A Skirball Academy Class
Leana Jelen Tapnack
Introduction to Hebrew Calligraphy
Hour after hour, sofrim — Jewish ritual scribes — hunch over parchment, painstakingly drafting each letter of the Torah and preparing prayers to be inserted in tefillin or mezuzot. How are these individuals, members of one of Judaism’s most honored professions, trained? How do they form each letter? What materials do they use in their ritual calligraphy? How do they correct their mistakes? Learn the answers by doing, forming letters and words yourself according to the Ashkenazi Beit Yosef tradition while exploring texts and practical considerations of Safrut (the ritual writing) in personal and congregational life.
Mondays, 7:00 – 8:30 PM
October 16, 23, 30, November 6
$120, $80 Temple Emanu-El members
Free for Friends of Streicker
A graduate of the Pardee’s Experiential Educators Program in Jerusalem, where she first studied Safrut STaM, Leana Jelen Tapnack specializes in creating ketubas and repairing tefillin. As a scribe, she has taught numerous workshops and classes and is also an American Sign Language interpreter specializing in Judaic content.
Mondays, 7:00 – 8:30 PM
October 16, 23, 30, November 6
$120, $80 Temple Emanu-El members
Free for Friends of Streicker
Hour after hour, sofrim — Jewish ritual scribes — hunch over parchment, painstakingly drafting each letter of the Torah and preparing prayers to be inserted in tefillin or mezuzot. How are these individuals, members of one of Judaism’s most honored professions, trained? How do they form each letter? What materials do they use in their ritual calligraphy? How do they correct their mistakes? Learn the answers by doing, forming letters and words yourself according to the Ashkenazi Beit Yosef tradition while exploring texts and practical considerations of Safrut (the ritual writing) in personal and congregational life.
A graduate of the Pardee’s Experiential Educators Program in Jerusalem, where she first studied Safrut STaM, Leana Jelen Tapnack specializes in creating ketubas and repairing tefillin. As a scribe, she has taught numerous workshops and classes and is also an American Sign Language interpreter specializing in Judaic content.