Monday, May 16, 2011

Do the Jew

Hello World!

Yeshiva has officially started now and I finally feel like I have settled in. I have about 8 hours of class per day which include a range of topics such as Gemara, Chumash, Jewish Philosophy and general Halacha. The teachers are excellent, inspirational and seriously smart people! I am in a programme called Shoresh (which mean root) and is the basic intro programme to the Yeshiva. The guys in the programme mostly come from similar backgrounds to me and have become religious later in life. There are 4 or 5 other programmes running simultaneously including a central Beit Midrash housing some seriously advanced scholars. Most serious students wear the penguin costume (black suit and white shirt) and big black hats! Although I think the black hats are funky, I hope I don't walk out of this place wearing one!!

Over all I really like the Yeshiva experience and really look forward to learning more and more! There is one thing that does annoy me - and that is the fact the the Yeshiva is non-Zionist. I just have learnt to keep my mouth shut when it comes to Zionism issues! Don't get me wrong - they are not anti-Zionist; but when nobody (except me) stands up for the Yom Hazikaron siren you know that there is something fishy with their ideology. At the end of the day it doesn't really matter - I am there to study, not talk politics, and the study environment there is top notch!

Just before classes started I was invited to join a group to travel up to a Palestinian village near Schem (Nablus). This was a special organised trip for the purpose of visiting the grave of Yehoshua Ben Nun and Caleb - both very important biblical characters. Being a Palestinian are, Israelis are not generally allowed to go but once a year on the Yahrtzeit of Yehoshua the army shuts down the village and provides safe access to the 1000s of Jews who make the pilgramage to the graves. We left after 11pm and got there around midnight where we had to make the 20 minute trek through the village up to the graves. It was amazing to see some many observant Jews praying, singing and dancing around the grave site. Yehoshua's grave was inside a tiny housed area, so with some difficulty I squeezed inside to be part of the awe-inspiring experience.

That next Shabbat I was invited to Eli and Leah Janovsky's place in Maon. Maon is a little settlement in the west bank not far from Hebron. I have not seen the Janovskys since I left New Zealand, so it was so nice to catch up and enjoy a relaxing Shabbat in a such a quiet beautiful area in the west bank. It was also great to see their kids Sarah and David and see how much they have grown!

The day before class started my British friend Josh and I went for a walk from the Old City up to the top of the Mount of Olives. Although I have been there before this was the first time I have actually walked up. From the top is the most incredible view looking over the old city and beyond to the new parts of Jerusalem. The mount of Olives is named such for the ancient olive trees on the hill where Jesus supposedly hid behind (or something like that). There is also a huge Jewish cemetery here, as the belief is that when the Moshiach (Messiah) comes the bodies will be resurrected and will be able to commute directly to the holy temple. Also scattered up the hill are an array of churches and monasteries including the magnificent Russian Orthodox church with its golden domes.

The next Shabbat Michael and I were hosted by one of the Yeshiva Rabbis, Rabbi Geffen. He and his family are very sweet people and we enjoyed a lovely Friday night meal together. The next morning I got up early to go pray at the Great Synagogue of Jerusalem. That week a famous Israeli Chazzan (cantor) and his choir wowed the synagogue with 5 hours of beautiful melodies and impressive harmonies! For lunch I went to Rabbi Machlus, who lives just behind the Yeshiva. He and his wife are amazing people because they host 100ish guys and girls every week for Shabbat!! Lunch was lovely with a great atmosphere, lots of singing and dvrei Torah.

During the week I met up with Eitan Grossman for a coffee downtown. It has been almost 2 years since we have seen each other so it was really nice to finally catchup! Actually this week I am going over the the Grossmans to have a proper catchup with the whole family :)

The Yom Yoms have come and gone. I feel kind of bad, but I did not make any effort to commemorate Yom Hashoah (Holocaust day). In Israel there is a siren that goes off so that the whole country can stop and pause to remember the victims. This is truly an amazing thing to see: cars will stop in the street and the drivers will step out and stand in silence for one minute.

For Yom Hazikaron (rememberance day for the fallen soldiers) I went to a ceremony in Jerusalem at a place called Amon Anatziv. A couple of my friends were singing in part of the ceremony. Unfortunately the buses in Jerusalem are sooo slow and unreliable at times that by the time I got to the event it was almost over! After that I joined some friends and we went down to the Sultan Pools (just outside Zion Gate of the Old City) to watch a large musical ceremony in honour of the fallen soldiers and the victims of terror. The show was a couple of hours long and hosted many of israel's famous contemporary singers.

Yom Haatzmaut - Israeli Independence Day! Always good fun in Israel! In the evening I went out with some friends to town to enjoy the festivities. All the main streets in downtown Jerusalem are closed and are packed full of people dancing the night away in front of the many stages set up across town. At times it was so packed that it was difficult to move! I also met up with Nandor and we went to check out the party in the Shuk (market) but by the time we got there it had been shut down due to too many people! Due to the fact that the Yeshiva does not celebrate Yom Haatzmaut there were classes throughout the day, however my friend Daniel invited me out to a BBQ with his Aunt - so I had one more opportunity to celebrate my independence day!

So that is what I have been up to recently!!! I hope everyone is well back home!

Until next time..... L'hitraot!