Hamas War

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Matan, 5780, 2019-2020, Spectacular Start

Matan, Jerusalem, 30 Rashbag Street
Yesterday I and hundreds of others began the  5780, 2019-2020 study year in Matan. (There are other courses in Hebrew and English which began on Sunday, but the ones I take are on Wednesday.) I've been treating myself to year long and special event courses and classes in Matan for over a decade already. My weekly schedule revolves around my Matan studies and Tanach/Bible chevruta, study group.

Dr. Yael Ziegler, on the stage
and Malka Bina, founder of Matan
greeting the students
By the time Yael Ziegler began her
lecture every seat was taken, and
women sat on the stairs.
The Matan student body is an amazing group of women, and some men in the English language courses. As you can see in the photos of the audiences/student body, many are senior citizens/retirees, even older than me, but there are also quite a few youngsters. And my two favorite teachers are young enough to be my daughters. Not only have I made new friends in Matan, but I'm studying with women I've known since we were teenagers.
Yael Liebowitz, somehow I didn't
catch her smiling

Like many others who had crowded into the Matan auditorium, I choose my courses by teachers. We sign up religiously for the two Yaels, regardless of the course titles. And to be perfectly honest, we haven't been disappointed yet. Both gave spellbinding, gevaldik, spectacular opening lectures.
Yael Liebowitz's student body
has been growing every year.

These are the Matan courses I'm taking this year. I've already officially signed up and paid.

Creation, Un-creation and Re-creation Bresishit 1-11 by Dr. Yael Ziegler
Making Sense of Biblical Dichotomies and Simultaneous Truths by Yael Leibowitz
There are other excellent teachers and courses on other days and in branches of Matan all over the country. Yael Liebowitz is giving the same course in a few other branches, if you're interested and can't get to Jerusalem on Wednesdays.

I hope you can join us studying in Matan, highly recommended.

5 comments:

Esser Agaroth said...

"Shayla is an online Halakhic resource in English directed and run by graduates of Hilkhata. Shayla answers a growing need of Jewish women, including students, for an accessible go-to address for them to ask Halakhic questions and seek guidance."

Does Matan believe in "poseqoth halakha?" Or is this just for Family Purity laws?

Does Matan believe in encouraging women to fulfill their obligatory mitzvoth, before concerning themselves with optional mitzvoth (eg. Torah study, even more so Oral Torah study)?

Is their focus that Torah study will assist women in fulfilling obligatory mitzvoth?

Esser Agaroth said...

What is Matan's understanding of the term "rabbanit?" Wife of a rabbi? Or a title independent from ones husband or marital status?

Batya said...

Rabbanit is wife of a rabbi, and your other questions should be asked of them, not me. I'm just a Tanach student.
As far as I know, there are limited halachik specialties. But Talmud isn't my Judaic genre.

Mr. Cohen said...

Yalkut Meam Loez, commentary on
Devarim [Deuteronomy], chapter 1, verse 8:
[volume 15, page 69 of English translation]:


G*D thus said to the Israelites:

“I am giving you these lands as a gift,
but only on the condition that you
keep My Torah and commandments.

If you want these lands to be yours as an
inheritance, so that no one can take it
away from you, [then] rectify your deeds and
these lands will never be taken away from you.”

Esser Agaroth said...

Yes, Batya. I already know what a rabbanit is. I was asking what they think it means.\

I was hoping that someone associated with this group would know the answer to these questions, and that those answer would influence your decision to remain, or not remain associated with them.

Please email me a contact person of whom I may ask these questions.

Thank you.