(Courtesy of Lamdeinu) On Sunday, Dec. 10, over 70 guests entered a beautifully decorated social hall, festive in shades of blue and silver, to attend Lamdeinu’s ninth Annual Chanukah Breakfast. So began a wonderful morning of Torah and Tehillim, inspiration, appreciation and warmth. The room was filled with Lamdeinu students, teachers and devotees as well as family and friends of honoree Susan Dworken Koss. Attendees enjoyed a delicious buffet breakfast with music playing in the background. The breakfast was guided by Lamdeinu’s program director Debbie Negari.
Dean Rachel Friedman opened the program and spoke eloquently about Lamdeinu and its mission to “study in depth and be inspired.” She elaborated on the vital significance of learning Torah every day, especially in light of the difficult matzav in Eretz Yisrael. She spoke about the new normal in artzeinu hakedosha and described the heroic humanity of our sisters and brothers who keep a positive attitude and regular routine even in this time of challenge. She then focused on Tehillim 121 and demonstrated how poetry and content converge to make this passage a literary masterpiece as well as a source of continuous chizuk and motivation for the Jewish people. Friedman emphasized that the central verse “Hineh lo yanum ve-lo yishan shomer Yisrael” reminds us that God never sleeps and watches over us always. All attendees then rose and recited Tehillim 121 in unison and with intense kavanah.
Friedman then called upon Susan Dworken Koss, a long-time and highly dedicated Lamdeinu student and chevruta, to accept the Lamdeinu Torat Chesed Award for 5784. In accepting the award, Dworken Koss described her participation in a variety of Lamdeinu classes, each focusing on a different area of Torah study. She emphasized that while Lamdeinu offers many classes to both women and men, it has especially excelled in providing women with a unique opportunity to advance and enrich their Torah learning. She described the depth and rigor of chavruta/shiur study in Parshanut haMikra on Sefer Bereishit:
“How fortunate we are that Lamdeinu provides this type of learning. In the Parshanut class I take with Dean Rachel Friedman I am learning with a group of scholars — bright, knowledgeable women who delve deeply into the meaning and interpretation of the text under Dean Friedman’s guidance and direction. I particularly enjoy the chevruta time we have as part of the class when learning skills are honed and intellectual discussions are held. We are assigned questions on the pesukim and given mefarshim to read and interpret — the standard parshanim from the Torat Chaim Chumash and outside commentators as well. We learn from each other and share perspectives. Then we meet together as a class and benefit from Dean Friedman’s review of the material we had discussed, gaining new insights and clarity from her vast knowledge base in Chumash. Our own learning is enriched by ideas expressed and seeing it all in a different way. We truly engage with the text and its broader meaning. It is great!!!”
Dworken Koss then described numerous other classes she has enjoyed at Lamdeinu that are taught by experts in their fields such as Rabbi Daniel Fridman and Rabbi Hayyim Angel. She closed by saying: “We at Lamdeinu have reached another stepping stone. We are not just learning in order to understand our mitzvot or to manage in the world, but we are deepening our understanding and feeling for Torah. We are involved in an intellectual pursuit that we love. The women students at Lamdeinu, who are educated in English literature, the sciences, history and more, now get a greater joy from learning Torah. I would like to believe our ancestors would be proud and say ‘you go, girl.’ Thank you Lamdeinu and Dean Rachel Friedman.”
Lamdeinu’s morning of Torah, Tehillim and mataamim concluded with delectable desserts and Birkat Hamazon led by Fred Koss. All those present were moved and inspired by the warmth of Lamdeinu students and staff as well as the erudition of Lamdeinu’s Torah study.
Lamdeinu’s daily classes currently meet on Zoom. The spring semester will begin in January and the schedule will be available soon. Please contact Negari at [email protected] for more information on Lamdeinu’s mission and to register or support its learning programs.
Come and join Lamdeinu and study in depth and be inspired!
