Online Learning

at Midreshet B'erot Bat Ayin

8-Week Spring Program

April 12- June 3, 2021

Join us in the Serene Natural Setting of Bat Ayin for a Holistic, Healing, Nurturing, 8 – week Spring program, all of our classes are live on Zoom.

  • Stretch your mind, body & soul through Torah learning, Prayer, Healing Movement, Song.
  • Learn Spiritual Insights about Megillat Ruth!
  • Dive into the depths of the Pirkei Avot!
  • Connect to the weekly Pasha like never before.
  • Discover freedom in learning.
  • Connect to Eretz Israel in a new way!
  • Make new friends and be part of our supportive community of like-minded women!
  • And much more!

 Zoom Classes / Donation Fee: $280 for an 8-week program with a total of 112 hours of learning. (not including Sunday 7pm, Emunahealing 5 week course), $230 with an early registration discount of $50, before April 1.

  • All classes will be recorded for you for your convenience.

Spring is a perfect time to start a new, fresh, alive, come plant the seeds of learning with us.

 

Our exciting B’erot Online Midrasha Community brings some

brilliant teachers from Israel direct to your home! 

 

 

Rebbetzin Chana Bracha Siegelbaum, Director
Rebbetzin Chana Bracha Siegelbaum, a native of Denmark, is the founder and director of Midreshet B’erot Bat Ayin: Holistic Torah for Women on the Land. She holds a Bachelor of Education in Bible and Jewish Philosophy from Michlala Jerusalem College for Women, and a Master’s of Art in Jewish History from Touro College. Rebbetzin Chana Bracha creates curricula emphasizing women’s spiritual empowerment through traditional Torah values. She has published the following books: Women at the Crossroads: A Woman’s Perspective on the Weekly Torah PortionRuth: Gleaning the Fallen Sparks; The Seven Fruits of the Land of Israel with their Mystical & Medicinal Properties; Parasha Meditations for Spiritual Renewal and Strengthening Communication with the Creator and My Memoir: The Story of a Danish Jew who Fled the Nazis. Rebbetzin practices EmunaHealing as a gifted spiritual healer through Emunahtefilah and energy work. Chana Bracha has a married son and several granddaughters and lives with her husband and younger son on the land of the Judean hills, Israel.

Ruth – Gleaning the Fallen Sparks

Why was Ruth, a convert from the lowest of people, selected to become the mother of Royalty?  This question, together with topics such as: “The true Nature of Kindness,” “Love of the Land of Israel,” and “How to bring about Redemption” will be elucidated, as we analyze of the text with classical and mystical commentaries, from midrash to Arizal. The book of Ruth takes place during the bleak period of “the Judges,” its lack of unity and central leadership foreshadowing our current time. Ruth the mother of Royalty is the perfect role-model and inspiration for women who aspire to walk in her path of righteousness and make a difference in the world. She is explicitly a role-model for the many righteous converts who join the Jewish people. Ruth inspires us through her special qualities with which she was able to shine her light in the dark times; and eventually bring about the sprout of Mashiach through the birth of her great-grandchild King David. The characters of the Book of Ruth will come to life through drama and art.

Spiritual Insights into the Hebrew Months

Based on Sefer Yetzira, through the lens of Rav Tzvi Elimelech Shapira of Dinov, grandson of the Ba’al Shem tov, we will explore the mystical dimension of the Hebrew months. This course will facilitate students in tuning into the spiritual energy of the month through learning and discussing selected texts. We will tap into the Hebrew letter, tribe, sense, and organ associated with the Hebrew month, as well as its constellation. The learning will highlight sources that tap into accessing the energy of the month and its potential for spiritual growth.

 Women’s Mitzvot

Learn and discuss intimate issues, such as modesty and sexuality in an open-minded atmosphere where you don’t have to be embarrassed to ask your personal questions. The course will also include topics such as Women’s Mitzvot in Tefilah (prayer) and Women and Torah Learning. We will be studying inside selected sources in Hebrew and English followed by free discussion.

 Herbal Workshop, Torah & Healing

The Herbal Workshop integrates vast information of the ancient wisdom of our Torah about plants, herbology, nutrition and health with traditional folk medicine and medical research. The course delves into textual Torah sources on herbs and healing, as well as general knowledge of the use of herbs. For the Elul program, we will focus on the seven holy fruits of the Land of Israel with their mystical and medicinal properties, as this is the time of their ripening. A comprehensive source sheet in Hebrew/English accompanies the textual study of each of the classes integrating, Bible texts, Midrash, chassidism kabbalah, folk medicine and medical research.



 

Rav Mechael Siegelbaum, MD, Rabbi of B’erot

Rabbi Dr. Siegelbaum holds a BA in Philosophy and Psychology from Yale University, and an MD from Rutgers Medical School, New Jersey. Rabbi Mechael received his rabbinical ordination from Toras Zekeinim, Jerusalem in 1987.  In addition to teaching halacha in B’erot Bat Ayin, Rabbi Siegelbaum learns Torah part-time, is active in the Bat Ayin central synagogue, where he serves as the Gabbi and practices medicine in Bat Ayin and various other clinics.

 Halacha

Rav Siegelbaum will discuss the halacha pertinent to the High Holidays. In addition, to learning the “how” of the mitzvot, the student will come to appreciate the process of the development and transmission of halacha from the written and oral Torah.



 

Tsipi Egert  
Tsipi Egert grew up in Israel where she attended high school. She received her B.A. in Jewish History from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Tsipi has been teaching Nevi’im (The Prophets) at Midreshet B’erot Bat Ayin since 1998 and has a Master’s in Education in Tanach from Herzog College. She is currently obtaining a MA at Hebrew University towards a PhD in Tanach. Tsipi lives with her family in Efrat, Gush Etzion.

 A Taste of TaNaCh

In this course, we will get acquainted with books we may have heard about, but never had the chance to learn. We will focus on selected Bible texts that will assist us in understanding the uniqueness of the Jewish Bible, the Tanach. We will explore questions such as “Who wrote what?”  “When?” “How was it transmitted through the ages?” “In which ways has the Tanach revolutionized the spiritual outlook of the world?”



 

Rabbi Avraham Izkowitz   
Rabbi Izkowitz spent the first 16 years of his life on American army bases in Europe and the United States while attending litvish yeshivot, after which he made aliyah with his family to Jerusalem. After high school, he pursued his hobbies as a rock keyboardist and songwriter, creative writer, and BMX biker, while tutoring at Yeshivat Ohr Sameach and working in the optometry industry. His hobbies led him to Manhattan where he almost signed a record contract with Atlantic Records, but Hashem had other plans for him. Avraham returned to Jerusalem, worked as a landscape artist whilst studying psychology and anthropology at the Hebrew University. At the age of 27, he ‘retired’ to study full time at the Bat Ayin Yeshiva for seven years. Avraham, his wife and 5 children live in Bat Ayin, where he teaches, practices safrut and therapy.

Pirkei Avot – Ethics of our Fathers

Come join us with Our spiritual fathers as they guide us on a path that will ensure our continued growth towards moral perfection and character refinement.



 

Rav Hillel Benchimol
Born and raised in Gibraltar in southern Spain, Rabbi Benchimol at age 16 learnt in Sunderland Yeshiva, England and Beer Yakov, Israel. He received Semicha from Rabbi Shalom Messas זצ״ל, Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu זצ״ל and Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach זצ״ל. Served as Rabbi of the Turkish, Iranian and Iraqi communities in Miami and Los Angeles for over 20 years. A certified active Mohel since 1992, Rabbi Benchimol is married to Keter, has 6 children and lives in Moshav Aviezer in the Ella valley Israel.

Parashat HaShavua
Rabbi Benchimol will be teaching our Parashat HaShavua from an inner dimension viewing the weekly Torah portion as part of a bigger plan – part of the jigsaw puzzle and tapestry of life. You will receive a broad perspective as to how the Parsha is lived today and how it pertains to your life today.



 

Dr. Nurit Sirkis Bank, PhD
Nurit Sirkis Bank was born in Boston, Mass. in 1964 to Israeli parents who were studying there. In 1991 during her doctoral studies, she discovered Judaism, and became Torah observant.  Since then, Nurit studies and teaches Chassidut regularly. She completed her PhD in Visual Arts in 2017, at the Bar-Ilan University. The topic of her dissertation: Visual Aspects of Contemporary Chassidic Weddings in Israel. In 2019 Nurit was awarded by the President of Israel as Volunteer of the Year for activity in Art, Culture and Spirit.



 

Sarah Prijs
Sarah has an extensive Torah education from various perspectives – from Old Gateshead seminary to B’erot Bat Ayin, Orayta summer program and learning at Shiviti. She has a BSc in psychology from BPP University in London. Sarah has been on her own internal journey to discover and receive the light, transformational wisdom and Divine connection available in the Torah. A lover of everything connected to the Torah of early chassidut, with a focus on the Torah of Rebbe Nachman and the writings of Rav Kook, she delves deeply into the texts of our tradition, while facilitating others to find their own connection and transformation as well.

Reclaiming your Inner Self based on the Teachings of Rebbi Nachman & Rav Kook Eretz Yisrael is not a peripheral matter, an external acquisition of the nation… Rather it has intrinsic meaning, connected to the Jewish people with a living attachment… (Rav Kook, Orot)

Together we will explore the essence of the Land of Israel within our hearts, minds and souls and as a state of consciousness, we can experience. We will explore the process of finding our internal Geulah (redemption) through learning and meditating on how the deep writings of early Chassidic masters and Rav Kook understand Eretz Yisrael.



 

Devorah Konikov

Devorah is a mother and grandmother, raising a growing family in Bat Ayin for 21 years. She is striving and thriving with life skills ingrained from learning chassidut. Devorah is a long-time student of Rav Yitzchak Ginsburgh shlita.

Climbing the Ladder of Tefilah

Tefilla can be viewed as the ladder to self-transformation.  We will learn the inner meanings of our daily tefilot, going deep into the words, to emerge rejuvenated and strengthened to fulfil our roles in life.



 

Yedida Miriam Levy

Yedida Miriam grew up in UK and made aliyah early on. With a passion for education and a background in theatre, she spent ten years teaching in Jerusalem, before returning to Bat Ayin in 2018. Her passion is ‘tutoring’, teaching the Holy texts, and Hebrew ~ making it accessible to students.

Spiritual Writing Workshop

Creative writing is a tool for connecting to our selves, to our world and to our Creator.  The workshop combines techniques such as mind maps, brainstorming, meditation, memory scanning and opening the heart in order to develop one’s creative, spiritual and perceptual abilities.  Each class combines a segment of theory, practice and analysis of our works in a warm, encouraging and noncompetitive atmosphere.  The students are guided to explore and accept their inner thoughts and feelings and turn them into creative writing.