Hot Off The Shtender Archives - Page 3 of 8 - SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva

On Visiting the White House

A group of SVARA-niks gather in the darkness around the dim light of a fire. One person's face is illuminated by a flashlight. They look to the right towards someone speaking. The shadows of the folks sitting are cast on the wall behind them.

The Very Jewish Holiness of Crying in Public

SVARA-niks are seated in the bet midrash together. Folks are sitting at tables full of texts and learning resources. The walls are blue and the image focuses on two chevrutas sitting across from one another. They are both smiling and looking towards someone outside of the frame.

Chevruta Outside the Bet Midrash

A group of SVARA-niks are seated outside, learning Talmud together. It is a sunny day and green trees surround the folks learning.

Holy Mirrors

A fairy stands beside a SVARA learner in the bet midrash. They are both looking at a page of Talmud together.

Drama in the Bet Hamikdash: The Little-Known Yom Kippur Weepfest

Three people stand in a circle to welcome in havdalah. They are smiling and singing together, and a havdalah candle burns towards the center of the image.

Blessed Motion

Two people embrace one another in a large open field. It is a sunny day and large green trees stretch out behind them. The face of one person is visible, and they are smiling as their arms wrap around the shoulders of the other person.

A Force for Deep Connection

Four people are gathered around a table in the bet midrash. Two of them are seated in chevruta and two are standing next to them. Everyone is focused on the text in front of them, and it appears that there is deliberation and deep attention being paid to the text.

When a Text Needs to Crash

Two chevrutas hold hands across the table in the bet midrash. The person on the left has brown hair and is wearing a mustard yellow sweater. The person on the right has blonde hair and is wearing a white long-sleeved shirt. They smile tenderly at each other.

A Strange Dance With Mourning

Two people share a glance in the bet midrash. The person on the left is seated, and the person on the right is standing and wearing fairy wings. The two seem to be in cheerful conversation together.

Honoring the Pain We Carry

A group of people sit around a table in the bet midrash. Folks appear to be clapping up a person in the middle of the frame, who smiles and glances down at the volume of Talmud in front of them. Everyone is smiling and glancing towards the person in the center.

The Fullness of Every Word

Ten people sit at a table in the bet midrash. Everyone appears to be in lively conversation, with some folks looking towards the text in front of them while others look at their chevruta across the table.

Each and Every Thread: Witnessing Masechet Berachot

Learners at Queer Talmud Camp can be seen in the distance walking across a large open meadow. The grass is a deep yellow and small hills rise out of a stand of trees in the background.

Svara in Spades

A group of SVARA-niks stand in a circle with havdalah candles burning. The person in the center of the frame reads a blessing as others look on.

Becoming Halakhically Ungovernable

Two SVARA-niks sit next to one another in the bet midrash. They are both smiling, clapping, and looking ahead towards someone out of frame.

A World of More Chevruta

Starting From the Same Beginner’s Mind

Jhos Singer sits in the bet midrash. There is a volume of Talmud in front of him and he glances towards someone standing outside of the frame. Jhos is wearing a checkered button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows.

The Power of Our Minhag

Sacred Learning to Thaw the Freeze

A Love Letter to Mishnah Collective

Rescued by a Daf