Daily Archives: February 22, 2021

Marc Mandel| Newport Daily News

In the year 1848, Rabbi Israel Salanter, wrote the following words as a response to the cholera epidemic.Be sure to followthe behaviors which the wise doctors prescribe, for walking in the light of their words is also our religious duty, thus upholding life in this physical world to be good and to do good." This idea of Rabbi Salanter is based on the belief that science and religion are unified. Science helps us partner with God to make the world a better place.Jewish liturgy offers blessings for many occasions. Should we recite ablessing upon receiving the COVID-19 vaccine?

A colleague of mine, Rabbi Yosie Levine from New York has written, "Not everything warrants a blessing, but, in the midst of the untold suffering brought about by this pandemic, the almost miraculous production of a vaccine doesrepresent a dose of unusually good news. As the Talmud teaches, hearing exceptionally good tidings is reason enough to recite this blessing."Furthermore, he points out that there is a custom to say a blessingin a case where a person sees his/her friend for the first time in 30 days.Considering that this vaccine will allow people in isolation to soon rejoin with their friends and family, there will be much to celebrate.

There is also a blessing that is recitedwhen a person recovers from an illness or returns from a dangerous sea journey. This blessingis said when a person is saved from a state of danger or fear for ones safety. It is a blessing of redemption. My colleague, Rabbi Barry Dolinger of Providence points out that the COVID-19 vaccine certainly should require a blessing, because the vaccine benefits therecipient, and the community at large, by helping to bring herd immunity. I hope that all of us in Rhode Island will soon have the opportunity to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and when you receive yours, you might join me in reciting the blessing,"Blessed are You God, who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to thisseason."

Rabbi Marc Mandel is the rabbi at the Touro Synagogue in Newport, the oldest synagogue building in the United States. For more information please visitwww.tourosynagogue.org.ClergyCorner appears each week in The Daily News and online atnewportri.com.

See more here:

CLERGY CORNER: Is there a blessing for the COVID-19 vaccine? - newportri.com

The impulse to celebrate the death of ones enemies is very human. When the wicked perish there are shouts of joy, the Book of Proverbs says. The passage is descriptive, of course, not prescriptive, but there is nonetheless a recognition of the upsurge of excitement at seeing someone you detest leave this Earth. At the Red Sea, the children of Israel sang as the Egyptians who had pursued them drowned.

But Proverbs also says, Do not be glad when your enemy falls. The Talmud relates that when the angels joined in the celebration at the Red Sea, they were rebuked by God for rejoicing. And today, when Jews commemorate their exodus from Egypt at the Passover seder, we take a drop of wine from the cup to mark the diminishment of joy we should feel at death, even the death of our enemies. Feelings cannot always be regulated, but the reality of death supervenes, and any expression of happiness should be tempered by sadness.

The taboo against rejoicing at anothers death is, of course, part of the frisson of shocking jokes, which work because of the first, aghast instant. The rationale for telling such jokes is easily understood. Those who celebrate the death of public figures invariably point to their malign influence. And while people are still in the public arena and able to fight back, ridiculing their ideas can be an important weapon. Humor has punctured many totalitarians more effectively than argument.

But there is a difference between condemning someone at or after their deathand certainly, there is much to condemn in Limbaughs periodic rhetoric of crueltyand celebrating the death itself. The tone of our public sphere will not be elevated by the way we talk about those we like or treasure. The test will be how we talk about those we oppose or even detest. Ridicule rallies the troops; it does not open avenues of dialogue. Limbaughs signature monologues were fusillades of facts, confabulations, and insults in prose and song, in the service of a relentlessly partisan agenda. To celebrate his death is to emulate his methods.

We should have learned by now that a public figure is a person. The character onstage, performing for an audience, is not everything, and a public person does not die. A human being dies, an individual with connections and fears and a history and a soul.

To mock someones death is also to mock the pain of those who loved him. It is to see only part of a person, and therefore ignore the fullness of a human being. What better way to begin the restoration of civility than to refrain from dancing on the graves of the dead?

Go here to see the original:

Death Is Nothing to Celebrate - The Atlantic

There is story that appears in the tractate of Taanit in the Talmud. It is a story that reflects our sages philosophy about the importance of inclusive education and meeting the needs of all students. One day the Talmudic sage, Rav, came to a town that had been experiencing a terrible drought. Rav immediately declared that the residents of the town begin a communal fast, however, this communal effort proved ineffective as no rain fell.

Then, after some time had elapsed, one day during the morning prayer service, a certain man ascended the bima and began to pray. When he came to the words, Who makes the wind blow and the rain to fall, the wind immediately started blowing and the rain began falling. Rav was astounded. Who was this person and how did he warrant such divine favor that he could cause the heavens to produce rain?

Rav asked him, What are your good deeds that you are able to merit such influence with the Creator?

The man answered, I am a teacher of children and I teach those who can afford the tuition and those who cannot. I also have a fishpond. And for those children who are distracted, anxious, or unable to learn, I send them to look at the fishpond until such time that they feel soothed and are able to return.

What a powerful story that displays the remarkable insights from the sages of the Talmud into the nature and essence of pedagogy, diversity, privilege, individuality, inclusivity and the inherent worth of every child. February is known as Jewish Disabilities Awareness, Acceptance &Inclusion Month. We celebrate differences in accordance with our Jewish values, honoring the gifts and strengths that each and every one of us possess.

As a Jewish community that embraces shared values, it is incumbent upon us to provide educational and other opportunities that address the needs of every child and adult, regardless of ones physical or mental differences. Every human being possesses a divine spark that requires a commitment to individualized nurturing, understanding, and compassion if he or she is to grow into a person who is able to achieve his or her potential. When we uphold the primacy of every individual in our schools and in our communities, we in essence change the world one person at a time.

In fact, there is a blessing one recites upon seeing another human being who might be different than us; be it skin color, race, or any physical disability. Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who makes people different. At first, this blessing might seem strange to us. Why should we single out someone who is disabled or looks different for special attention?

For Jews, the reciting of a blessing contextualizes the manner in which we are to understand the world. We recite this blessing when seeing an individual who is different from us in order to appreciate all the differences among people. The Mishnah in the tractate of Sanhedrin brings an analogy that compares God to one who mints coins. While a person stamps many coins from a single die, and they are all alike, the King of kings has stamped every person with the die of Adam, yet not one of them is like any other. Every human being is unique and just because people with disabilities or skin color might be different from us, they are by no means inferior.

Ben Azzai taught in the Ethics of the Fathers, Do not disdain any person; do not underestimate the importance of anything for there is no person who does not have his hour, and there is no thing without its place in the sun. Although we dedicate the month of February to a greater awareness of people who are different than us our sacred texts provide us with an imperative to recognize the uniqueness of every individual, regardless of mental ability and or physical limitations throughout the year. We are given the challenge as a community to ensure that those among us who are different are never neglected, never sidelined, never underrated, and never underappreciated as human beings capable of giving back to our community in their own individualized ways.

We often hear the word inclusiveness when addressing how our communal and educational institutions should treat people with disabilities. As a head of school and veteran educator, I personally dislike the term inclusiveness as it implies that we have the option to be exclusive as well. I would like to suggest a different word belonging.

When you belong, you are an official member of the group, you fit in, regardless of any other limitations or disabilities. There exists no option to even consider exclusion. When one belongs, one is seen, valued and loved, without exception. By creating a deep sense of belonging within our communal institutions, we demonstrate that we have prioritized all of our community members as important and valued individuals. Or as one prominent educator recently expressed about the term, belonging, This seemingly small act demonstrates that youve taken the time to see the other person and value their presence.

But seeing is not enough. Motivations and sentiments alone are insufficient. Actions are required as well. Whereas Jewish communities throughout North America have come a long way in providing access to disabled individuals in the areas of education, employment, housing and other opportunities, there is still much more work that needs to be done and considerably more investment of dollars in order to create the resources necessary to meet the needs of all those who belong to our community.

This will only occur, however, when our attitudes toward the other who is different from the majority of us significantly shifts in the direction of equity and fairness. Its not just a question of providing access to opportunities, its also a matter of the manner in which we provide these opportunities and services to others with disabilities. Do we do so with dignity and respect? The famous Israeli-American violinist, Itzhak Perlman, who contracted polio as a child requires leg braces and crutches to walk and plays the violin while seated at concerts. He wrote the following once in an article in The New York Times, A lot of people think access means the ability to get into a building, no matter where or how you can get into it, whether you get into it through a back alley, or through an elevator that usually carries garbage or food. But shouldnt it mean that you can get into a building through the front door with everybody else?

Perhaps the Mishnaic analogy of the coins requires a different perspective. Instead of concentrating on our differences as individuals, we need to acquire a greater understanding of how we are all alike, all sharing the same basic needs, dreams and hopes for our present as well as for our future. Or in the sagely words of his holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama, Whether one is rich or poor, educated or illiterate, religious or nonbelieving, man or woman, black, white, or brown, we are all the same. Physically, emotionally, and mentally, we are all equal. We all share basic needs for food, shelter, safety, and love. We all aspire to happiness and we all shun suffering. Each of us has hopes, worries, fears, and dreams. Each of us wants the best for our family and loved ones. We all experience pain when we suffer loss and joy when we achieve what we seek. On this fundamental level, religion, ethnicity, culture, and language make no difference.

May this February, also known as Jewish Disabilities Awareness, Acceptance & Inclusion Month, be the harbinger of a new era that actualizes this vision.

Jay Leberman is the head of school at the Joseph and Florence Mandel Jewish Day School in Beachwood.

Read more here:

Time to shift attitude to one of belonging - Cleveland Jewish News

Title: Talmud on the Mind: Exploring Chazal and Practical Psychology to Lead a Better Life (Maseches Berachos) Author: Rabbi Dr. Ethan Eisen Publisher: Kodesh Press

Talmud on the Mind is an extremely enjoyable book that features 15 short essays on various ideas related to psychology and psychobiology, some of which are mentioned in Maseches Berachos.

Throughout the book, traditional Jewish sources and academic/popular medical sources are used side by side to present new ways of looking at various topics. The author, Rabbi Dr. Ethan Eisen, compares and contrasts how these two different types of sources address each given issue, and uses data from one corpus to fill in lacuna in the other. At the close of each chapter, Eisen offers practical Lessons for Today.

In his opening chapter, Eisen notes that the rabbis preferred antidote to the pox of procrastination echoes Nikes iconic slogan: Just do it. This simple, but effective advice encourages people to overcome their indolence and dithering.

Eisen further develops this idea by showing how the halachic principle of zerizim makdimim lmitzvos preempts mans dilly-dallying and allows a person the freedom to live a more productive and meaningful life. He also draws on various psychological studies to probe the cognitive and behavioral causes of procrastination.

In another chapter, Eisen discusses how consistent synagogue-attendance alleviates many of the problems associated with loneliness, and how studies even seem to support the Talmuds assertion that such regular attendance contributes to longevity. As Eisen so cleverly puts it, 80% of life is just showing up.

One of the books most creative and powerful essays discusses the so-called IKEA effect, which asserts that people value things in accordance with the amount of effort they put into getting or building them. Eisen uses this idea to explain why the Talmud assumes that Chana was so intent on Eli sparing the life of her son Shmuel when she could have just as easily allowed Eli to put Shmuel to death and prayed for her to be granted another son.

This reviewer was particularly interested in Eisens chapter on colors. He asks the age-old question of how a person can ever be certain that what he sees is the same thing someone else sees. This chapter uses the disagreement among halachic authorities over how to exactly define the color of techeles as a sort of case study to make generalizations on the question of color.

Another discussion relates to the cultural phenomenon of giving people a few seconds to confirm their statements and decisions. Chess players, for example, can take back a move as long as their fingers are still on the chess piece, and in halacha, a person can delay the effects of his speech until a period of time has time called toch kdei dibbur (roughly, the amount of time it takes to greet another person). This buffer zone doesnt exist in all cultures, but Eisen shows that it has some basis in neuroscience.

Another essay discusses the physiological effects of shame and humiliation, which lead to both blushing and turning white. Another chapter explores King Davids sleeping habits and considers the effects of a midnight candle on a persons circadian rhythm.

What is arguably the books most important chapter is the very last one. In it, Eisen demonstrates that sensitivity to so-called microaggressions is not post-modern silliness; it actually already exists in the Torah and Talmud, which command us to avoid even miniscule acts of aggression in relation to the downtrodden.

The topics discussed in this book are loosely arranged by their appearances in Maseches Berachos and this reviewer looks forward to seeing similar books by Rabbi Dr. Eisen on other parts of the Talmud.

Read the rest here:

Procrastination, Colors, And The IKEA Effect - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com

The word nuance is more than a buzzword, but often it can feel like one. Nuance is the single most important element of a healthy educational experience. What is nuance, and how does using a nuanced approach to a difficult question lead to surprising outcomes and cause us to rethink our previously held assumptions? And why does it matter in education?

A nuanced approach breaks through echo chambers by exploring the wide contours of dispute that exist on any given issue. When we encounter diverse perspectives on any given issue, we gain a more complete understanding of the issue and people who are different from us.

This approach is needed now more than ever because it will counter the polarization in our politics, media and social lives. And bringing a nuanced approach into our classrooms is not only necessary if we want to break down the silos in the Jewish world and expand understanding of one another; this approach is also fundamental to Judaism and our responsibility as Jewish educators.

In the Talmud (Eruvin 13b), there is a well-known debate concerning whether the law ought to follow the opinion of Beit Hillel or Beit Shammai. For three years, this was debated. These two schools of thought had fundamentally different approaches to education and the law.

Beit Shammai was what the Talmud describes as charifei tuva, meaning they were significantly sharper than Beit Hillel. They knew the facts involved and had a clear answer to every legal question. In modern parlance, one might say they were adept at logical argumentation and analysis of an issue. Perhaps that is why there is a tradition of believing that in the Messianic era, the opinions of Shammai will prevail.

But until that Messianic Era, Beit Hillel is the victor for decision making in Jewish law. The Talmud provides three reasons for this:

Beit Shammai was also a deeply important part of the Jewish tradition, but they only engaged in their own positions. Micah Goodman, in his new book Chazara Bli Teshuva (The Wandering Jew), explains that Beit Shammai was an echo chamber. Beit Hillel,who we are the descendants of and whose legacy we inherited, behaved differently. They reached outside of their own school of thought and learned the positions of Beit Shammai as well as their own.

The two schools different behaviors likely stemmed from their radically different ideas about the goals of Jewish education. To quote the organizational psychologist Adam Grant in his recent book, Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Dont Know, Beit Hillel understood that the purpose of learning isnt to affirm our beliefs; its to evolve our beliefs.

Beit Hillel understood that the purpose of learning isnt to affirm our beliefs; its to evolve our beliefs.

Beit Hillel was not merely interested in proving their existing views right. Rather, by including Beit Shammais views,they sought a complete understanding of the issue as well as the other. They viewed their intellectual and religious rival with respect, integrity and dignity. This approach is the Jewish peoples foundational narrative of what it means to engage in education.

Where the two schools differed was in how they arrived at those positions. Specifically, Beit Hillel considered diverse perspectives as part of their standard process of forming opinions and reaching conclusions. By proactively including Beit Shammais opinions and genuinely considering them, Beit Hillel was able to reduce the chance of falling into two common psychological traps Grant discusses in his book: confirmation bias (seeing what we expect to see) and desirability bias (seeing what we want to see).

We may have the impulse to follow the example of Beit Shammai and be right, but that is not our heritage as Jewish educators. So, how can we follow in the footsteps of Beit Hillel and bring a nuanced approach into our classrooms?

Two thousand years ago, Beit Hillel modeled a way to reach beyond the silos in the Jewish world, explore the perspectives of their religious counterparts and gain a more complete understanding of any given topic. As Jewish educators, lay leaders or parents, we are all descendants of Beit Hillel, and it is our responsibility to follow in their footsteps and break through the echo chambers and division that characterize our own times.

In a world in which too many people have huddled into their silos and taken hardline partisan positions, we need to make nuanced Jewish education accessible to everyone. As Beit Hillel demonstrated, nuance does not mean having less conviction; it means bringing more people into the discussion. Nuance does not mean being less passionate; it means being more compassionate.

The world has a population of almost eight billion people. Comparatively, the Jewish people are merely trying to crack the 15 million mark. Because of our relatively small population size, we simply do not have the luxury of shunning others within our Jewish family. By using nuanced educational approaches, we can help reverse polarization trends in our community and build a Jewish future that is more compassionate, empathetic, informed and connected to Judaism and each other. We have no time to waste.

Dr. Noam Weissman is senior vice president and head of content at OpenDor Media and Unpacked for Educators, a Jewish educational non-profit company that is creating videos, podcasts, articles and films that are animated by a nuanced educational approach.

Read more here:

Adam Grant and The Case for Nuance in Jewish Education - Jewish Journal

What kind of Jew are you?Ask the question these days, and people are likely to answer it in one of three or four ways. They may tell you, for example, that they are religious Jews or secular Jews, making observance the focal point of their identity. Or they may apply politics as a yardstick instead, saying theyre conservative or liberal Jews. Some may self-identify as Zionists or anti-Zionists, and some as Reform or Conservative or Reconstructionist Jews. These answers all have one thing in common: Theyre all terrible.What, for example, can we learn about a person who tells you theyre secular? We could assume, of course, that he or she doesnt observe Shabbat and might not adhere to the laws of kashrut, but other than that, the definition tells us almost nothing about the human being in question. Even worse, because were so used to thinking in categories, weve grown accustomed to seeing ourselves and our community through these lenses, making assumptions and forming affiliations based on ideas and notions that are, at best, wildly inaccurate. We need to do better. We need new categories that faithfully reflect the way American Jewish life is actually lived. Luckily for us, theres only one such category: learning Jews.Who among us isnt learning? For some of us, this means engaging with Daf Yomi, the practice of studying just one page of Talmud a day. For some, this means reading a book or listening to a podcast. For others, it could mean signing up for a class at the local JCC or watching a show on Netflix or even just getting together with friends to talk about small frustrations and big ideas. We shouldnt dismiss any of these activities as banal. Seen correctly, they form the foundation of Jewish life, a foundation that invites each of us to build on it further. This is why, traditionally, the greatest compliment you could pay a fellow Jew was to call them a talmid hacham an excellent student not necessarily a genius who already knows everything, but a committed, lifelong pupil who is constantly eager to grow and know more, and is willing to adapt and change.

cnxps.cmd.push(function () { cnxps({ playerId: '36af7c51-0caf-4741-9824-2c941fc6c17b' }).render('4c4d856e0e6f4e3d808bbc1715e132f6'); });

The rest is here:

What kind of Jew are you? - comment - The Jerusalem Post