Written by Doron Krakow (father of current year student Aaron Krakow (’21) – My son, Aaron, is a student at Machon Pardes (The Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies), where he is spending a semester studying Jewish texts—a spiritual journey taking the place of the kind of post-army trek to southeast Asia typical of many young Israelis. For Aaron, who received a limited formal Jewish education growing up, the time at Pardes addresses a longstanding desire to know more about who he is and about the roots of our people. The study is intense: Five months. Often 12-hour days or more. Classes in Tanakh (Torah, Prophets, and Writings), Talmud, Mishneh Torah (the preeminent work of the RamBam, Rabbi Moses Ben Maimon, also known as Maimonides). Chevruta study (the classical approach to text study by pairs of students). It’s an immersion.
Pardes in the press