Naaleh Fun with Jewish Texts 11/10/2022

יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה וְנִתַּאי הָאַרְבֵּלִי קִבְּלוּ מֵהֶם. יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה אוֹמֵר, עֲשֵׂה לְךָ רַב, וּקְנֵה לְךָ חָבֵר, וֶהֱוֵי דָן אֶת כָּל הָאָדָם לְכַף זְכוּת:

Pirkei Avot 1:6

Joshua ben Perahiah and Nittai the Arbelite received [the oral tradition] from them. Joshua ben Perahiah used to say: appoint for thyself a teacher, and acquire for thyself a companion and judge all men with the scale weighted in his favor.

Have you found yourself a “rav” someone who you feel guides you as a professional?
What characteristics does your teacher have that have inspired you?

הגדה של פסח, מגיד, פסח מצה ומרור ז׳

בְּכָל־דּוֹר וָדוֹר חַיָּב אָדָם לִרְאוֹת אֶת־עַצְמוֹ כְּאִלּוּ הוּא יָצָא מִמִּצְרַיִם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וְהִגַּדְתָּ לְבִנְךָ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא לֵאמֹר, בַּעֲבוּר זֶה עָשָׂה ה' לִי בְּצֵאתִי מִמִּצְרַיִם.

Pesach Haggadah, Magid, Rabban Gamliel's Three Things 7

In each and every generation, a person is obligated to see himself as if he left Egypt, as it is stated (Exodus 13:8); "And you shall explain to your child on that day: For the sake of this, did the Lord do [this] for me in my going out of Egypt."

It is traditional at Passover to view ourselves as personally liberated from slavery. People often look at this quote to reflect on the boundaries we create which limit us.
What boundaries limit you which you’d like to break?

משנה אבות ד׳:א׳

בֶּן זוֹמָא אוֹמֵר, אֵיזֶהוּ חָכָם, הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קיט) מִכָּל מְלַמְּדַי הִשְׂכַּלְתִּי כִּי עֵדְוֹתֶיךָ שִׂיחָה לִּי. אֵיזֶהוּ גִבּוֹר, הַכּוֹבֵשׁ אֶת יִצְרוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (משלי טז) טוֹב אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם מִגִּבּוֹר וּמשֵׁל בְּרוּחוֹ מִלֹּכֵד עִיר. אֵיזֶהוּ עָשִׁיר, הַשָּׂמֵחַ בְּחֶלְקוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קכח) יְגִיעַ כַּפֶּיךָ כִּי תֹאכֵל אַשְׁרֶיךָ וְטוֹב לָךְ. אַשְׁרֶיךָ, בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה. וְטוֹב לָךְ, לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא. אֵיזֶהוּ מְכֻבָּד, הַמְכַבֵּד אֶת הַבְּרִיּוֹת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שמואל א ב) כִּי מְכַבְּדַי אֲכַבֵּד וּבֹזַי יֵקָלּוּ:

Pirkei Avot 4:1

Ben Zoma says: Who is the wise one? He who learns from all men, as it says, "I have acquired understanding from all my teachers" (Psalms 119:99).

What Is the benefit to learning from your colleagues?
How do you actively engage in learning from all of your colleagues?
Do you sometimes struggle to learn from some of your colleagues, if so, why?

משנה אבות ד׳:א׳

(א) בֶּן זוֹמָא אוֹמֵר, אֵיזֶהוּ חָכָם, הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קיט) מִכָּל מְלַמְּדַי הִשְׂכַּלְתִּי כִּי עֵדְוֹתֶיךָ שִׂיחָה לִּי. אֵיזֶהוּ גִבּוֹר, הַכּוֹבֵשׁ אֶת יִצְרוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (משלי טז) טוֹב אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם מִגִּבּוֹר וּמשֵׁל בְּרוּחוֹ מִלֹּכֵד עִיר. אֵיזֶהוּ עָשִׁיר, הַשָּׂמֵחַ בְּחֶלְקוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קכח) יְגִיעַ כַּפֶּיךָ כִּי תֹאכֵל אַשְׁרֶיךָ וְטוֹב לָךְ. אַשְׁרֶיךָ, בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה. וְטוֹב לָךְ, לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא. אֵיזֶהוּ מְכֻבָּד, הַמְכַבֵּד אֶת הַבְּרִיּוֹת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שמואל א ב) כִּי מְכַבְּדַי אֲכַבֵּד וּבֹזַי יֵקָלּוּ:

Pirkei Avot 4:1

Who is rich? He who rejoices in his lot, as it is said: “You shall enjoy the fruit of your labors, you shall be happy and you shall prosper” (Psalms 128:2) “You shall be happy” in this world, “and you shall prosper” in the world to come.

This text was likely written about 2000 years ago. What lessons can we draw from it today?
When you compare yourself to others, what are the dangers? How do you experience this in your life?

משנה אבות ד׳:א׳

Pirkei Avot 4:1

Who is he that is honored? He who honors his fellow human beings as it is said: “For I honor those that honor Me, but those who spurn Me shall be dishonored” (I Samuel 2:30).

How do you honor and celebrate the people you work with?
Do you feel you are strong in this skill of honoring others? Why or why not?

משנה אבות ה׳:כ״ב

בֶּן בַּג בַּג אוֹמֵר, הֲפֹךְ בָּהּ וַהֲפֹךְ בָּהּ, דְּכֹלָּא בָהּ. וּבָהּ תֶּחֱזֵי, וְסִיב וּבְלֵה בָהּ, וּמִנַּהּ לֹא תָזוּעַ, שֶׁאֵין לְךָ מִדָּה טוֹבָה הֵימֶנָּה:

Pirkei Avot 5:22

Ben Bag Bag says: Turn it [Torah] over and over, for [you will find] all in it. And through it you shall see. And grow old and hoary in it, and do not budge from it, for there is no better value than it.

This quote is typically used to think about how we continue to turn over Jewish text.
What is the value of continually turning something over?
When have you seen a benefit in approaching the same issue from a different perspective?

שמות כ׳:ח׳-י״א

זָכ֛וֹר֩ אֶת־י֥֨וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֖֜ת לְקַדְּשֽׁ֗וֹ׃ שֵׁ֤֣שֶׁת יָמִ֣ים֙ תַּֽעֲבֹ֔ד֮ וְעָשִׂ֖֣יתָ כׇּֿל־מְלַאכְתֶּֽךָ֒׃ וְי֨וֹם֙ הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔֜י שַׁבָּ֖֣ת ׀ לַיהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑֗יךָ לֹֽ֣א־תַעֲשֶׂ֣֨ה כׇל־מְלָאכָ֜֡ה אַתָּ֣ה ׀ וּבִנְךָ֣͏ֽ־וּ֠בִתֶּ֗ךָ עַבְדְּךָ֤֨ וַאֲמָֽתְךָ֜֙ וּבְהֶמְתֶּ֔֗ךָ וְגֵרְךָ֖֙ אֲשֶׁ֥֣ר בִּשְׁעָרֶֽ֔יךָ׃ כִּ֣י שֵֽׁשֶׁת־יָמִים֩ עָשָׂ֨ה יְהֹוָ֜ה אֶת־הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם וְאֶת־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֶת־הַיָּם֙ וְאֶת־כׇּל־אֲשֶׁר־בָּ֔ם וַיָּ֖נַח בַּיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֑י עַל־כֵּ֗ן בֵּרַ֧ךְ יְהֹוָ֛ה אֶת־י֥וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֖ת וַֽיְקַדְּשֵֽׁהוּ׃ {ס}

Exodus 20:8-11

Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of your God יהוה: you shall not do any work—you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, or your cattle, or the stranger who is within your settlements. For in six days יהוה made heaven and earth and sea—and all that is in them—and then rested on the seventh day; therefore יהוה blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.

One Jewish value is creating separation between shabbat and the other days of the week. We know that developing boundaries is valuable.
When and how do you create boundaries?
Have you ever felt you were able to create good boundaries with time which allow you to rest and rejuvenate?

משנה אבות ה׳:י״ז

כָּל מַחֲלֹקֶת שֶׁהִיא לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם, סוֹפָהּ לְהִתְקַיֵּם. וְשֶׁאֵינָהּ לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם, אֵין סוֹפָהּ לְהִתְקַיֵּם. אֵיזוֹ הִיא מַחֲלֹקֶת שֶׁהִיא לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם, זוֹ מַחֲלֹקֶת הִלֵּל וְשַׁמַּאי. וְשֶׁאֵינָהּ לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם, זוֹ מַחֲלֹקֶת קֹרַח וְכָל עֲדָתוֹ:

Pirkei Avot 5:17

Every dispute that is for the sake of Heaven, will in the end endure; But one that is not for the sake of Heaven, will not endure. Which is the controversy that is for the sake of Heaven? Such was the controversy of Hillel and Shammai. And which is the controversy that is not for the sake of Heaven? Such was the controversy of Korah and all his congregation.

When do you feel conflict in beneficial?
Have you been in a conflict lately which helped you to make a better decision?

“There is a realm of time where the goal is not to have but to be, not to own but to give, not to control but to share, not to subdue but to be in accord. Life goes wrong when the control of space, the acquisition of things of space, becomes our sole concern.”

“Six days a week we wrestle with the world, wringing profit from the earth; on the Sabbath we especially care for the seed of eternity planted in the soul. The world has our hands, but our soul belongs to Someone Else. Six days a week we seek to dominate the world, on the seventh day we try to dominate the self.”
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

When and how do you create space for self-reflection?

“An artist cannot be continually wielding his brush. He must stop at times in his painting to freshen his vision of the object, the meaning of which he wishes to express on her canvas. Living is also an art. We dare not become absorbed in its technical processes and lose our consciousness of its general plan… The Sabbath represents these moments when we pause in our brushwork to renew our vision

of the object. Having done so we take ourselves to our painting with clarified vision and renewed energy. This applies alike to the individual and the community. For the individual, the Sabbath becomes thereby an instrument of personal salvation; for the community an instrument of social salvation.” - Mordechai Kaplan
How do you step back to reflect on the work you do?

משנה אבות א׳:י״ב

(יב) הִלֵּל וְשַׁמַּאי קִבְּלוּ מֵהֶם. הִלֵּל אוֹמֵר, הֱוֵי מִתַּלְמִידָיו שֶׁל אַהֲרֹן, אוֹהֵב שָׁלוֹם וְרוֹדֵף שָׁלוֹם, אוֹהֵב אֶת הַבְּרִיּוֹת וּמְקָרְבָן לַתּוֹרָה:

Pirkei Avot 1:12

(12) Hillel and Shammai received [the oral tradition] from them. Hillel used to say: be of the disciples of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving mankind and drawing them close to the Torah.

How do you welcome and invite others into our community?

"We have all heard the Yiddish proverb “We plan, God laughs” (Mann traoch, Gott lŠuch), and every time we see on it on a bumper sticker, we laugh too because we know it is true.

We all have plans.With each stage of life, we imagined who we would be when we “arrived.” But when we got there, things were not quite in place. Life did not turn out like we expected. In fact, at times life seemed to take another direction entirely. For a lot of us, it felt like we failed. We did not measure up. We are not who we thought we would be. Life is not turning out like we planned."
-Rabbi Sherri Hirsh

When have you not had something go the way you intended at work? How did you handle it?

דברים כ״ג:י״ג-ט״ו

(יג) וְיָד֙ תִּהְיֶ֣ה לְךָ֔ מִח֖וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה וְיָצָ֥אתָ שָּׁ֖מָּה חֽוּץ׃ (יד) וְיָתֵ֛ד תִּהְיֶ֥ה לְךָ֖ עַל־אֲזֵנֶ֑ךָ וְהָיָה֙ בְּשִׁבְתְּךָ֣ ח֔וּץ וְחָפַרְתָּ֣ה בָ֔הּ וְשַׁבְתָּ֖ וְכִסִּ֥יתָ אֶת־צֵאָתֶֽךָ׃ (טו) כִּי֩ יְהֹוָ֨ה אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ מִתְהַלֵּ֣ךְ ׀ בְּקֶ֣רֶב מַחֲנֶ֗ךָ לְהַצִּֽילְךָ֙ וְלָתֵ֤ת אֹיְבֶ֙יךָ֙ לְפָנֶ֔יךָ וְהָיָ֥ה מַחֲנֶ֖יךָ קָד֑וֹשׁ וְלֹֽא־יִרְאֶ֤ה בְךָ֙ עֶרְוַ֣ת דָּבָ֔ר וְשָׁ֖ב מֵאַחֲרֶֽיךָ׃ {ס}

Deuteronomy 23:13-15

(13) Further, there shall be an area for you outside the camp, where you may relieve yourself. (14) With your gear you shall have a spike, and when you have squatted you shall dig a hole with it and cover up your excrement. (15) Since your God יהוה moves about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you, let your camp be holy; let [God] not find anything unseemly among you and turn away from you.

Even in war, you are required to make sure you clean up after yourself! Why do think the Torah emphasizes this value? What can it teach us today?

משנה תורה, הלכות תפילה וברכת כהנים ז׳:ד׳

(ד) כְּשֶׁשּׁוֹמֵעַ קוֹל הַתַּרְנְגוֹלִים מְבָרֵךְ בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ׳‎ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם הַנּוֹתֵן לַשֶּׂכְוִי בִינָה לְהַבְחִין בֵּין יוֹם וּבֵין לָיְלָה. כְּשֶׁלּוֹבֵשׁ בְּגָדָיו מְבָרֵךְ בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ׳‎ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם מַלְבִּישׁ עֲרוּמִים. כְּשֶׁמַּנִּיחַ סְדִינוֹ עַל רֹאשׁוֹ מְבָרֵךְ בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ׳‎ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם עוֹטֵר יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּתִפְאָרָה. כְּשֶׁמַּעֲבִיר יָדָיו עַל עֵינָיו מְבָרֵךְ פּוֹקֵחַ עִוְרִים. כְּשֶׁיֵּשֵׁב עַל מִטָּתוֹ מְבָרֵךְ מַתִּיר אֲסוּרִים. כְּשֶׁמּוֹרִיד רַגְלָיו מִן הַמִּטָּה וּמַנִּיחָם עַל גַּבֵּי קַרְקַע מְבָרֵךְ רוֹקַע הָאָרֶץ עַל הַמָּיִם. כְּשֶׁעוֹמֵד מְבָרֵךְ זוֹקֵף כְּפוּפִים. כְּשֶׁנּוֹטֵל יָדָיו מְבָרֵךְ אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדָיִם. כְּשֶׁרוֹחֵץ פָּנָיו מְבָרֵךְ בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ׳‎ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם הַמַּעֲבִיר חֶבְלֵי שֵׁנָה מֵעֵינָי וּתְנוּמָה מֵעַפְעַפָּי, יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶיךָ יְיָ׳‎ אֱלֹהַי וֵאלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתַי שֶׁתַּרְגִּילֵנִי לִדְבַר מִצְוָה וְאַל תַּרְגִּילֵנִי לִדְבַר עֲבֵרָה וְעָוֹן וְתַשְׁלֵט בִּי יֵצֶר טוֹב וְאַל יִשְׁלֹט בִּי יֵצֶר רָע וּתְחַזְּקֵנִי בְּמִצְוֹתֶיךָ וְתֵן חֶלְקִי בְּתוֹרָתֶךָ וְתִתְּנֵנִי לְחֵן וּלְחֶסֶד וּלְרַחֲמִים בְּעֵינֶיךָ וּבְעֵינֵי כָל רוֹאַי וְתִגְמְלֵנִי חֲסָדִים טוֹבִים, בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ׳‎ גּוֹמֵל חֲסָדִים טוֹבִים:

Mishneh Torah, Prayer and the Priestly Blessing 7:4

(4) When one hears the crow of a rooster, he recites: Blessed are You, God, our Lord, King of the universe, who gives the rooster understanding to distinguish between day and night.
When he puts on his clothes, he recites: Blessed are You, God, our Lord, King of the universe, who clothes the naked.
When he puts his cloth on his head, he recites: Blessed are You, God, our Lord, King of the universe, who crowns Israel in glory.
When he passes his hands over his eyes, he recites: [Blessed...] who opens the eyes of the blind.
When he sits up in his bed, he recites: [Blessed...] who unties those bound.
When he lowers his feet from the bed and rests them on the ground, he recites: [Blessed...] who spreads the earth over the waters.
When he stands up, he recites: [Blessed...] who straightens the bowed.
When he washes his hands, he recites: [Blessed...] who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us regarding the washing of hands.

What do you think this morning blessing routine can teach us today?

ויקרא י״ט:י״ח

(יח) לֹֽא־תִקֹּ֤ם וְלֹֽא־תִטֹּר֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י עַמֶּ֔ךָ וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ אֲנִ֖י יְהֹוָֽה׃

Leviticus 19:18

(18) You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against members of your people. Love your fellow [Israelite] as yourself: I am יהוה.

What is your capacity to love others?
What do you feel is the power and/or limitations of this commandment?