Shalhevet alumnae dinner reunion in Yerushalayim

The annual Midreshet Shalhevet Israel alumnae reunion took place Sunday night in Yerushalayim, with the young women meeting their Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Zev Meir Friedman, for dinner at the popular Café Rimon. Although the girls have stayed in touch, and see each other on a regular basis, they were excited to see their Rav and catch up with their high school friends. 

Over dinner, there was an active discussion with questions raised on the relationship from Torah to science, so, Rabbi Friedman gave an impromptu mini shiur on the halachic aspects comparing ner Chanukah to ner shabbat and the hashkafic symbolosim of each, based on the Rav ztl.

The key point Rabbi Friedman made is that a person has the ability to reach out and find Hashem both in the best of situations and in the most challenging. Ner Chanukah is a light from which we can derive no benefit. It’s not a light that dissipates darkness. The Rav compared it to a twinkling star far away, outside is dark but we know that in the great distance, Hashem, the Creator of the star, beckons us to come closer to him.

Chanukah took place during times when there was anti-Semitism and assimilation and, despite it, we were able to return to Hashem, he said.

Rabbi Friedman said he was “very impressed with their level of sophisticated learning, probing questions and creative answers. I am confident that I”YH in the years ahead, they will all be accomplished women who view everything from a Torah perspective.”

Daniella Azose, currently at Midreshet Moriah, said recently that she “didn’t realize the extent to which I have to be thankful. Midreshet Shalhevet instilled in me a strong foundation in Torah and provided answers to complicated philosophical questions.”