Life of Spud

I recently completed my program at Pardes and delivered the following address to my teachers, cohort and friends.

The incidents at the Kotel these past few months have dominated the atmosphere where I study. There is an overwhelming sense of support for the Women of the Wall and their efforts to be recognized as legitimate players in the Jewish-religious narrative. Many of my friends have donned their Talitot and Tefilin (some for the first time) and made headlines in the process. I can personally attest to the character and passion of these people and I believe their intentions are sincere. And yet I struggle. I struggle because I believe that Jewish history provides us with important lessons for the present. And when I view what is going on at the Kotel plaza it is as if I have been transported to Jerusalem just prior to the destruction of Second Beit HaMikdash (Temple). Both Josephus and the Talmud record a time of great division amongst the Jewish people and both ascribe the ultimate loss of the war with Rome and the destruction of Beit HaMikdash (Temple) to this infighting (Tradi...

Over these past few weeks I have been reading Steven R. Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People as part of my coursework in Jewish educational leadership . Covey’s message and delivery are inspiring, and I highly recommend to this book to anyone and everyone. Its main premise is that leaders are most effective when they are, first and foremost, committed to and guided by principles of a universal and eternal character ethic. These principles enable them to prioritize their goals and forge authentic relationships with their colleagues in a way that cultivates their talents and spurs them toward greatness. Ostensibly intended for a business management audience, The Seven Habits has implications for every individual. I believe that a similar message regarding the necessity of an eternal character ethic is apparent in the second of this week’s double Torah portion of Achrei Mot / Kedoshim . I have studied Parshat Kedoshim many times and can still recall much of...

Can I sell my kids for Pesach? I'm pretty frustrated with my daughters right now. For the past few days/weeks the older one has been stubbornly ignoring anything and everything that I ask her to do. This morning it took her over an hour to get dressed and out the door for her super-expensive kaitana.The previous evening she whined and complained that she did not even want to go to the kaitana for the last day. My younger daughter has been waking up and coming home in a pissey mood for way too long. And she refuses to eat anything but bowls of cereal for dinner (Not during  dinnertime, mind you, but only after her bedtime). So I was thinking - with Pesach being the holiday of freedom, and all - that I deserve a little break from these kids; that I could really go for a week off (note: my wife probably deserves this break more than me). And then I got to thinking: if I can sell my chametz for the duration of the holiday, perhaps I can do the same with my kids. I...

״שיר המעלות אשא עיניי אל ההרים מאין יבוא עזרי״ (תהילים קכא) א ירגון ל מען ה ה ולכי ר גל י רושלי ם Inspired by the words of King David, the "Organization for the Pedestrians of Yerusalem" (OPY) seeks to provide the same protection that he sought when heading out to battle the mighty Goliath by lobbying the for stricter laws and oversight of the city's vehicular traffic.

Starting Tuesday, my fellow Pardes Educators will enter a variety of Jewish day school classrooms across the US as part of their student teaching experience. With an eye toward this opportunity, here are a few lessons/ideas from this week’s Torah portion, Parshat Terumah, regarding pedagogy: The parsha opens with an appeal for donations of the materials necessary for building the Mishkan (the Tabernacle). Every Israelite was encouraged to donate, so that the Mishkan became a unified source of the Shechinah (GD’s presence) in which everyone claimed a portion. Our classrooms, too, should function on this precept. If we aim to foster a community of learners where everyone has buy-in we should solicit feedback and ideas from our students and incorporate them into our teaching. This is also known as a constructivist classroom. The parsha continues and provides a detailed blueprint for construction of the Mishkan and its objects. The blueprint lists the necessary materials,...