I see skies of blue, clouds of white...

What a Wonderful World (ai-zeh a-chlah o-lam) איזה אחלה עולם

As Shabbat has come to a close, I have had an opportunity to reflect on the past week. It has been overwhelming and wonderful at the same time. We started school this week, which is really only three classes at this point: Ulpan (intensive Hebrew), Cantillation (Torah trope), and Biblical Archeology. Growing up there was always this ritual in my house that a picture was taken of each of us (Myself, Zak and Carrie) on the first day of school. This has been a tradition that while we always followed begrudgingly, I have come to appreciate, and is also something that has become somewhat entertaining over the years. It is hard to believe that after starting my journey so many years ago at Beatrice Glasser Preschool, I have just started school for what I think will be my last degree (although no guarantees in the Wainer family)!

First day of preschool from when I was about 4

Me on my first day of graduate school! I have had pictures taken every year on my first day of school (usually courtesy  of my mother, in front of the big tree at our house). Since she wasn't here this year to take a picture, I thought I would take one to share with everyone else! 

This ulpan is structured very similarly to that of Hebrew University's ulpan that I did when I studied abroad here in 2009. The only difference is that there each level had it's own class. Since we are a very small but mighty class we only have three ulpan classes. Level One is Aleph/Low Bet, Level Two is High Bet/Gimmel, and Level Three is Daled/Hey. I am currently in level two. This past week has generally been a review of what I have already learned in my past Hebrew classes, however, I felt that it would be most beneficial for me to have the review and really make sure that I have a solid foundation of understanding the material before I move on to newer and more challenging course work. Our cantillation class is divided up into two: those who have can read music/already know some trope and those who are just beginning. I am in the class for those who can read music/already know some trope. It was definitely helpful that I spent time teaching trope to my 5th grade class last year, especially since our final is having to chant the full Shema (which is what we used to teach our kids last year). 

The last class that I am taking this semester is Biblical Archaeology. The greatest and most unique thing about this class is that not only learning the Biblical history and archaeology of Israel but I get to do it while standing in the actual locations that these events took place. For instance, our field trip this past week went to the Haas Promenade/Tayellet and to Ramat Rachel. From these places we learned about why it might have been that Jerusalem, and more specifically the City of David, were built where they were (since it doesn't necessarily initially make sense that a city would be built in a valley when it could be built on a neighboring much taller mountain). 

The ancient city of Jerusalem, as it currently stands, surrounded by the more modern day Jerusalem

We also got to see some ruins from an ancient city that has yet to be determined it's exact nature and origins. It is one of the few excavations that have been done in Israel in which archaeologists have not been able to exactly what city this used to be. 

A monument at Ramat Rachel. The artist left no description of what it means. What do you think it means?

Some of the ancient ruins at Ramat Rachel. The sculpture in the back  is  done by the same artist who created the monument above. 

On Friday, a large number of my classmates and I spent the day in Tel Aviv. While most people went to the beach, a few of us went to explore a part of Tel Aviv called Neve Tzedek. There is a psychologist there who has worked with many people at HUC and she kindly invited us into her home and also gave us a personal tour around the area. The original area of Neve Tzedek was only three blocks wide, and was home to some very famous Israelis including the author S.Y. Agnon.

One of the colorful apartments in Neve Tzedek.

The highlight of our day in Tel Aviv was attending services on the נמל (port). These are services that are affiliated with the Reform synagogue Beit Daniel. In traditional Jewish prayer, people face in whatever direction is facing Jerusalem. For us from North America, we always face east (except for at Oak Park Temple). However, at these services we faced the Mediterranean Sea. Whether this was a political statement, or just so that all of those attending could watch the beautiful sunset during Kabbalt Services, I will never know, however, it was generally a very interesting service to attend.

It seemed to be almost more of a performance or event, rather than a service, however, it is one of the few places in the world where Kabbalat services can be held and people will drive an hour from Jerusalem to join, and others will have just gotten out of the Mediterranean Sea and have joined just because they recognized the melody. Throughout the service there were many melodies of prayers that I recognized, and some that were very new to me. However, one that I, and everyone else attending the service did recognize was that of "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong. However, there was one slight difference. 

Can you tell?

Separate But Equal is NOT Separate But Equal

Segregation (haf-ra-dah) הפרדה


As a part of our orientation this week, we participated in a program called "ירושלים שלי" or "My Jerusalem." The point of this program was to meet new Israelis and gain a new perspective of Jerusalem, based on their lives and passions. The program that I chose to do was with a woman by the name of Noa Sattath, who is the director of IRAC (Israeli Religious Action Center), as well as a student in the Israeli Rabbinic program at HUC in Jerusalem. IRAC is the, "public and legal advocacy arm of the Reform Movement in Israel...with the goals of advancing pluralism in Israeli society and defending the freedoms of conscience, faith, and religion." As a part of that, IRAC advocates for a great deal of issues including, but not limited to: conversion, marriage, divorce, segregation, gender discrimination and racism. 


The focus of the program today was on segregation, and more specifically, the issue of public buses that are segregated. When most people hear of the word segregation today, their minds usually jump to the civil rights movement of the 1960's in the United States. While this was definitely one time in which segregation occurred, and in which people fought tooth and nail for their civil rights, this is not quite the same thing as what is occurring in Israel. In Israel, there is a large gender bias against women, mostly within the ultra-orthodox communities. These are communities in which men dominate almost every sphere of existence. Some of this has to do with commandments from the Torah (613 to be exact) that command both men and women to do certain things, but the list of commandments for men is significantly longer than that of the women. These communities have pushed it so far to create what they deem "Modesty Buses," but, the rest of the world would see these as segregated buses.


Think of a normal city bus that has two entrances, one in the front and one about 2/3 of the way to the back of the bus. In any normal situation, one might assume that everyone would enter from the front of the bus, if for no other reason than the bus driver has to make sure that everyone has paid their fare. However, this is not the case of these "Modesty Buses." In these buses, the men enter from the front, while the women enter from the back. Prior to 2011, these specific bus lines, the women were only allowed to sit in the back of the bus, and were not able to move up to the front of the bus if there was no space available. This was the case, not only for inter-city buses, but for intra-city buses that were segregated as well. Women were having to stand at the back of the bus for as long as 3 or 4 hours because they were not permitted to sit in the front of the bus, where there were plenty of spaces. The idea of these segregated buses began in the 1990s, and by 2009 there were approximately 55 bus lines that were officially segregated. In 2011, the Israeli Supreme Court ruled that separate but equal was not equal, and therefore, "A public transportation operator, like any other person, does not have the right to order, request or tell women where they may sit simply because they are women." In addition to ordering the desegregation of all buses, Egged (the public bus company) was mandated by the Israeli Supreme Court to take out adds in all of the newspapers stating that the official policy of the company was that women could sit wherever they like on the bus, and that they cannot be asked to move based on their gender. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, many of the Hareidi (ultra-orthodox) newspapers refused to place these ads in their newspapers, and when they finally did, they also published disclaimers under these ads that the buses should still remain segregated. Furthermore, all of the buses now have signs stating that paying patrons of the bus can sit anywhere they like, and cannot be asked to move based on their gender.

                          The sign posted on all of the buses stating that people may sit wherever they like regardless of gender


Today, a group of about 10 classmates of mine boarded a bus that is still known to be segregated. This bus line begins in the area of Ramot, which is an ultra-orthodox community, and continues through both mixed communities (where both secular and religious Jews live) as well as communities where only the ultra-orthodox live.

                     A view of some of the apartments in Ramot, an area of Jerusalem where the average household has 7.6 children


 All of us boarded the bus from the front and stood at the front of the bus. While there were seats available, these were seats in which sets of two were facing each other, and there were religious men sitting on one side of them. Out of respect for the fact that it would have been nearly impossible to sit down without accidentally touching them (one of the laws that they follow prohibits men and women from touching each other). However, we all stood at the front of the bus. We were a group of mixed men and women who were all dressed modestly, but that clearly did not belong in the community. One of the men spoke to us and asked that all of the women move to the back of the bus. Noa clearly told him that we had all paid to be on the bus, and that legally we have a right to stand or sit wherever we like. The man persisted, but we did not move. In the end, the man got off of the bus at the next stop, presumably because he was upset at the fact that there were many women at the front of the bus. We then moved to the middle of the bus so that we had a better view of both the front and back of the bus. There were a few interesting things that I noted while on the bus:


1.) There were men that chose not to get on the bus because there was no room at the front of the bus and they did not want to be in the back of the bus (where there was plenty of room, by the way) because that is where all of the women were.


2.) All of the men were required to pay their bus fare when they entered from the front of the bus.


3.) There was a hold puncher next to the second door (what the bus drivers use to mark the 10 ride punch cards that most people purchase) so that the women could punch their own card and not have to walk through the men to the front of the bus.


4.) The great majority of women who entered from the back of the bus did not punch their cards, or make an effort to go to the front of the bus to pay for their ride. Some of these women do have monthly passes that they purchased, but those women generally made an effort to show the bus driver this upon entering the bus. They did this by holding it up high, and because of mirrors that are set up in the bus, the bus driver was able to see this. Interestingly enough, I did see one woman get on the bus who had a cartesia (punch card) in which all 10 spots had already been used. In an effort to assuage her guilt, she used the hold puncher to punch a hole in the middle of her card instead of actually paying for her bus ride. 


5.) The ultra-orthodox community is has the highest usage of the public bus system. Because Egged continues to make so much money from them, they do not enforce the fact that many of the women do not pay for their bus rides. 


This was, personally, a very enlightening experience for me. In this day and age, I hope to not ever have to experience what segregated public transportation is like in the United states. However, it is something that people experience on an everyday basis here. I was somewhat disappointing in myself that I did not take more of an initiative to engage in dialogue with the people on the bus, or to make more of an effort to take a seat at the front of the bus. Most of this was done out of respect to the men who were already seated, as I explained above. I would like to think that in situations like this I would be able to stand up for what I believe and vocalize this to anyone who has a dissenting opinion. I know that even in entering the bus from the front, and in standing towards the front of the bus for the entirety of the ride, we did make a statement, however small it might be. My hope for the future would be that when situations like this arise, either at home or half-way across the world, that we are all able to stand up for what we believe in, and are able to peacefully fight for the causes which we so strongly believe in.

I AM a Rabbinical Student!

To meet (l’hi-pa-gesh) להיפגש

This past week and a half has been full of meeting people. I have now met almost all of my classmates (and will meet the remaining few when we begin orientation on Monday), I have met SOs (significant others) of classmates, I have met some of my faculty for this year, and I have met A LOT of clergy!

This week was the first full week that I have spent in Israel that culminated with a Shabbat. Last week I chose not to go to services, mostly because I was not sure what time services began. In Israel, the times of services change depending on the seasons. In the summer, services begin later because the sun sets later, and therefore, Shabbat begins later. In the winter it is just the opposite. Since the sun sets significantly earlier, services and Shabbat meals begin earlier. This week a group of my classmates and I decided to attend services at Kol HaNeshama. Kol HaNeshama is a progressive (the Israeli Reform) synagogue in Jerusalem. Many of the founders were Americans who grew up in the Reform movement, and after making Aliyah, decided that they wanted to have a Reform synagoguge to attend where they felt more comfortable. As a result, they prayers that are said and the melodies that are used are much more similar to the Reform movement in the States than what you would hear if you went to an Orthodox synagogue. I, along with some of my other classmates, had a wonderful Shabbat meal at a classmate’s house. This was completed only by the crazy neighbor yelling at us because we moved chairs when we got up and sat down. Only in Israel!

Saturday morning was another day full of meeting people. I went to services at HUC in the morning, which is still an adjustment for me. There are new and different melodies here that I am learning, and hope to bring back to the States after this year. Because Saturday was part of the HUC Alumni Shabbat, there were many rabbis, cantors and educators who attended services, and with whom we were able to chat afterward. Following services, I went with two of my other classmates (Rebecca and Elle) to a fried of Rebecca’s for lunch. He is here working on an archeological dig, and had also invited some of his colleagues over. Of course, only in Israel would I find out that they were from Oak Park!

In the afternoon on Saturday I attended the HUC Alumni Shabbat. The topic was “Teaching Israel: Challenges and Opportunities,” and I was honored to be in the presence of so many great alums of the school which I am now attending. Following a panel discussion, I attended a breakout session with Rabbi Dr. Marc Rosenstein, who led a lesson called “547 Entrees of the Galilee Diary: Teaching Israel to North Americans.” The purpose of the Galilee Diary is to provide a more personal viewpoint that, “…Reform congregational schools [can use] to teach about Israel…” While we were having this discussion I took a few minutes around the room to look at my classmates and future colleagues. When I realized that sitting to my left was Rabbi Richard Jacobs, President-Elect of the URJ, and to my right sat Rabbi Uri Regev, former President of the World Union for Progressive Judaism, I was awe inspired and a little bit intimidated to realize that these people, with whom I was having a regular conversation, are soon to be my fellow colleagues. It is still sometimes hard for me to believe that I AM actually going to become a rabbi.  Throughout our orientation this week, we have been introducing ourselves when in small breakout sessions. Yesterday, I stated my name, and that I was going to be a rabbinical student at the Cincinnati campus. One of our rabbinic interns corrected me and said, “No, you ARE a rabbinical student.” It took me a few minutes to absorb the gravity of that statement. At this point, I am officially 2 days into my 5 year journey to becoming a rabbi!

The HUC Alumni Shabbat culminated with a beautiful Havdalah let by Rabbi Josh Zweiback and Rabbi Ken Chasen. Havdalah is always the part of Shabbat that I have enjoyed the most, and this Shabbat was made even more special by the presence of many HUC Alums, including one of my mentors, Rabbi Michael Klein-Katz. As we were standing there together, singing the blessings over the wine, spices, and candle, I realized that this is why I wanted to become a Rabbi. The Reform Jewish community that was reflected in this Havdalah is something that I can not imagine not being a part of, and something that I hope to become a role model for over the years. This Havdalah was evidence to me that we can put our differences aside and come together for the sake of a bond through religion and celebrate our religion, our culture, and our heritage, right in the heart of the Jewish homeland: Jerusalem!

The first week in Jerusalem

To Inspire (l'o-rar) לעורר


To say that I feel at home in Israel is an understatement. It is hard for me to explain how it feels to come back to a country where, at most, I have lived for 6 months, and yet I feel completely comfortable in my surroundings. It was very easy for me to jump right in once I got settled in my apartment. 


I am currently living at 6 Mapu (you can GoogleMap it if you want to know exactly where it is) and am living with a friend of mine from camp, and also another rabbinical student. The apartment has character to say the least. It was probably built in the late 50s or early 60s and definitely has not been redone since then. However, since we are on the 6th floor we get a great view of Jerusalem, and at approximately 11:30am on Sundays we get serenaded by the church bells from the YMCA of Jerusalem. 


This past week I have spent a great deal of time getting to know my future classmates. While HUC has not given us an official list, it seems to be the consensus that there are currently 37 students studying in Israel for the year. This includes all rabbinic, cantorial and education students. This includes a few members of the class who are studying at the Leo Baeck Institute in Europe. I spent my first Shabbat at the apartment of one of my classmates. I have to say that it has been very nice to get to know everyone in small increments. This way I am able to get to know each person on a more personal level, and hopefully by the end of next week I will have gotten to know all of my classmates better. On Saturday a number of us went to services at HUC, followed by lunch at the YMCA (or pronounced yim-ca). The services were led by some of the faculty at HUC and it was great to see what services will be like throughout the year. These are services that are not only for HUC students, but for members of the community, as well as visiting tour groups. There were a number of synagogue and youth trips that were spending Shabbat in Jerusalem and decided to join us for services. It was interesting to see what services are like here, because they are very different from what I am used to and what I expected. There were many different melodies that were used throughout the service. It is still not quite clear to me as to whether these are the melodies that are traditionally used in the services in Israel, or whether the faculty chose to use a conglomeration of melodies that they thought that most people would recognize. 


One of the most inspiring parts of my week in Israel happened on Sunday morning. For those of you that did not know, Rosh Chodesh Tamuz. Once a month, a group called Women of the Wall gathers to pray at the Kotel (Western Wall). What makes this group so different is that the women, and men, who attend this pray out loud, which is not allowed for women. Since the Kotel is considered to be a sanctuary by Orthodox standards, there is a mechitza (a division between where the men and women pray) and the women are expected to pray silently or very quietly, while the men are allowed to pray and sing as loudly as the please. The goal of this group is to eventually make it legal for women to wear talitot, read from the Torah, and pray out loud at the Kotel. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this experience, as I have always had mixed reactions at the Kotel. I have never felt that "spark" that people describe while praying at the Kotel. However, this past Sunday was different. I am not sure whether it was because I was wearing my talit and praying from a siddur (prayer book) that I was more comfortable with, or whether it was because, for the first time ever, I was able to pray out loud, and was surrounded by people who were also doing the same thing. It is an indescribable feeling that I experienced that day, but I hope that it is something that is replicated every month when I return to attend the Women of the Wall services. We were only able to do the first part of the service at the Kotel because it is illegal for women to read from the Torah. Instead, we are forced to leave the area and go to Robinson's arch to read from the Torah. Just before leaving the Kotel the women began singing "O'zi V'zimrat Yah" which is from a passage traditionally chanted on Rosh Chodesh. We continued singing this until we reached Robinson's Arch. Here is a little taste of what it was like at Women of the Wall...

(the words that are being sung are "O'zi v'zimrat yah va'yihi li lishuah- God is my strength and my song, and has become my salvation.)


I think that having attended my first Women of the Wall service with both men and women from HUC made it much more of a special and unique experience. We were able to share this experience, and also talk about what it meant to each of us to experience this for the first time. 


Since most of my classmates have now arrived, we all joined together for a 4th of July celebration on Monday. While it did not include fireworks, we did have a pot luck BBQ which turned out to be a lot of fun. I met more of my classmates and we had a great time just hanging out and getting to know each other. The rest of this week has just been spent exploring Jerusalem and getting to know my neighborhood. Today I went on a walking photo tour of the old city of Jerusalem, and will post those pictures soon!