Showing posts with label Pirke Avot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pirke Avot. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Applying the Tension of Scarcity and Abundance Within the Passover Seder to Our Daily Lives

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Last week, I was studying some Pirkei Avot, a Jewish ethical text, with a synagogue down in Buenos Aires. I had it on in the background whil...
Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Pirke Avot 2:3 and 3:2: Government as a Necessary Evil

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Thomas Paine was one to say that "even in its best state, government is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one....
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Friday, January 22, 2016

Pirke Avot 3:12: Actions Are More Powerful Than Words....And Wisdom

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Talk is cheap ...... well, not quite. I find that talk is cheap when it isn't backed up by anything. Anyone can run their mouth. You kno...
Thursday, August 21, 2014

Mo'ed Katan 9b: Choosing Words Wisely and Getting Past Negativity Bias

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I haven't written on Talmudic passages in a while. Not only is it nice that I have picked up my Daf Yomi study again, but also that I ha...
Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Pirke Avot 6:3: Judaism and How to "Keep it Simple, Stupid!"

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K.I.S.S. "Keep it simple, stupid!"  For someone who is a public policy wonk such as myself, trust me when I say I have an apprecia...
Monday, July 21, 2014

Pirke Avot 5:26: I'd Rather Be a Mensch Than a Tzaddik

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For most religions, it would seem to make sense that the most righteous individual (in Judaism, that individual is called a tzaddik; צדיק) ...
Sunday, April 20, 2014

Dayenu: Is It Really Ever Enough?

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I was visiting Chicago this past Shabbat, and I was in shul  listening to R. Leonard Matanky give a d'var Torah  during Shabbat Chol HaM...
Monday, March 24, 2014

Pirkei Avot 3:13: Jewish Ethics > Jewish Rituals

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Judaism has a reputation for being a religion of nuance and complexity. Looking at Jewish texts such as the Talmud or Shulchan Aruch, you ca...
Thursday, November 21, 2013

Pirke Avot 2:16: The Evil Eye and Keeping an Eye on Our Own Jealousy

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Rabbi Yehoshua (Pirke Avot 2:16) said that three things removed an individual from this world: an evil eye, an evil inclination , and basele...
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Sunday, October 27, 2013

Pirkei Avot 2:4: Submission?! Is That Even a Jewish Value?

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The word Islam (اسلام) comes from the same root as the Arabic verb "to submit" (يسلَم). In Christianity, one of the tenets is to ...
Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Pirkei Avot 1:4 and 1:5: There's No Place Like Home

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Home is where the heart is. Charity begins at home. Even the chickens come home to roost. For many people, the home is more than just an abo...
Friday, June 1, 2012

Parsha Naso: The Mitzvah of Smiling

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Having G-d command us to do things like don't steal , give tzedakah , or love your neighbor are standard mitzvahs that make a good amou...
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Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Psalm 16:8: Always Having G-d Before Us

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I was on the bus today, and my mind could not help but to be fixated on a certain Biblical verse: Psalms 16:8. I was specifically focused on...
Saturday, June 25, 2011

Parsha Korach: When and When Not to Question & Defy

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I always found Korach's punishment of being engulfed by the ground ( Numbers 16:30 ) for questioning the current leadership to be perple...
Monday, March 21, 2011

Pirke Avot 1:8- Rabbi Yehudah Loses His Sense of Judgment

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After gaining a Jewish sense of judgmentalism and when one should give another  a benefit of a doubt when judging others, you come across ...
Monday, February 21, 2011

Pirke Avot 1:6, 7- When Should We Give People the Benefit of a Doubt?

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In Christian Scriptures, Matthew (7:1) says "Judge not that ye not be judged."  To put it in more secular parlance, "Who are ...
Monday, January 10, 2011

Pirke Avot 1:3- Do We Ultimately Serve G-d Out of Love or Fear?

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This question is one of those intriguing dichotomies that Jews have attempted to resolve for centuries. Those to the Left of me emphasize G-...
Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Pirke Avot 1:1- Dealing with "Building a Fence Around Torah" in the 21st Century

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In many world religions, the monastic lifestyle so prevalent in the paradigm of aestheticism is perceived as optimal for acquiring a spiritu...
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