YI Woodmere series showcases favorite seforim

Putting the unity in community, five different Torah educators, each from a different Five Towns yeshiva, are presenting their own favorite sefer in a one hour class on five consecutive Wednesday evenings at the Young Israel of Woodmere.

The series, “My Favorite Sefer,” part of the Young Israel of Woodmere’s adult education initiative, began Feb. 5, with Rabbi Moshe Hubner of HAFTR High School discussing the Minchat Chinuch by Rabbeinu Yosef Babad, who is a distant relative of Rabbi Hubner.

More than 30 people came to the Leon Mayer Beit Midrash “on a very cold night — there was a lot of interaction with questions during the talk,” said Eli Dworetsky a member of the adult education committee and one of the principal organizers of the series. A dozen or so of Rabbi’s Hubner’s HAFTR students attended as well.

People should not stop learning after they graduate, from a limudei kodesh point of view, Dworetsky told The Jewish Star.

“It’s a Cliff’s Notes version of these five favorite seforim — one hour a week you get a view of an important sefer, you get the flavor of the book and can learn more.”

Dworetsky said that “another nice thing about it is that a local educator is teaching and the younger adults from the school can come to support them [as did the] kids from HAFTR who came to show respect and to learn from Rav Hubner.”

The books chosen cover Jewish philosophy, Jewish law, and Tanach (scriptures). Two of the educators are local roshei yeshiva, Rabbi Zev Friedman of Rambam (Feb. 12) and Rabbi Mordechai Yaffe of Mesivta Ateres Yaakov (March 5).

Mrs. Leah Feinberg, Tanach Department Chair at SKA High School for girls, will be speaking about the Malbim on Tanach (Feb. 26) and DRS High School for boys Rebbe Yehudah Balsam will present Sefer Tomer Devora by Rav Moshe Cordevero (Feb. 19).

Rabbi Yaffe will close the series with a discussion of Mesilat Yesharim by Rav Moshe Chaim Luzatto on March 5.

The lectures will be available on the Young Israel of Woodmere website.