1987-1988 Rothberg Yearbook

Alternatives to Tourism
Bet Mid rash
Marc Krell
When I decided to come to Hebrew University on the One Year Program, I knew that it would be a great chance for me
to have a “cultural experience” in Eretz Yisrael, a chance to become part of the society, instead of just looking in from
the outside. I was excited about both the education I would receive and the opportunity to get to know Israelis. For me,
that exposure was not limited to meeting Israelis in the street, thanks to a wild American dude from L.A. with whom I
learned Torah in the Bet Midrash program.
This program brought together overseas students and students from Yeshivot in Israel, and allowed us to discover
many facets of Judaism with people to whom we could relate. Every Monday night, small learning groups discussed
Jewish ethics and law, religious customs and daily practice, prayer, and more. We were taught by learned Rabbis and
other knowledgeable Jewish men and women. The majority of the students were involved in a special tutorial
program, getting together one on one with students from Yeshiva backgrounds. It was a chance not only to learn
about the religion on an informal basis, but to make a new friend with whom to discover what it is really like to live a
Jewish life in Israel.
I developed a lasting friendship with my tutor that went far beyond the Hecht Synagogue, in both a personal and a
religious sense. I had found a friend with whom I could spend Shabbat in Jerusalem, and to whom I could turn to for
anything. The Bet Midrash program enabled me to get the cultural experience I was looking for in a very special way.