Ashtey Khayil (Women of Valor) was started by Rebbetzin Ronyt Bernstein in 2018 with the goal of cultivating a greater understanding of the prayers we say as a community. When we use a siddur (prayer book) during synagogue services we don’t always have time to do more than sight read. Our goal in Ashtey Khayil is to take time to pause, consider, and embrace the prayers & readings – to truly own, rather than merely recite, the words we say to HaShem.
“Talmidot” meetings (monthly, except Nisan and Tishrei): on the 2nd Monday after Rosh Ḥodesh @ 12:30pm ET (USA) and then two days later, on that Wednesday @ 6:30pm ET (USA). We are resuming our original curriculum, with each meeting divided into three half-hour sections: 1) discuss what we are currently reading/studying; 2) learn some basic Hebrew; and 3) survey a specific prayer/reading in the siddur. (The two meeting times are to accommodate attendees from different time zones; you need only attend one.)
“Limud Siddur” classes (monthly, except Nisan and Tishrei): on the 1st Sunday after Rosh Ḥodesh @ 1:00pm ET (USA). Each class focuses on a specific prayer/reading in the siddur. This class is open to everyone, as compared to Talmidot, which is a women-only format.
We use two siddurim: the Koren Siddur (Ashkenaz) and the ArtScroll Interlinear Siddur (Ashkenaz). You do not have to use these specific siddurim, as the Hebrew is basically the same among most siddurim. The primary difference is in page numbering (due to footnotes and commentaries), which may be a minor inconvenience during our studies if you’re unfamiliar with the layout of your siddur.
We welcome discussion, so for everyone’s comfort and privacy our meetings are not recorded.
If you would like to join our meetings please contact us via email at info@AshteyKhayil.com and we will add you to our attendee list. A few days prior to each meeting we will email you the ZOOM link along with .pdf’s of any handouts. We look forward to studying with you!
