DATE: Sunday, September 28, 1997            TAG: 9709280085

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY NIA NGINA MEEKS, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   71 lines

BEACH RABBI HEADS TO GATHERING OF TALMUD READERS

Rabbi Aaron Baer gets up at 5:30 a.m. every day to read the same story, which fills more than 2,700 pages. He has for the past 7 1/2 years.

The story reveals life's mysteries, funny moments and weighty morals. It is the Talmud, a collection of Jewish religious and civil laws. And basically, Baer is a member of a worldwide book club of sorts for Orthodox Jewish men. All of them read the same page of the same book until the book is completed.

Baer, who works at the Beth Sholom Home of Eastern Virginia, started reading in 1990. This weekend, he will meet his son in Baltimore and they willtravel to New York's Madison Square Garden to celebrate their feat with thousands of other members of their club, known as Daf Yomi. That's Hebrew for ``daily page.''

Those unable to make it to the Big Apple on Sunday can watch satellite broadcasts in 31 major metro markets. Richmond is the closest one for South Hampton Roads.

Baer almost had to settle for a seat there.

``They sold out of tickets,'' he said. ``So I wrote an impassioned letter, pleading with them. My son ended up getting me a ticket. So, I will be there.''

The Daf Yomi movement began in the 1920s as a way to unify Jewish people and maintain traditions of yore.

This will be the 10th ``Siyum HaShas of Daf Yomi,'' and it is expected to be the largest gathering of Orthodox Jews in the United States.

Orthodox Jews - who sometimes proclaim to be the only ``authentic'' Jews - often conflict with the less stringent Conservative, Reconstructionist and Reform Jews.

Among the ancients, the Talmud was the focus of an oral exercise, in which scholars gathered to read aloud and discuss the meaning of the text, Baer said. That gave way to written commentaries that were drafted by Jewish scholars.

Each page holds the original writings in the middle, with the commentaries wrapping around it - like a book and Cliffs Notes in one.

This is Baer's second ``siyum.'' He first seriously studied the Talmud when he was ordained back in 1945. In 1983, Baer - now 74 - joined the Daf Yomi cycle.

Many who participate in the Daf Yomi do not complete the Talmud.

Miss a day, it has to be made up. Miss too many, and make-ups become much more difficult.

``You go on vacation, you take your books with you,'' Baer said. ``I've been hospitalized during this period. You can be busy, but busyness is not an excuse.''

While most men in Daf Yomi - no women, as Orthodox tradition dictates - study in groups, Baer has had to go it alone. He just hasn't found any committed partners.

``When you study the Talmud, you can't think of anything else,'' Baer said, as he rearranges his rhinestone-studded velvet yarmulke on his thinning, silver hair. ``You can't read this book and listen to the radio. You can't read it and watch TV. There is no punctuation in this book. You have to concentrate.''

He will continue to concentrate on the Talmud, even after this weekend. The ``Daf Yomi'' license plate on his white Buick Celebrity is a reminder for Baer, who is the former principal of the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater.

``I have been doing this for six decades, but that doesn't mean I'm an expert. There are some scholars who know the Talmud by heart, but I'm not that smart,'' Baer said, then smiled. ``I keep reading. To me, this is the most important activity I have to do. (The siyum) is one of the most inspiring events of my life.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo

D. KEVIN ELLIOTT/The Virginian-Pilot

Rabbi Aaron Baer reads two pages from the Talmud every day. He has

read the 2,700-page book three times. The Talmud is a collection of

writings that constitute civil and religious law in Judaism.

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