Mordy Fried, just like the NCSYers in his chabura, is experiencing an unbelievable summer at NCSY Kollel for the first time. He grew up in Brooklyn, NY, and has just finished his second year at the University of Pennsylvania. He loves the NCSY Kollel atmosphere – the buzz in the beit medresh, the intensity on the basketball courts, and the great camaraderie all over Beit Meir.
Each of Mordy’s chaburas starts with an in-depth look at different brachot of Shemoneh Esrei. Much time is spent on davening throughout a Jewish life, and in many cases the daveners don’t get nearly enough out of it. Through the study of Shemonei Esrei the chabura will be able to have a more meaningful prayer experience and thus get a higher output for their time put in.
The crux of the chabura is the learning of the Aseret Hadibrot. This integral part of Torah, which on many occasions is the symbol of Judaism, is looked at in depth. The chabura focuses on the structure of the Aseret Hadibrot, trying to find links and connections between the commandments and get a better picture of their relation to the whole Torah and what we can learn from them. The chabura also covers topics and halachot pertaining to the Aseret Hadibrot as a whole. The goal is to gain a better understanding of these commandments and understand why these were the ones highlighted at Har Sinai.
All of the NCSYers in Mordy’s chabura bring a unique aspect to the chabura. Eli Morell (Monsey, NY) never fails at enhancing the chabura by bringing in other Torah ideas. Shmuel Ehrblich (Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel) adds by presenting his unique Israeli perspective and sharing Israeli culture. Menachem Gans (Paramus, NJ) enriches he chabura by his deep engagement with the material. Gabe Motechin (Woodmere, NY) makes the chabura think deeper with his keen questions. Joe Berger’s (West Orange, NJ) insightful remarks and outside knowledge enlightens the chabura’s discussions, and Jon Kestenbaum (Boca Raton, FL) makes the chabura even more interesting with his great stories. All of them use their different experiences in their respective lives to make the chabura time as fruitful as possible.
“We delve into the depths of Shemoneh Esrei and Aseret Hadibrot. The other bochurim in the chabura always have insightful and enlightening things to say. There is only one way to describe our chabura – geshmak!”- Eli Morell
