Again we started the day nice and early. Some of us got up earlier and went out for
breakfast to try different aspects of Israeli cuisine the others stayed in and got some much
needed rest. After breakfast we met in the shule for a shacharit service, which included a
Torah reading from a beautiful Sephardi Torah, lead by Mr Grauman. After shule it was time
to get stuck into a new day.
We got into learning with Rabbi Kahn and continued our leaning about Chanukah and the
reason why we light the Chanukia the way we do. Challenging myself to learn Hebrew and to
understand the Gemara was something I really took to heart when it came to learning in the
Beit Midrash.
We then had a shiur with our very own David Wolfowicz. We looked into a moral dilemma
about a boy who was bullied and his response to these bullies. He responded to these bullies
by poisoning his sandwich and when the bullies asked for his lunch he poisoned the bullies.
We then looked into the Rabbi’s opinions on situations similar to this and the Halacha (laws).
We came to the conclusion that the kid who poisoned his own sandwich was in the right,
which was a surprise to all of us.
Our next shuir was with another rabbi from the institute. He discussed the week’s parsha
(Toldot), which focuses on Esau. He described how Esau had potential to be a righteous Jew
and explained how this was seen as a very controversial topic.
None of us liked the standard Yeshiva lunch so we ventured through the town of Beit
Shemesh and came across delicious felafel and pita. After a great lunch it was straight back
to learning with Rav Ely Allen. We had an amazing Q&A session where we discussed topics
such as the views of hell from other faiths, homosexuality in Judaism, and the ways science
is changing Judaism. All these topics created a very interesting environment and caused
much debate. This was surely a highlight of the day. After a mincha service we left after
another successful day at Yeshiva.
We got back to the hotel for a much needed chill before we had a delightful meal. We then
went to the Eshel’s for a pre-Shabbat challah bake. We baked challot and learnt about the
true meaning of why we bake it. It was a very meaningful experience that I’m sure we all can
take something away from.
Now that it is Thursday we can say Shabbat is coming.