av, and a number of times leading up to Rosh Hashanah. This prayer service is very different from the typical formats of a Jewish service: it is primarily composed of piyyutim, or religious poems, on the various themes of seeking forgiveness.
I participated in three S'lichot services this year. The Cantorial Students along with the head of our program this year, Mikhal Shiff Matter, along with the High Holiday Choir sang a number of songs based on some of the piyyutim. I got to have a "special" solo. There is a beautiful "Y'hi ratzon," or "May it be your will" attributed to a 2nd century Rabbi asking for forgiveness and separating those who "hate us" from those who do not. The text was set by Cantor Avery and features suave passages juxtaposed by sudden fioratura embellishments. I think I gave some justice to the prayer, but it's not my place to say anything.
After that service, I went with some of my classmates to the Great Synagogue of Jerusalem for their S'lichot service. According to various information I've collected about the synagogue, their main goal to continue to preserve the Eastern European musical traditions. The synagogue is famous for its Male Choir and its Hazanim. Currently serving the position is Chaim Adler. The service was incredible. It started at approximately 10:30 PM and ended at 12:30 AM. This might seem long for the time of evening, and considering we were on one page for about an hour. The music was absolutely stunning, but I asked myself if it were prayerful or merely a concert. Even after a few weeks, I still have not come to a formal conclusion. However, I did somehow feel a connection to my Chasidic 5th and 6th cousins from the Old Country and as though my great great grandparents heard these melodies or had the same emotions. I wish I could be more eloquent about it.
The third S'lichot service was led by my Hebrew teacher, Zohara, to her youth Sephardi synagogue. With a number of brave classmates, we arrived at the synagogue at 5:45 AM for S'lichot and the Shacharit (morning) service. The melodies were so foreign to me, and yet by the end I was comfortable with the idea. I hope to attend more Sephardi services throughout the year.
Rosh Hashanah
The Cantorial Students, Cantor Shiff Matter, the Choir, and a number of Rabbis from the HUC led the first night services. Each cantor got to have a little solo or lead a section. My big number was an addition to the "Standing Prayer" or Amidah called "U'vchen ten" set by a wonderful Katchko melody. Overall, the feedback from my classmates was that it was a beautiful concert, and everyone sang great, but they could not feel prayerful. I really tried to take this to heart as I continued my studies for Yom Kippur. But I'm jumping ahead...
For the first day, I went to a satellite branch of Kol Haneshamah, the largest Progressive synagogue in Jerusalem. It was incredible praying from a mahzor, the special high holiday prayerbook, entirely in Hebrew! I think I managed to hold up pretty well. It didn't hurt that the service was somewhat a family service, so the Hebrew spoken was much easier to understand. One of the Rabbis even dressed up when she would explain part of the Torah! I felt so fulfilled from that service! For lunch, I joined my classmate, Manda, at the home of one of the Rabbis. He had a number of guests, including a Russian immigrant friend of the family, a fellow Rabbi-graduate of the HUC Jerusalem Campus, a number of neighborhood children half-Canadian half-Israeli, and his pet cat, Sima. Naturally, Sima and I became pals.
For the second day, I went to the Italian Synagogue of Jerusalem. The traditional Italian Jewry is often bunched together with Sephardi Jewry, but the texts, the nusach (melodies and texts), and the practices are so unique within Sephardi Jewry. Their way of chanting Torah is unlike anything I've ever heard. The synagogue itself was reminiscent of a Renaissance, Versailles room with a guilded ark. However, the Torah scrolls were like "regular" Ashkenazi scrolls and not Sephardi scrolls! I plan on returning to this shul for a regular Shabbat so I can get the "real experience," but it was an incredible service!
Shabbat Shuvah: I went to the Reconstructionist Minyan that meets once a month at HUC. I'll talk about that later.
Yom Kippur
HUC offered services all day: the evening, the morning, the afternoon, and the closing. Once again, the Cantorial Students, Cantor Shiff Matter, the Choir, and the HUC Rabbis led a service featuring all of the students. I got to lead a larger chunk for the Evening Service in addition to a number of other prayers throughout the evening and following day.
One of the prayers that gathered a lot of attention was a setting of "Shiviti" based on Psalm 16:8. I sang a fairly simple melody set by Michael Isaacson but its simplicity is what made it that much more powerful. The melody did not require Joan Sutherland trills and vocalises. Neither did it require the full blast of an Aerosmith guitar riff. In its essence, "Shiviti" is a very exposed idea: I am before you always. I struggled with this prayer because I wanted to make sure the impact and passion were there. While I do not judge a "performance" until at least a week afterwards, silly superstition, based on the positive feedback I feel I accomplished my goal.
There are too many people to thank for my experiences. First to my classmates and the other cantorial students and members of the choir for their amazing support. Next to the Rabbis of the HUC for the tremendous feedback and care exhibited to make this holiday special. Next to our collaborative artists (that's the new PC term for accompianists) on piano, Anastasia, and on cello for their inspired contributions. Last, to Cantor Shiff Matter. There was certainly a lot of stress on this poor soul, but she managed to not only keep it all together, but also managing to pull the rest of us up to her level. Thank you one and all!
Sukkot is on its way and the booths are being set up all over the city. My next blog will simply be pictures of the Sukkot I encounter on my travels over the next week.
"B'shanah habaah" is an upbeat melody sung about how great things will be next year.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Auld Lang Syne
It's only a few hours before the New Year will begin, so I felt this was a good time for a little bit of reflection.
Side bar: The shuk was ablaze with activity. Every one was buying apples, honey, pomegranates (rimonim), dates (tamar), round challot, wine, meat, and dessert snacks. I think it might have been busier than a Friday shuk day! I noticed a lot of fruits I have never seen before, like "chafushim" and "gyuvah." I couldn't find a translation for them. Perhaps next time I'll actually buy them, but I had bigger priorities. It was nice to see more dragonfruit. I've made my class fall in love with them!
OK, now it's time for the real reflections.
This time last year, I was lost. I graduated college with absolutely no direction. I thought I knew what I wanted to do, teach English as a Second Language, but it never panned out. In fact, it led to dead ends: a program to South Korea that never responded back to me, trouble registering for non-matriculating classes at Kean, and frustration across the board.
Around Rosh Hashanah last year, I started putting two and two together: what are the things I always find solace in life? Music, naturally. Judaism. Community. I prayed with my temple at a High Holiday service for the first time in 5 years, and all the old juices from my high school years flowed through me. There was finally some comfort. I prayed for a sign of what to do, and God truly provided.
Flash forward to today. I am here, Jerusalem, the holy city. I am perhaps 2-3 km away from some of the holiest sites in the world. Every morning, I wake up to the sound of cats mewing in the streets, shops opening on Ben Yehuda, and by my inner desire and push to succeed and achieve. Sometimes, I still can't quite believe I'm here. Yet, I continue to have the signs from God that this is the right path. It'll be little things: a smile from a little child on the street, a gentle breeze through the trees during my first Shabbat as a matriculated student, and the feeling of being back with my ancestors in PolandLithuaniaUkraineRussiaEastEurope when I hear the choir of the Great Synagogue.
This year, 5772, is going to be the best.
We say this every year, but somehow I feel this is actually going to be true this year. First, I have the companionship of my 37 classmates plus their children/spouses. Second, I have the support of my teachers, the administration, and the staff of the school. Then, there's the people of Jerusalem itself. I can't quite put this one to words, but when I tell someone I'm a Student of Chazanut, I always see this little star flicker in his/her eyes. It's truly remarkable.
What are my goals for this year:
-get better in Hebrew (duh)
-learn to be a better team player and team leader at the same time
-step out of my comfort zone on a regular basis, and extend the comfort zone
-be a better student
-learn to overcome my issue of hearing someone tune a guitar
-live it up; there's plenty of time to be very serious later
-by order of my sister: eat falafel
I welcome any visitor to my site to post some of their hopes and dreams for the year. May we all be inspired to help each other accomplish goals.
L'shanah tovah u'mtukah.
!לשנה טובה ומתוקה
"Auld Lang Syne" is that great song we instinctively sing every January 1 at precisely 12:00 AM.
Side bar: The shuk was ablaze with activity. Every one was buying apples, honey, pomegranates (rimonim), dates (tamar), round challot, wine, meat, and dessert snacks. I think it might have been busier than a Friday shuk day! I noticed a lot of fruits I have never seen before, like "chafushim" and "gyuvah." I couldn't find a translation for them. Perhaps next time I'll actually buy them, but I had bigger priorities. It was nice to see more dragonfruit. I've made my class fall in love with them!
OK, now it's time for the real reflections.
This time last year, I was lost. I graduated college with absolutely no direction. I thought I knew what I wanted to do, teach English as a Second Language, but it never panned out. In fact, it led to dead ends: a program to South Korea that never responded back to me, trouble registering for non-matriculating classes at Kean, and frustration across the board.
Around Rosh Hashanah last year, I started putting two and two together: what are the things I always find solace in life? Music, naturally. Judaism. Community. I prayed with my temple at a High Holiday service for the first time in 5 years, and all the old juices from my high school years flowed through me. There was finally some comfort. I prayed for a sign of what to do, and God truly provided.
Flash forward to today. I am here, Jerusalem, the holy city. I am perhaps 2-3 km away from some of the holiest sites in the world. Every morning, I wake up to the sound of cats mewing in the streets, shops opening on Ben Yehuda, and by my inner desire and push to succeed and achieve. Sometimes, I still can't quite believe I'm here. Yet, I continue to have the signs from God that this is the right path. It'll be little things: a smile from a little child on the street, a gentle breeze through the trees during my first Shabbat as a matriculated student, and the feeling of being back with my ancestors in PolandLithuaniaUkraineRussiaEastEurope when I hear the choir of the Great Synagogue.
This year, 5772, is going to be the best.
We say this every year, but somehow I feel this is actually going to be true this year. First, I have the companionship of my 37 classmates plus their children/spouses. Second, I have the support of my teachers, the administration, and the staff of the school. Then, there's the people of Jerusalem itself. I can't quite put this one to words, but when I tell someone I'm a Student of Chazanut, I always see this little star flicker in his/her eyes. It's truly remarkable.
What are my goals for this year:
-get better in Hebrew (duh)
-learn to be a better team player and team leader at the same time
-step out of my comfort zone on a regular basis, and extend the comfort zone
-be a better student
-learn to overcome my issue of hearing someone tune a guitar
-live it up; there's plenty of time to be very serious later
-by order of my sister: eat falafel
I welcome any visitor to my site to post some of their hopes and dreams for the year. May we all be inspired to help each other accomplish goals.
L'shanah tovah u'mtukah.
!לשנה טובה ומתוקה
"Auld Lang Syne" is that great song we instinctively sing every January 1 at precisely 12:00 AM.
Friday, September 23, 2011
There is Life Outside Your Apartment
I was nervous about moving to a different country, as would any human being. I was nervous about a new start to my life filled with great opportunities and scary challenges.
I'm nearing the end of my third month in Jerusalem. The semester is in full swing. To top it all off, we are a week away from the new year, Rosh Hashanah. The peaches and nectarines are becoming scarcer and apples and pears are becoming the top-seller at the shuk. More and more the Israelis are switching to long pants for the evening. The sun that beat down on us during the summer is starting to feel more distant. Today is the Autumnal Equinox.
Meanwhile, all of my classmates are stressed. We have lots of reading, homework, and required "extra" events such as weekly pre-High Holiday programming and culture night for Israel Seminar. We are told to do things, have fun, and get out of the HUC bubble.
Here's a list of some of the fun things I have done recently:
Wednesday night: As per my Israeli Folk and Pop Music class, we are to attend a certain number of concerts and programs during the semester. The 5 of us in the class decided to go to a Matti Caspi concert. I wish my pictures turned out great since the evening was amazing! Caspi performed with someone whose name escapes me right now, and at times it seemed like Simon and Garfunkle were together. The on stage comraderie, the high level of musicianship, the incredible performance, and they "played" with each other! Sometimes, we weren't sure what was rehearsed or not! The great climax was the second or third encore when they both came out with their accordions and did one more song together. The audience was so enthralled the whole night! What a great way to get this class rolling!
Last night, as per my participation with the Parallel Lives group, we meet once every month or so with a number of soliders in the IDF and talk about issues, make friends, and get a different experience. Last time I had such an encounter with IDF soliders was with Birthright, and for a number of reasons, I did not get that close beyond making friends on Facebook afterwords. My own personal hope is that with these interactions, I will make long-term friends. The soliders ranged from ages 19-22. One was an oleh, or someone who immigrated to Israel. I am always amazed by the sacrifices these young people make for their country. It is truly admirable. Although, at the same time, it is compulsary here.
Stress is certainly at a high point among my classmates. The schedule is very dense. Then, more "extras" get thrown to us and the juggling act begins. For those who knew me in college, this is not a major challenge. However, being in a foreign country makes it that much harder. Much harder. I love it.
My sincerest condolences go out to friends and family of Lauren Felton, to Leah Joseph's family, and the family of my dear classmate, Abram Goodstein.
"There is Life Outside Your Apartment" is from Avenue Q.
I'm nearing the end of my third month in Jerusalem. The semester is in full swing. To top it all off, we are a week away from the new year, Rosh Hashanah. The peaches and nectarines are becoming scarcer and apples and pears are becoming the top-seller at the shuk. More and more the Israelis are switching to long pants for the evening. The sun that beat down on us during the summer is starting to feel more distant. Today is the Autumnal Equinox.
Meanwhile, all of my classmates are stressed. We have lots of reading, homework, and required "extra" events such as weekly pre-High Holiday programming and culture night for Israel Seminar. We are told to do things, have fun, and get out of the HUC bubble.
Here's a list of some of the fun things I have done recently:
Wednesday night: As per my Israeli Folk and Pop Music class, we are to attend a certain number of concerts and programs during the semester. The 5 of us in the class decided to go to a Matti Caspi concert. I wish my pictures turned out great since the evening was amazing! Caspi performed with someone whose name escapes me right now, and at times it seemed like Simon and Garfunkle were together. The on stage comraderie, the high level of musicianship, the incredible performance, and they "played" with each other! Sometimes, we weren't sure what was rehearsed or not! The great climax was the second or third encore when they both came out with their accordions and did one more song together. The audience was so enthralled the whole night! What a great way to get this class rolling!
Last night, as per my participation with the Parallel Lives group, we meet once every month or so with a number of soliders in the IDF and talk about issues, make friends, and get a different experience. Last time I had such an encounter with IDF soliders was with Birthright, and for a number of reasons, I did not get that close beyond making friends on Facebook afterwords. My own personal hope is that with these interactions, I will make long-term friends. The soliders ranged from ages 19-22. One was an oleh, or someone who immigrated to Israel. I am always amazed by the sacrifices these young people make for their country. It is truly admirable. Although, at the same time, it is compulsary here.
Stress is certainly at a high point among my classmates. The schedule is very dense. Then, more "extras" get thrown to us and the juggling act begins. For those who knew me in college, this is not a major challenge. However, being in a foreign country makes it that much harder. Much harder. I love it.
My sincerest condolences go out to friends and family of Lauren Felton, to Leah Joseph's family, and the family of my dear classmate, Abram Goodstein.
"There is Life Outside Your Apartment" is from Avenue Q.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
I'm In Love
...with an Orthodox siddur!
I used to be frustrated by siddurrim / prayer books of the supposedly "more religious" persuasions of Judaism. Not just because of the overwhelming volume of extra texts, anti-feminist words, anti-non-Jewish phrases, and so forth, but just the self-feeling of superiority of the siddurim. I wish I had a way to explain this in more coherent English.
Then I picked up the Koren Sacks Siddur.
Yes, it has all the extra texts, anti-feminist words, anti-non-Jewish phrases, and so on, but it also provides great explanations as to their origins. Based on the text of the famous Koren Siddur, it features translations and commentary of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, the Chief Rabbi of a British union of Judaism, whose brilliance is never grandiloquent. Naturally, as a British man, he has an amazing sense of the English language that I, as an American, should emulate. Other than that, his comments provide great explanations and details, sometimes insight into the minds of Jewish sages of yore, and all in amazing presentation. I haven't felt more excited by a book of prayers in a long time. Just wait until I give my spiel about the Mishkan T'fillah, the new Reform prayerbook.
Enough nerdiness.
"I'm in Love" comes from The Rothchilds.
I used to be frustrated by siddurrim / prayer books of the supposedly "more religious" persuasions of Judaism. Not just because of the overwhelming volume of extra texts, anti-feminist words, anti-non-Jewish phrases, and so forth, but just the self-feeling of superiority of the siddurim. I wish I had a way to explain this in more coherent English.
Then I picked up the Koren Sacks Siddur.
Yes, it has all the extra texts, anti-feminist words, anti-non-Jewish phrases, and so on, but it also provides great explanations as to their origins. Based on the text of the famous Koren Siddur, it features translations and commentary of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, the Chief Rabbi of a British union of Judaism, whose brilliance is never grandiloquent. Naturally, as a British man, he has an amazing sense of the English language that I, as an American, should emulate. Other than that, his comments provide great explanations and details, sometimes insight into the minds of Jewish sages of yore, and all in amazing presentation. I haven't felt more excited by a book of prayers in a long time. Just wait until I give my spiel about the Mishkan T'fillah, the new Reform prayerbook.
Enough nerdiness.
"I'm in Love" comes from The Rothchilds.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Eli Eli
Sorry for the lack of posts in the last few days. Technology has not smiled well on me as of late. It seems to like me again, so I have faith.
Recently, we marked the 10th anniversary of September 11. I remember exactly where I was when it happened: Mr. Szeles's 8th grade US History. Let me rephrase that: that's when I found out. I don't remember which class I was in when the events actually happened.
During the course of the day, the rumors flied: the Towers had fallen down, the White House was under attack, war broke out, etc. I did not get the full story until I got home that day, and my sister and I were glued to the TV screen. For the next few days, as new developments and theories developed, I had developed a new appreciation for the Headline News Network. Right now, I remember a clear moment when Dan Rather, then head anchor of CBS News, broadcast a message about the day and the hope that we remember it. This message was on every Viacom network: MTV, Nickelodeon, CBS News, TvLand, and so forth. I knew something was major about that day.
10 years later: where are we? We've invaded a number of countries in an attempt to eradicate terrorism, and yet terror remains. I'm far from saying that we need to send troops to every country. Rather, we should teach our children diligently to understand the world, to accept and understand people, and to treat others with respect.
One tradition at the HUC I hope to adopt with my student pulpits or real life pulpit is to say a prayer for the soldiers of the nation at every Torah service. While the HUC in Jerusalem says one for the Israeli Army (Zahal), the words could be adapted for the American / Canadian / whatever army. The sacrifices these people make, their families make, the country makes on their behalf is worth more than mere words, but at least it keeps us informed of what is going on.
"Eli Eli" is the more common known name of the great Hannah Szenesh poem, "A Walk to Caesarea." "I pray that these things never end..." It's a wonderful, haunting poem that has so much serenity to it. The melody just gets at you like an old Yiddish song--it lingers in your mind for days. It was an unofficial theme or anthem to our trip last weekend as a class to the North.
Recently, we marked the 10th anniversary of September 11. I remember exactly where I was when it happened: Mr. Szeles's 8th grade US History. Let me rephrase that: that's when I found out. I don't remember which class I was in when the events actually happened.
During the course of the day, the rumors flied: the Towers had fallen down, the White House was under attack, war broke out, etc. I did not get the full story until I got home that day, and my sister and I were glued to the TV screen. For the next few days, as new developments and theories developed, I had developed a new appreciation for the Headline News Network. Right now, I remember a clear moment when Dan Rather, then head anchor of CBS News, broadcast a message about the day and the hope that we remember it. This message was on every Viacom network: MTV, Nickelodeon, CBS News, TvLand, and so forth. I knew something was major about that day.
10 years later: where are we? We've invaded a number of countries in an attempt to eradicate terrorism, and yet terror remains. I'm far from saying that we need to send troops to every country. Rather, we should teach our children diligently to understand the world, to accept and understand people, and to treat others with respect.
One tradition at the HUC I hope to adopt with my student pulpits or real life pulpit is to say a prayer for the soldiers of the nation at every Torah service. While the HUC in Jerusalem says one for the Israeli Army (Zahal), the words could be adapted for the American / Canadian / whatever army. The sacrifices these people make, their families make, the country makes on their behalf is worth more than mere words, but at least it keeps us informed of what is going on.
"Eli Eli" is the more common known name of the great Hannah Szenesh poem, "A Walk to Caesarea." "I pray that these things never end..." It's a wonderful, haunting poem that has so much serenity to it. The melody just gets at you like an old Yiddish song--it lingers in your mind for days. It was an unofficial theme or anthem to our trip last weekend as a class to the North.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
The Best of All Possible Worlds
As of today, I am officially done with the summer semester in terms of work. This week I had my final for Torah Cantillation and Biblical History. I hope I did well on them!
This week marked the first week of the new courses, and ironically is not a full week. Every student in my program, rabbinical, cantorial, or education, has to take Modern Hebrew, Biblical Grammar, Bible, Liturgy, 2nd Temple Period History, History of Zionism, and the Israel Seminar. The sections of the first four are determined by my Hebrew placement level. Liturgy also has a group lecture component. With exception of the Israel Seminar, the rest are lecture classes.
The Israel Seminar is a whole category in itself. It is a combination of a lecture, trip, culture stuff, and every other possible thing one can imagine. I'm so overwhelmed and excited by this class. But more on that in a later blog post.
For Hebrew, I have a different teacher: Zohara, who is the head of the Ulpan program here. She's not like my previous teacher, Osnat, but she's also tough on us and has fun with us, too. I have already learned a lot, so she is a good match for our class. I have the same teacher for Grammar and Bible, Yossi Leshem. Before I went to the HUC, I was pre-warned about his amazing-ness, and even after the one class I found it to be true. I have never taken any sort of formal Biblical Grammar or in depth study of the Bible like this, so I'm glad to have such an amazing teacher.
The Liturgy class lecture is run by Dalia Marx, who is quite intelligent and nice, as is the lady who runs our smaller section whose name escapes me. Sorry.
David Levine teaches the 2nd Temple period class. The few times I've met him before this week were very positive so I was looking forward to his class. Now that I've sat through a lecture, my joy is still blooming. He's a brilliant man and I find my perspective on history very similar. I'm looking forward to the future with him!
I have the History of Zionism and the Israel Seminar courses with David Mendelsson, who has been described by others as "a cute, British man." As an individual he is very dynamic, and I am pleased to say he is the same as a teacher. I have such a great feeling about being with him. While I am disappointed that I do not have any courses with the other gentleman who is teaching these classes, I am not going to cry about it. It's the luck of the draw...and I was certainly lucky.
THAT'S just the basic set of courses. Because I'm a Cantorial Student, I also have more classes! Jealous much!? I have a class on Israeli Folk and Pop Music taught by a soft-spoken but very knowledgable Naomi. After that, I also have a Cantorial Workshop taught by Mikhal Shiff Matter, our fearless leader for the year. On Mondays, I have a Musicianship class, which is basically music theory, taught by Naamah. No, not Dean Naamah Kelman, the other Naamah.
JUST when you thought I was done, oh boy. Since I'm in the most advanced Hebrew level, I also get to take an additional course, Advanced Hebrew Texts, which has not met yet. This isn't an additional class per se. The other Hebrew sections have two sections of Grammar while we only have one. So, this class replaces it.
In other words, I come home daily at 6ish, if I'm lucky, and then I get to do lots and lots of homework. To make matters worse, starting tomorrow they are taking us on a tiyul to the North to mark the beginning of our Israeli Seminar to talk about the basis of developing Zionism, Israeli-ness, and so forth. While I am incredibly excited by this opportunity, I basically have no time to do any homework for the upcoming week. So, tonight and Saturday, the day we return, I have to do pretty much everything for Sunday.
This is also just the beginning. There's so much going on, and I have plans to break up the monotony of one massive blog post by taking some time to talk about things as it goes on. Don't worry, friends and loved ones. I'm still that overachiever who is more than excited to tackle these challenges and become the best.
OK, one picture. As you might know, I've been collecting pictures of cats of Israel. Here's one of my personal favorites:
"The Best of All Possible Worlds" comes from Candide. Great novel, great musical/opera. I keep meaning to reread that book.
This week marked the first week of the new courses, and ironically is not a full week. Every student in my program, rabbinical, cantorial, or education, has to take Modern Hebrew, Biblical Grammar, Bible, Liturgy, 2nd Temple Period History, History of Zionism, and the Israel Seminar. The sections of the first four are determined by my Hebrew placement level. Liturgy also has a group lecture component. With exception of the Israel Seminar, the rest are lecture classes.
The Israel Seminar is a whole category in itself. It is a combination of a lecture, trip, culture stuff, and every other possible thing one can imagine. I'm so overwhelmed and excited by this class. But more on that in a later blog post.
For Hebrew, I have a different teacher: Zohara, who is the head of the Ulpan program here. She's not like my previous teacher, Osnat, but she's also tough on us and has fun with us, too. I have already learned a lot, so she is a good match for our class. I have the same teacher for Grammar and Bible, Yossi Leshem. Before I went to the HUC, I was pre-warned about his amazing-ness, and even after the one class I found it to be true. I have never taken any sort of formal Biblical Grammar or in depth study of the Bible like this, so I'm glad to have such an amazing teacher.
The Liturgy class lecture is run by Dalia Marx, who is quite intelligent and nice, as is the lady who runs our smaller section whose name escapes me. Sorry.
David Levine teaches the 2nd Temple period class. The few times I've met him before this week were very positive so I was looking forward to his class. Now that I've sat through a lecture, my joy is still blooming. He's a brilliant man and I find my perspective on history very similar. I'm looking forward to the future with him!
I have the History of Zionism and the Israel Seminar courses with David Mendelsson, who has been described by others as "a cute, British man." As an individual he is very dynamic, and I am pleased to say he is the same as a teacher. I have such a great feeling about being with him. While I am disappointed that I do not have any courses with the other gentleman who is teaching these classes, I am not going to cry about it. It's the luck of the draw...and I was certainly lucky.
THAT'S just the basic set of courses. Because I'm a Cantorial Student, I also have more classes! Jealous much!? I have a class on Israeli Folk and Pop Music taught by a soft-spoken but very knowledgable Naomi. After that, I also have a Cantorial Workshop taught by Mikhal Shiff Matter, our fearless leader for the year. On Mondays, I have a Musicianship class, which is basically music theory, taught by Naamah. No, not Dean Naamah Kelman, the other Naamah.
JUST when you thought I was done, oh boy. Since I'm in the most advanced Hebrew level, I also get to take an additional course, Advanced Hebrew Texts, which has not met yet. This isn't an additional class per se. The other Hebrew sections have two sections of Grammar while we only have one. So, this class replaces it.
In other words, I come home daily at 6ish, if I'm lucky, and then I get to do lots and lots of homework. To make matters worse, starting tomorrow they are taking us on a tiyul to the North to mark the beginning of our Israeli Seminar to talk about the basis of developing Zionism, Israeli-ness, and so forth. While I am incredibly excited by this opportunity, I basically have no time to do any homework for the upcoming week. So, tonight and Saturday, the day we return, I have to do pretty much everything for Sunday.
This is also just the beginning. There's so much going on, and I have plans to break up the monotony of one massive blog post by taking some time to talk about things as it goes on. Don't worry, friends and loved ones. I'm still that overachiever who is more than excited to tackle these challenges and become the best.
OK, one picture. As you might know, I've been collecting pictures of cats of Israel. Here's one of my personal favorites:
"The Best of All Possible Worlds" comes from Candide. Great novel, great musical/opera. I keep meaning to reread that book.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
JCS
Wednesday marked the beginning of Elul, the new month. For those keeping track, what does Rosh Chodesh mean? That's right! Women of the Wall!
Again, a very calm service for the Women of the Wall. I seems as though many people were still on vacation since there wasn't much of a crowd. I was joined by some of the AJU, American Jewish University, students who just arrived for the beginning of their year in Israel. I've only met about 4 or 5 of them so far, but they are a nice bunch of kids. I'm excited to do some joint-programming with them. Or even just hanging out with them.
Torah reading about to happen. There was a Bat Mitzvah!
After this, I decided to explore the Old City. In class, we learned that what we now consider the Old City is not necessarily what was the Jerusalem in the days of David, Herod, and Muhammad. Rather, the Old City is merely defined by the walls created by the Ottomans. It is fairly possible that where I live right now, less than a kilometer from the Old City walls, might have been the original Old City. Of course, until they find remnants of the original walls, this cannot be 100% confirmed. Back on topic.
The Jewish Quarter was busy and filled with activity. People rushing to the Kotel to get in their morning prayers. Shops with tourists from all over the world. Beggars asking for money. Interestingly enough, if you compare this with the other parts of the city, the Muslim, Christian, and Armenian Quarters, you would find a similar narrative, just change the name of the religious site. I'm not sure why this excited me or confounded me, but I can connect to every person in the Old City despite language or religion barriers.
The reconstructed Hurva Synagogue, opened only about a year ago.
When I went to the Muslim Quarter, the streets were empty. Every now and then, I'd come across a juice stand or small grocery store open. I forgot that this past Wednesday was Eid, the final part of Ramadan, making it one of the biggest holidays of the Muslim year. Still, it was very exciting to see some part of the festivities. As a result, though, the Temple Mount was completely closed. Oh well.
One of my major plans for the year was to see the Christian sites in Israel. Top of my list: the Via Dolorosa, or where Jesus walked the stations. I walked through the stations by myself with only my tour guide to help me. Along the way, I ran into many pilgrim groups also walking the stations. This made me think of when my grandparents were in Israel in the 1970's and they also walked the stations. I also visited the Church of Saint Anne, which is near the place where Anne gave birth to Mary.
Site marking Mary's birth.
I continued my day of major Christian sites as I left the Old City to explore Mt. Zion and the Mount of Olives. Mt. Zion's great claim to fame is the supposed site of David's burial and the location of the Last Supper. I wish I had something amazing to say about these sites, so all I can say is I had a nice time.
Site of the Last Supper.
Then, in a moment of craziness, I felt like walking around toward the Mount of Olives. I'm quite glad I got myself a little lost because I ended up seeing much more than I would have ever imagined. In between the Old City and the Mount of Olives is the Kidron Valley. Archaeologists are digging up amazing things that have been covered for centuries. Two of the more striking are the Tomb of Absalom, the ill-fated son of David, and the Tomb of Zechariah. After exploring the area a little bit, I met some children who called me a donkey because I refused to deal with them. I had a good laugh out of it.
Tomb of Zechariah. My shots of the Tomb of Absalom disappeared on my computer. I'm so angry.
On my way up the Mount of Olives, I explored through the graves of probably thousands of religious Jews who are buried near the Old City. The idea is that their souls will reawaken when the Messiah comes to Jerusalem. This is all hunky-dory, but there are some problems the Messiah will have to overcome. First, the gate s/he will have to go through, the Golden Gate, is sealed. To make matters worse, there is a cemetary in front of the Gate. Elijah is also supposed to go through the Gate to mark the coming of the Messiah. Well, Elijah is a Cohen, the priest tribe, and they are not allowed to go through a cemetary. As they would say in Hebrew, בלגן balagan.
View of the gate and the cemetary around it.
I explored some famous churches on the Mount of Olives including the Church of All Nations, Dominus Flevit, Mary's Tomb, and Gethsmane. Each of these claims important things regarding the life of Jesus: the Church of All Nations has the rock slab where supposedly Jesus was resting just before his arrest. Dominus Flevit is where Jesus cried over the future of Israel. Mary's Tomb is where Mary was laid to rest before her resurrection, according to a varying sources, as well as the burial site of her parents Joachim and Anne. Gethsmane is a beautiful garden where Jesus and his disciples prayed before Jesus was cruxified.
Gethsmane. This olive tree is said to be 900 years old.
Entrance to the chapel of Gethsmane.
Special icon apparently only here for a week at the Tomb of Mary.
A sign outside of the Dominus Flevit.
Side story: I picked up a conversation with a random people while on the Mount of Olives. First, he asked if I were Russian due to my coloring. Then, he asked if I were a Mormon since apprently I was dressed like a Mormon for the day and hadn't realized it until that point. So, in one day, I evolved from Kenny to a Russian, Mormon donkey.
"JCS" is the common abbreviation for the musical, Jesus Christ Superstar.
Again, a very calm service for the Women of the Wall. I seems as though many people were still on vacation since there wasn't much of a crowd. I was joined by some of the AJU, American Jewish University, students who just arrived for the beginning of their year in Israel. I've only met about 4 or 5 of them so far, but they are a nice bunch of kids. I'm excited to do some joint-programming with them. Or even just hanging out with them.
Torah reading about to happen. There was a Bat Mitzvah!
After this, I decided to explore the Old City. In class, we learned that what we now consider the Old City is not necessarily what was the Jerusalem in the days of David, Herod, and Muhammad. Rather, the Old City is merely defined by the walls created by the Ottomans. It is fairly possible that where I live right now, less than a kilometer from the Old City walls, might have been the original Old City. Of course, until they find remnants of the original walls, this cannot be 100% confirmed. Back on topic.
The Jewish Quarter was busy and filled with activity. People rushing to the Kotel to get in their morning prayers. Shops with tourists from all over the world. Beggars asking for money. Interestingly enough, if you compare this with the other parts of the city, the Muslim, Christian, and Armenian Quarters, you would find a similar narrative, just change the name of the religious site. I'm not sure why this excited me or confounded me, but I can connect to every person in the Old City despite language or religion barriers.
The reconstructed Hurva Synagogue, opened only about a year ago.
When I went to the Muslim Quarter, the streets were empty. Every now and then, I'd come across a juice stand or small grocery store open. I forgot that this past Wednesday was Eid, the final part of Ramadan, making it one of the biggest holidays of the Muslim year. Still, it was very exciting to see some part of the festivities. As a result, though, the Temple Mount was completely closed. Oh well.
One of my major plans for the year was to see the Christian sites in Israel. Top of my list: the Via Dolorosa, or where Jesus walked the stations. I walked through the stations by myself with only my tour guide to help me. Along the way, I ran into many pilgrim groups also walking the stations. This made me think of when my grandparents were in Israel in the 1970's and they also walked the stations. I also visited the Church of Saint Anne, which is near the place where Anne gave birth to Mary.
Site marking Mary's birth.
I continued my day of major Christian sites as I left the Old City to explore Mt. Zion and the Mount of Olives. Mt. Zion's great claim to fame is the supposed site of David's burial and the location of the Last Supper. I wish I had something amazing to say about these sites, so all I can say is I had a nice time.
Then, in a moment of craziness, I felt like walking around toward the Mount of Olives. I'm quite glad I got myself a little lost because I ended up seeing much more than I would have ever imagined. In between the Old City and the Mount of Olives is the Kidron Valley. Archaeologists are digging up amazing things that have been covered for centuries. Two of the more striking are the Tomb of Absalom, the ill-fated son of David, and the Tomb of Zechariah. After exploring the area a little bit, I met some children who called me a donkey because I refused to deal with them. I had a good laugh out of it.
Tomb of Zechariah. My shots of the Tomb of Absalom disappeared on my computer. I'm so angry.
On my way up the Mount of Olives, I explored through the graves of probably thousands of religious Jews who are buried near the Old City. The idea is that their souls will reawaken when the Messiah comes to Jerusalem. This is all hunky-dory, but there are some problems the Messiah will have to overcome. First, the gate s/he will have to go through, the Golden Gate, is sealed. To make matters worse, there is a cemetary in front of the Gate. Elijah is also supposed to go through the Gate to mark the coming of the Messiah. Well, Elijah is a Cohen, the priest tribe, and they are not allowed to go through a cemetary. As they would say in Hebrew, בלגן balagan.
View of the gate and the cemetary around it.
Entrance to the chapel of Gethsmane.
Special icon apparently only here for a week at the Tomb of Mary.
A sign outside of the Dominus Flevit.
Side story: I picked up a conversation with a random people while on the Mount of Olives. First, he asked if I were Russian due to my coloring. Then, he asked if I were a Mormon since apprently I was dressed like a Mormon for the day and hadn't realized it until that point. So, in one day, I evolved from Kenny to a Russian, Mormon donkey.
"JCS" is the common abbreviation for the musical, Jesus Christ Superstar.
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