DOCSLIB.ORG

Return from Exile to Rabbinic Judaism

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Return from Exile to Rabbinic Judaism Return From Exile to Rabbinic Judaism 600 BCE-600 CE(give or take a few hundred years either way) Examples: Abraham following God’s Abraham: instructions -born in Ur -God told him to leave his land and go “to a land I will show you” -made a covenant with God -first person to recognize Adonai as God Sodom was a city on the plains of Judea. Abraham’s nephew Lot had gone to live there. It was very wicked. God decided to destroy it. God sent a messenger to tell Lot to get away before the city was destroyed. Lot and his daughters left but Lot’s wife turned back to see the city and she was turned into a pillar of salt. Sodom being destroyed People: Ezra and Nehemiah The stories of Ezra and Nehemiah are in the Bible in the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah Second temple The second temple had two courtyards and at least four gates in the outer courtyard. The construction was done in 515 B.C.E It was built by the people who came back from Babylonia. Judea under Persian Rule In the Autumn of 539 B.C.E., Cyrus (Ⅱ) the Great, already the ruler of Persia and Medea, vanquished the Babylonian army and gained control of all of Mesopotamia. He immediately adopted a policy which was to be descriptive of his reign: he encouraged the return of exiles and rebuilding of their shrines, motivated by a benevolence which seemed to sit well both with his temperament and with the need to govern a large far-flung empire. In 538 B.C.E., Cyrus decreed that the Temple of the Jews in Jerusalem was to be rebuilt and that all the exiles who wished might return to Judea, the Persian province of Yahud. This decree inaugurated the period of the Second Temple, also known as the Second Commonwealth. The rise of Cyrus and the fall of Babylon were viewed by the Jews as God’s work. Who was Judah Maccabee? When was he born? When did he die? Where did he live? Judah Maccabee was a Jewish soldier and a son of the priest Mattathias. He led the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire. Judah Maccabee was born in 190 BC, Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut, Israel. Judah died in 160 BC, Judea. Judah lived in Modi’im a little village in the countryside, then he moved to Jerusalem after the revolt was successful. This is an image from the revolt that Judah led an army of Jewish descendants to victory over the Seleucid dynasty in guerrilla warfare, which at first was directed against Hellenized Jews. 1 Why WAS HE important to Jewish history? Antiochus was power hungry. The king thought the Jews were a threat. Thus his decree that Jews may no longer study After Antiochus IV said Jews could no longer practice their/our religion, Judah got upset. Judah revolted against the king, because the king was power hungry. And thus why Judah revolted against him. Some people called him Antiochus the Mad because they thought he was crazy. You can watch this video to learn more: Slide 7 1 very good. exactly right.Some people called him Antiochus the Mad because they thought he was crazy. Deborah Goldstein, 10/28/2020 1 I'm stealing that- Aliya Bleier _ Student - LigonMS, 10/28/2020 2 The destruction of the second temple: - The second temple was destroyed on the 9th of Av, same day as the first temple was destroyed, just in 70 CE. - The Temple was burned by the Romans but some people think it was caused because Jews couldn’t get along with each other Slide 8 2 good. can you explain why it was destroyed or why it's important for Judaism that it was destroyed? Deborah Goldstein, 10/28/2020 - Here’s the story: - There was a party. Kazma was invited but Bar Kamza came. No one liked Bar Kamza. They threw Bar Kamza out. He was angry. - Bar Kazma was not really welcome among the people in Jerusalem, and so he left a blemished calf on the rabbis doorstep for sacrifice to see if they would do it. They didn’t and this made him mad. - The rabbis refused to kill Bar Kazma, even though he brought Ceasar and the Romans into Jerusalem. The rebels wanted to fight back and kill Bar Kazma, but the rabbis refused and tried to negotiate peace. But the Romans destroy the temple. It was important because the Jews had to figure out a different way to worship God. The rabbis started the school at Yavneh and started a new Judaism. Check out this video. It tells the story of Kamza and Bar Kamza. Hillel 31 Hillel was born in 110 BCE. When he was a kid he did not have a lot of money. He was so poor that he could not afford even the tuition at the study hall. Instead he sat at the top of the building, in the sunlight listening to the lesson. He got caught, but continued to listen to the lessons. When he got older Hillel helped shape Passover. Compared to Shammai, another rabi, Hillel was very open to other people getting converted to Judaism. Slide 10 3 Nice work Deborah Goldstein, 10/28/2020 1 thankyou Aidan Schechtman, 10/28/2020 Judah ha-Nasi or Judah I, was a second-century rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He lived from approximately 135 to 217 CE. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea. That means he wrote down the Talmud. Born: 135 AD, Judea Died: 217 AD, Sepphoris Tomb of Judah HaNasi(Judah the Prince) Rabbinic Judaism/The Talmud How to Be Jewish without the Temple 4 Structure of the talmud In the center is the mishnah(the text)that is being studied, the commentary spirals out and then stops, then there is a rectangle of comments on the comments as an outside ring Slide 14 4 Good. remember you also have to explain what the Talmud is and why it's important. You know that but a lot of people don't. Deborah Goldstein, 10/28/2020.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Chapter Fourteen Rabbinic and Other Judaisms, from 70 to Ca
    Chapter Fourteen Rabbinic and Other Judaisms, from 70 to ca. 250 The war of 66-70 was as much a turning point for Judaism as it was for Christianity. In the aftermath of the war and the destruction of the Jerusalem temple Judaeans went in several religious directions. In the long run, the most significant by far was the movement toward rabbinic Judaism, on which the source-material is vast but narrow and of dubious reliability. Other than the Mishnah, Tosefta and three midrashim, almost all rabbinic sources were written no earlier than the fifth century (and many of them much later), long after the events discussed in this chapter. Our information on non-rabbinic Judaism in the centuries immediately following the destruction of the temple is scanty: here we must depend especially on archaeology, because textual traditions are almost totally lacking. This is especially regrettable when we recognize that two non-rabbinic traditions of Judaism were very widespread at the time. Through at least the fourth century the Hellenistic Diaspora and the non-rabbinic Aramaic Diaspora each seem to have included several million Judaeans. Also of interest, although they were a tiny community, are Jewish Gnostics of the late first and second centuries. The end of the Jerusalem temple meant also the end of the Sadducees, for whom the worship of Adonai had been limited to sacrifices at the temple. The great crowds of pilgrims who traditionally came to the city for the feasts of Passover, Weeks and Tabernacles were no longer to be seen, and the temple tax from the Diaspora that had previously poured into Jerusalem was now diverted to the temple of Jupiter Capitolinus in Rome.
    [Show full text]
  • Introduction
    INTRODUCTION Hanne Trautner-Kromann n this introduction I want to give the necessary background information for understanding the nine articles in this volume. II start with some comments on the Hebrew or Jewish Bible and the literature of the rabbis, based on the Bible, and then present the articles and the background information for these articles. In Jewish tradition the Bible consists of three main parts: 1. Torah – Teaching: The Five Books of Moses: Genesis (Bereshit in Hebrew), Exodus (Shemot), Leviticus (Vajikra), Numbers (Bemidbar), Deuteronomy (Devarim); 2. Nevi’im – Prophets: (The Former Prophets:) Joshua, Judges, Samuel I–II, Kings I–II; (The Latter Prophets:) Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezek- iel; (The Twelve Small Prophets:) Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephania, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi; 3. Khetuvim – Writings: Psalms, Proverbs, Job, The Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Chronicles I–II1. The Hebrew Bible is often called Tanakh after these three main parts: Torah, Nevi’im and Khetuvim. The Hebrew Bible has been interpreted and reinterpreted by rab- bis and scholars up through the ages – and still is2. Already in the Bible itself there are examples of interpretation (midrash). The books of Chronicles, for example, can be seen as a kind of midrash on the 10 | From Bible to Midrash books of Samuel and Kings, repeating but also changing many tradi- tions found in these books. In talmudic times,3 dating from the 1st to the 6th century C.E.(Common Era), the rabbis developed and refined the systems of interpretation which can be found in their literature, often referred to as The Writings of the Sages.
    [Show full text]
  • Israeli History
    1 Ron’s Web Site • North Shore Flashpoints • http://northshoreflashpoints.blogspot.com/ 2 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb6IiSUx pgw 3 British Mandate 1920 4 British Mandate Adjustment Transjordan Seperation-1923 5 Peel Commission Map 1937 6 British Mandate 1920 7 British Mandate Adjustment Transjordan Seperation-1923 8 9 10 • Israel after 1973 (Yom Kippur War) 11 Israel 1982 12 2005 Gaza 2005 West Bank 13 Questions & Issues • What is Zionism? • History of Zionism. • Zionism today • Different Types of Zionism • Pros & Cons of Zionism • Should Israel have been set up as a Jewish State or a Secular State • Would Israel have been created if no Holocaust? 14 Definition • Jewish Nationalism • Land of Israel • Jewish Identity • Opposes Assimilation • Majority in Jewish Nation Israel • Liberation from antisemetic discrimination and persecution that has occurred in diaspora 15 History • 16th Century, Joseph Nasi Portuguese Jews to Tiberias • 17th Century Sabbati Zebi – Declared himself Messiah – Gaza Settlement – Converted to Islam • 1860 Sir Moses Montefiore • 1882-First Aliyah, BILU Group – From Russia – Due to pogroms 16 Initial Reform Jewish Rejection • 1845- Germany-deleted all prayers for a return to Zion • 1869- Philadelphia • 1885- Pittsburgh "we consider ourselves no longer a nation, but a religious community; and we therefore expect neither a return to Palestine, nor a sacrificial worship under the sons of Aaron, nor the restoration of any of the laws concerning a Jewish state". 17 Theodore Herzl 18 Theodore Herzl 1860-1904 • Born in Pest, Hungary • Atheist, contempt for Judaism • Family moves to Vienna,1878 • Law student then Journalist • Paris correspondent for Neue Freie Presse 19 "The Traitor" Degradation of Alfred Dreyfus, 5th January 1895.
    [Show full text]
  • Beit Shammai & Beit Hillel
    Beit Shammai & Beit Hillel: Two Fundamentally Different Approaches to Chanukah Rabbi Joshua Flug Director of Torah Research, Yeshiva University’s Center for the Jewish Future One of the more famous disputes between Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel is regarding the practice of the extremely scrupulous (mehadrin min hamehadrin) on Chanukah. מצות חנוכה נר איש וביתו Our Rabbis taught: The precept of Chanukah [demands] one light for a והמהדרין נר לכל אחד ואחד man and his household; the scrupulous [kindle] a light for each member [of והמהדרין מן המהדרין בית שמאי :the household]; and the extremely scrupulous, — Beit Shammai maintain אומרים יום ראשון מדליק שמנה On the first day eight lights are lit and thereafter they are gradually מכאן ואילך פוחת והולך ובית הלל reduced; but Beit Hillel say: On the first day one is lit and thereafter they אומרים יום ראשון מדליק אחת are progressively increased. Ulla said: In the West [Palestine] two מכאן ואילך מוסיף והולך אמר amoraim, R. Yosi b. Avin and R. Yosi b. Zevida, differ therein: one עולא פליגי בה תרי אמוראי במערבא ר' יוסי בר אבין ור' יוסי maintains, the reason of Beit Shammai is that it shall correspond to the בר זבידא חד אמר טעמא דב"ש days still to come, and that of Beit Hillel is that it shall correspond to the כנגד ימים הנכנסין וטעמא דב"ה days that are gone; but another maintains: Beit Shammai's reason is that it כנגד ימים היוצאין וחד אמר טעמא shall correspond to the bulls of the Festival and Beit Hillel's reason is that דב"ש כנגד פרי החג וטעמא דבית .we promote in [matters of] sanctity but do not reduce הלל דמעלין בקדש ואין מורידין.
    [Show full text]
  • The Nasi, the Judge and the Hostages: Loans and Oaths in Thirteenth-Century Narbonne
    The Nasi, the Judge and the Hostages: Loans and Oaths in Thirteenth-Century Narbonne Pinchas Roth1 The Nesi’im, or Jewish “princes,” in Narbonne have aroused the curiosity and imaginations of people – Jewish and Christian alike – for centuries.2 As described by their earliest chronicler, the so-called Proven�al addition to Sefer ha-Kabbalah (The Book of Tradition), the Nesi’im were characterized by a combination of worldly wealth, political clout and rabbinic expertise.3 Their wealth and political status faded during the thirteenth century, but their status as respected aristocrats endured until the expulsion of the Jewish community in 1306.4 1 I would like to thank the members of the “Rethinking Early Modern Jewish Legal Culture: New Sources, Methodologies and Paradigms” research group at the Israel Institute for Advanced Studies, 2018–2019 for their feedback, Claire Soussen and Sarah Maugin for their constructive comments, and Menachem Butler for his invaluable help. This research was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (grant no. 281/18). 2 E.M. Rose, The Murder of William of Norwich: The Origins of the Blood Libel in Medieval Europe (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015), 86; Arthur J. Zuckerman, A Jewish Princedom in Feudal France, 768–900 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1972); Jonathan Levi, Septimania: A Novel (New York: Overlook Press, 2016). For a resounding rebuttal of Zuckerman’s theory, see Jeremy Cohen, “The Nasi of Narbonne: A Problem in Medieval Historiography,” AJSR 2 (1977): 45–76. 3 “We have a tradition that in Narbonne they have a chain of grandeur in Torah and Nesi’ut and Ge’onut.” Ms New York, Jewish Theological Seminary, Rab.
    [Show full text]
  • Yom Kippur 2015 Rabbi Carl M. Perkins Temple Aliyah Needham, MA
    “Let’s Have a Conversation…” Yom Kippur 2015 Rabbi Carl M. Perkins Temple Aliyah Needham, MA I want to tell you a story about a famous rabbi, Rabbi Yehudah Ha-Nasi. Rabbi Yehudah lived in the Land of Israel at the end of the second century. He was an influential Jewish leader. He was selected to be the Nasi, the Patriarch, with apparently many administrative, legislative and judicial responsibilities. He edited the Mishnah, a comprehensive Jewish legal code. He was also beloved and looked up to by his fellow rabbis and scholars. This is the story about the day he died. The Talmud tells it this way:1 Rabbi Yehudah ha-Nasi was very, very ill. It was clear to him and to those around him that he was dying. He called for his sons, and when they arrived, he gave them instructions. Take care, he said, that you show respect to your mother. Keep the home fires burning. Let my two attendants, Yosef of Haifa and Shim’on of Efrat, who attended on me during my lifetime, attend to me after my death. He called on the Sages of Israel to come forward and he ordered them: Don’t mourn for me in the small villages. I don’t want to put people out. You may mourn for me in the towns, but for no longer than thirty days. His disciples gathered in the courtyard just outside his home to pray for his recovery. Now, Rabbi Yehuda had a dear, devoted aide, a woman of great sensitivity and compassion.
    [Show full text]
  • Scholarly Lineage of Prominent Tannaim
    Source Sheet Class 3-2000 Years of Jewish History-Rabbi Menachem Levine Source 1 Scholarly lineage of prominent tannaim Rabbis of the Mishnah : Chronology & Hierarchy Teacher→Student Father→Son Hillel Shammai Gamaliel the Johanan b. Zakai Elder R. Jose the Eliezer b. Joshua b. Eleazar b. Eleazar b. Gamaliel Galilean Hyrcanus Hananiah Arach Azariah Elisha b. Ishmael Akiva Tarfon Abuyah b. Elisha Shimon b. Nathan Meir Judah b. Ilai Jose b. Halafta Yohai Judah Hiyya Oshiah haNasi Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tannaim Source 2 The Oral Torah was originally meant to be transmitted by word of mouth. It was transmitted from master to student in such a manner that if the student had any question, he would be able to ask, and thus avoid ambiguity. A written text, on the other hand, no matter how perfect, is always subject to misinterpretation…. If the entire Torah would have been given in writing, everyone would be able to interpret it as he desired. This would lead to division and discord among people who followed the Torah in different ways. The Oral Torah, on the other hand, would require a central authority to preserve it, thus assuring the unity of Israel. Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, Handbook of Jewish Thought, Moznaim 1979, p.179 Source 3 12 Our Holy Teacher wrote the Mishnah. From the time of Moshe to Our Holy Teacher, no one had written a work from which the Oral Law was publicly taught. Rather, in each generation, the head of the then existing court or the prophet of the time wrote down for his private use notes on the traditions he had heard from his teachers, and he taught in public from memory.
    [Show full text]
  • Female Homoerotic Sexual Activity – Sources
    Feminist Sexual Ethics Project Gail Labovitz Senior Research Analyst, Feminist Sexual Ethics Project Female Homoerotic Sexual Activity – Sources: The sources addressing female homoerotic sexual activity in rabbinic literature (link to glossary) are very few, and far less clear than those regarding sexual activity between men. There is a great deal of ambiguity in these texts as to what activities are forbidden, the consequences for women who engage in them, and the nature (that is, the source and/or the authority) of whatever prohibition does exist. Reading these sources suggests several potential reasons why rabbinic thinking on female homoerotic sexual activity is less developed than regarding male homoeroticism; these possibilities will be discussed in the course of the analysis of the texts below. Tannaitic Midrash There is no direct prohibition on female homoerotic sexual activity in the Hebrew bible, indeed, no explicit discussion of such activity at all. Biblical laws of forbidden sexual couplings (notably Leviticus 18 and 20) are generally addressed to male listeners/readers. With the exception of the prohibition against bestiality (Leviticus 18:23 and 20:15-16), in which the prohibition against women committing this act follows on the prohibition to men,1 sexual acts which do not involve male participants are not discussed. Nor do the Mishnah (link to glossary) or the Tosefta (link to glossary) discuss sexual acts between women in any way. Only one midrashic (link to glossary) text from this period addresses any form of homoeroticism between women. As midrash, that is, as a form of exegesis of scriptural text, to Leviticus 18:3, this passage thus invokes the authority of scripture for its discourse on female homoeroticism; it links marriage between two women to the practices of the Canaanites and Egyptians, which this verse and numerous others explicitly forbid, as well as to a number of other sexual/marital connections explicitly or implicitly forbidden in scripture [cite the verse?].
    [Show full text]
  • Judah Ha-Nasi Judaism
    JUDAH HA-NASI JUDAH HA-NASI al. Since the publication of his Mishnah at the end of the second or beginning of the third century, the primary pur- Head of Palestinian Jewry and codifier of the MISH- suit of Jewish sages has been commenting on its contents. NAH; b. probably in Galilee, c. 135; d. Galilee, c. 220. Judah was the son of Simeon II ben Gamaliel II, who was See Also: TALMUD. the grandson of GAMALIEL (mentioned in Acts 5.34; Bibliography: W. BACHER, The Jewish Encyclopedia. ed. J. 22.3), who was in turn the grandson of Hillel. As the pa- SINGER (New York 1901–06) 7:333–33. D. J. BORNSTEIN, Encyclo- triarch or head of Palestinian Jewry, Judah received as a paedia Judaica: Das Judentum in Geschichte und Gegenwart. permanent epithet the title ha-Nasi (the Prince), original- (Berlin 1928–34) 8:1023–35. L. LAZARUS, Universal Jewish Ency- clopedia (New York 1939–44) 6: 229–230. K. SCHUBERT, Lexikon ly given to the president of the Great Sanhedrin in Jerusa- für Theologie und Kirche, ed. J. HOFER and K. RAHNER (Freiberg lem. In the Mishnah he is referred to simply as Rabbi (the 1957–65) 5:889. A. GUTTMANN, ‘‘The Patriarch Judah I: His Birth teacher par excellence), and in the GEMARAH he is often and Death,’’ Hebrew Union College Annual 25 (1954) 239–261. called Rabbenu (our teacher) or Rabbenu ha-kadosh (our [M. J. STIASSNY] saintly teacher). He was instructed in the HALAKAH of the Oral Law by the most famous rabbis of his time, but he summed up his experience as a student, and later as a teacher, in the words: ‘‘Much of the Law have I learned JUDAISM from my teachers, more from my colleagues, but most of The term Judaism admits of various meanings.
    [Show full text]
  • Siach Hasadeh – Field Talk Collected Essays for Tu B’Shvat 2015
    SiaCH haSadeh – Field TalK Collected Essays for Tu B’Shvat 2015 MIDRESHET LINDENBAUM SIACH HASADEh – FIELD TALK שיח השדה Chana and Yaacov Tilles Women’s Campus Besen Family Center for Advanced Women’s Studies 51 Leib Yaffe Street, Jerusalem 9339082 Tel: +972-2-671-0043 | Fax: +972-2-671-0144 [email protected] | www.Midreshet-Lindenbaum.org.il America Latina Programa Midreshet Darkaynu Susi Bradfield Women’s Institute for Halachic Leadership The Maria and Joel Finkle Overseas Program Tochnit Hadas Tochnit Bruriah Tochnit Tushia Design: JK Jen Klor Photos of the Seven Species by Sara Eichler, class of 1989-90, who currently lives in Jerusalem. שיח השדה SIACH HASADEh – FIELD TALK AND THE ALMOND-TREE SHALL BLOssOM HaRav Ohad Teharlev, Director, Israeli Programs Tu b’Shvat, the New Year particularly] almonds? of Trees, is identified That is the fruit that with the blossoming blossoms quicker than of the almond tree in other fruits. Likewise, the winter, around the he who opposes time of Tu b’Shvat. The the kehunah, his familiar words that we punishment comes hear in kindergartens quickly.” and school assemblies, From here we remind us of that: understand that rashi derives that the almond – השקדיה פורחת “The almond tree is tree symbolizes the blossoming … Tu b’Shvat speedy blossoming has arrived, a holiday for before the coming the trees.” of Spring and the blossoming of other Why? What is the meaning fruits. In contrast, the of the early flowering of chizkuni explains that the almond tree? Is there the almond (shaked) a link between this and Tu symbolizes diligence b’Shvat? To answer these (shakdanut): questions, we will try to trace the emergence It gave forth and significance of the blossoms, sprouted almond tree in Biblical buds – a sign that and rabbinic literature.
    [Show full text]
  • Sermon Notes
    SERMON NOTES Second Sunday of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Synaxis Gospel Mark 10:1-12 JESUS’ TEACHING ON DIVORCE INTRODUCTION When it comes to the question of divorce, there are two very different schools of thought. One approach reflects our treasured ancient background; the other mirrors the new freedoms of the American way of life. In the old days, divorce was considered something foreign to our Armenian traditions. On the rare occasions that an Armenian couple divorced, it was looked upon as a shameful thing. Armenians did not divorce! Today, we in America live in a different cultural world, a world that accepts divorce. More and more we are seeing Armenian couples deciding to end their unhappy marriages by divorce. A similar situation existed in the days of Jesus. The people were divided on the issue of divorce. Those who were more conservative followed the teaching of a famous religious teacher, Rabbi Shammai. Those who were more pragmatic, or found the sophisticated new ideas of the Greek and Roman world appealing, followed the teaching of an equally famous rabbi, Hillel. Today, the name Hillel is still held in high esteem by Jewish university students, while Shammai’s is known mostly to those who are scholars in the history of the Jewish people. Hillel’s popularity stems from the fact that most Jews felt (and still feel) that the divine law was too idealistic for the imperfect world in which mankind lives. Hillel’s rulings represented a very relaxed interpretation of the law and were far less strict than those of Shammai.
    [Show full text]
  • Hillel and Shammai: the Jewish 'Culture of Debate' and the Return to Civil Discourse Sermon YK Day 5780 Any Visitor to Jeru
    Hillel and Shammai: The Jewish ‘Culture of Debate’ and the Return to Civil Discourse Sermon YK Day 5780 Any visitor to Jerusalem is sure to visit the Western Wall, the world-renowned Israel Museum with its expanding art collection, and the shuk in Machane Yehuda – on a Friday if possible… If you want to go off the beaten path to explore Israel through what I think is a particularly insightful lens: In Search of the Good Life, down through the ages and today, then you can join our MJCS trip to Israel this coming June. There’s a flyer with details outside. But certainly no trip to Jerusalem is complete - whether in Search of the Good Life, or even just in search of a great schwarma - without a visit to the famous pedestrian mall on Ben Yehudah St. For my teens growing up in Jerusalem, this is the place to Be – it’s like the 3rd St. Promenade of the entire Middle East. Nearby, on Hillel St., both tourists and locals frequently visit the original café Aroma, known for really great coffee served with a square of chocolate and superBly satisfying sandwiches…(sorry to mention that today for those who are fasting!) Or you might prefer to graB a Burger at the world’s first kosher McDonald’s one block over on Shammai St. These two streets, Hillel and Shammai, you may already know, are named after the two revered sages who lived towards the end of the 2nd Temple era 2,000 years ago. Hillel and Shammai are known for disagreeing aBout everything…from how many candles to light on the first night of Chanuka (1 candle then counting up each night, or 8 candles and counting down each night) to whether or not you can tell a white lie to preserve someone’s dignity.
    [Show full text]