Minyan Replay with Rabbi Lizzi — Parashat Ki Tavo

At our Virtual Morning Minyan on August 31st, Rabbi Lizzi advocates Veganism. Well, not exactly — you'll have to listen to find out what this week's Torah portion has to say about G_d's original dietary prescription for humans.

Every weekday at 8:00 am, Mishkan Chicago holds a virtual Morning Minyan. Our Thursday sessions are hosted by Mishkan's Founding Rabbi, Lizzi Heydemann. You can join in yourself, or listen to all the prayer, music, and inspiration right here on Contact Chai.

https://www.mishkanchicago.org/series/morning-minyan-summer-fall-2023/

Mishkan Chicago's High Holiday tickets are now on sale to the general public! For scheduling, pricing, venue information, and tickets, follow this link:

https://www.mishkanchicago.org/high-holy-days/

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For upcoming Shabbat services and programs, check our event calendar, and see our Accessibility & Inclusion page for information about our venues. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook for more updates.

Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, produced, and performed by Kalman Strauss.

Transcript

Transcript

I'm going to begin and I'm sure many folks will join us as as this music carries us into the beginning of minion have we yet played this year? Have a morels and hacia AltY Psalm 27 hava Morel you'll you'll know her because hers is like on the beach. No. Okay great. I believe have a record of this during COVID and so you know it's like the sort of very solitary very solitary version of you know, record the like, not not the same kind of recording. As we often see with like many folks in a room all like jamming together. This is a very different feel. But very beautiful. And just remembering this like one thing I asked one thing during this season of Elul going into the High Holidays one thing a hotshot LT and we'll see what that means what that means to have it and maybe what that means to you this morning

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cha cha cha eight Shaw okay she she lived

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One day I asked you to be with you all my

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Okay, so we're just gonna go into our morning davening. Often, my Jewish brain is in dialogue with whatever, like pop psychology or you know, stuff I'm learning about the human brain or, you know, the human condition from whatever other sources I'm learning it, you know, hidden brain is one of my favorite podcasts because they're always kind of going into different anyway. Something that seems evident and clear, whether from Buddhist psychology for 1000s of years, or having been studied in, you know, modern labs on modern people, is that if we can be present in a moment, fully, we are more likely to be happy and satisfied and content in our lives, and more generous and more attentive to other people around us. And this has been an issue, the issue of human beings not being able to be fully present for 1000s of years. It seems part of the human condition that has only been massively exacerbated by all of the tools available to us now for our distraction. And so, as I'm listening to these words, a hot shout out at MIT, it's I don't I one thing I ask of you, presence, pervasive presence God good. Hey, love, hey, you know, the all encompassing everything. One thing to be in your house, no shifty buffet that night to be. So here we all are sitting, wherever we are in your home together, wondering what might it feel like to be sitting in God's house to visit God's sanctuary, live a care, but hey, hey, hello. And I cannot help but wonder if King David or the psalmist to we attribute to King David wondered if it was really possible to just arrive in a moment and be fully present with God and with where we are in a moment. And if I can do it in this moment, then maybe I can do it in the next moment. And then maybe in the next moment, and then maybe the sense of depression or anxiety, or worry, or whatever that I'm feeling about the thing that's happening in many moments from now, but you know, sort of like coalesces like a like an avalanche inside of me maybe if I can just be in this moment. It actually melts away and for a moment I can truly be in the presence of the one So good morning everybody. It's nice to see you and be with you. I want to invite you to take a breath relax your shoulders I'm putting my hand on my heart just as like a little reminder that my heart is awake and I am awake in this body on this day on this morning in this moment and so grateful for that so I'm bringing up our

bring up our C door

and go into a morning wait Hang on that's not it come on so many tabs there we go and go into some morning gratitude

whereas the one that I wanted there

go into somewhere in and gratitude for just being here with us being here in this soul in this body in this life in this lifetime. This morning. Oh I need to do I need to do that original sound thing Otherwise, it won't sound good.

Hang on. There we go

Hello, hi. Hello, hi Kai is Shama Nash.

Shanna Tabby Shan atta, Tabby

This saw that you've given me is pure. Jai Jai Manish Shan Shan Tabby teho

If you want you can keep. Now keep your eyes closed and keep your hand on your heart and continue to breathe and just feel your soul breathing you because each one of us isn't, you know, it's one of those things that just happens automatically you don't have to think about it, thank God. So I don't need one more thing to think about. But if you just draw attention to it for a moment, it's kind of extraordinary. This thing that nourishes you every single moment of every single day, you don't have to work for it's just your soul in connection with the Divine breathing you and God

Hi

this Shama

Shama, Tabby, Shanna ta Tabby

to whom

so that you have given me as pure you have shaped and informed it and care for it within me.

One day you will take it from me but for now, every moment that this soul is within my body, I am grateful to you, moda and Neela Vanessa and Ani ello have Elohim bowtie God and God my ancestors reborn Coloma Aseem the master of all works and the creator of all souls by ricotta Antonia my husband Nisha moto lift carry meet him bless it, are you the one who restores life to lifeless bodies and whatever time zone you're in this morning unless you're Delia in Europe I imagine it's sometime close to the morning and your body has been restored to life and you're still in those early moments or even an hour to waking up and restoring you know full capacity to this body. And so just let it happen on its own and let it take the time it wants to take.

Hey

call Shama Daheia laelia handling

Shama Daheia laelia Boy

Oh yah yah yah yah ha

the song layers on itself if I'm doing one part you can do the other part from your side and then you can hear both just don't unmute yourself because it's better if only you hear it and everybody just here's what's on their screen and in their home.

Cool. Michelle Daheia laelia

Hi, Jay Hi there.

Ha They

one of the things that modern studies have proven with data, if you can do that with gratitude and with inner feelings, but one of the things they've suggested strongly is that having regular frequent, small experiences of gratitude is more sustaining and helpful for one's overall wellbeing than having like, one really big one, you know, for what you're really, really, really grateful. But then not having lots of little ones over the course of the day or week or year, you know, as just thinking of all of the all of the video mitzvahs, I do you know, there's just like, this heightened moments, I mean, truthfully, any lifecycle event, birth, be mitzvah wedding, I think less so funeral for the purposes of this for the purposes of this point, but, you know, these that we just put so much energy into, like, trying to make it amazing. I also just watched this movie, you're so not invited to my bar mitzvah, which I totally recommend. It's kind of it's kind of a silly movie, but, but it but it helps make this point actually, that like, we put so much emphasis on these big moments. And, you know, there's nothing wrong with putting emphasis on a big moment, it just shouldn't be to the exclusion of having regular moments throughout the day and week and year, that you're saying thank you that you're feeling grateful that you're noticing how lucky you are, you know, for this or that thing, that is not some big fancy thing, but just like, a piece of bread, a breath, you know, and so, that just brings whole new meaning. I feel like to these morning prayers that are just all gratitude, gratitude, awareness, awareness, you know, because it's like if one of them if one of the 20 we do on a morning sinks in great, great, we're keeping ourselves healthy. We're keeping ourselves sustained and we're offering gratitude to the one all right, I want to invite us to Sam and go into bar who and Ricky I see that you are here up so as Eric Ricky I wonder actually if before we go into bar who you have been doing like the calls and I don't actually know what the LOL calls are and I wonder if you can tell us what the LOL shofar calls are you know and if you know why they are but okay and if you don't know the why even just the what

based on about that orange and actually interestingly enough, I think I read put something in the chat yesterday about sorry, walking the dog I'll be back home in a second. The she consulted with somebody learned who said that it has a lot to do with Euro or the hog or your own tradition. But according to Kabbalah tradition, you do to KIA chivari KIA, and then to Kia or not sorry to Kia Shivaram to Aruba to Kia and then to Kia Shelfari with the Kia and then to Kia to rule out the Kia and the why, I don't know. So not so

cool. My cousin who's Sephardic orthodox can be arrived if you wanted to there, it's just your hug. There's no There's no set formula you have to do. Except you have to hear nine notes a day. And 100 notes on Rosh Hashanah the second but nine notes to wake you up. And of course if you're Sephardic, you're saying sleep quote right now and if you're Ashkenaz you're going to start it on Saturday night so it's all tradition but personally whatever you most you whatever's in your heart, I think is good and my cousin concurred with me on that so I was like Yeah, cuz we hardly ever see eye to eye on anything religiously. But he's still a nice guy and we still get along fine.

Thank you, Irene. Well, you hear to hear you heard it here first whatever's in your hat. All right. So Ricky, I don't know if you're home. But you know what you could do? Is Eric's ready to go Eric, are you ready to go? Yeah, Good you got your original sound on thank you for the reminder Yes Is there anyone who actually wants to like make the calls for Eric Ricky Why don't you do it alright let me uh wait Hang on Ricky, will you will you make the calls for Eric and then you'll and then you'll

sure takia Hi chivari 33332 Ruia to kill

dickeya chivari Kareem dickeya

takia

to root two root

takia

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gotcha cool

yeah sure ca Wow boss out there

Ricky Do you want to set just for fun sure you've been blocked yeah as long as you already you restaurant with the dog so you know all right and I'm and I'm gonna scan if you haven't already said because we're gonna go into Barco after this

alright I'm facing east and I am called to attention because that's how the shofar is about

Bara who at I don't I have my VA

that

I don't know either way no matter how you answer or share Jose Shalamov or a taco. Amir I have to let our MLA habla me moved to Bamako Dasha hoian to meet my savory she or her Dasha Tzion to era of any scare who Latimer here rally or roll by rule had to add on I would say air hammer or wrote I have our Rabbi have time.

And I think actually for this I want to invite us to send healing prayers in our via Rabbi I have done who we are loved by an unending love so feel free to drop names in the chat if you're thinking about certain people who need to feel loved by an unending love supported by a sense of unending support treated even medical attention

given love by us where am I never stand found folks in Florida Hawaii Yes. Miriam Morris Mimi and relatives and friends yes Manuel Irina Elizabeth Mira blood Amir show Olaf Walter motion of course Delia, Judy banks to banks, some emphysema and Susie Donohue everybody on everyone's list. Ami fine Nancy, Kenny, Nathan Arnie, Delia, Aiden, ami phi Celia.

We'll pick up at for heavy Nullah shalom, may they be brought into a sense of peace and wholeness. May we be brought into a sense of peace and wholeness gather four corners of our Tsetse holding everyone we're thinking about holding a sense of the possibility of wholeness

the heavy know the shadow may ARB icon photo areds we're totally a new economy with large say Hey new Kal po well you should note that our vulnerable hard to make Columbia shown the care of tiny with a Shem ha ha little self love and Matt lo dauntless Ha, Leah said ha ha peruca Tyrone I have a heavy ammo you throw at

the ah ha ha.

Sending love and refresh Lima to everybody we're thinking about Bri Bria your mom

close our eyes and direct all of our attention with each word of the Shimma Shimma Israel LaDonna Hi Halloween who? I don't know

I have eight Adonai no Hefa the whole of of how the whole national hell homebuilder huh yeah, how you who had very high a share a nohi It's up ha ha yo Malika. She Nantahala live in a hurry bar to bomb because you have to have a beta overlarge the seven Dara, Shopify of kombucha short term the Otalia data, but how you will later tuffeau it's been a NASA will get after Mama's uzawa would be tatha movie shot.

Okay, and before we, before we go into closing, closing prayers, like Cuddy Shia tome, and I even wanted to play us out with a beautiful rendering of Kaddish wanted to give us a little Torah this morning. So the the Torah reading, maybe you did this earlier in the week, but I wanted to go down kind of a fun Gematria rabbit hole. My tree is like the, you know, Jewish art of numerology. So this is where we begin this week, when you enter the land, the god you'd have, hey, the holy one that ever presence of the universe is giving you as a heritage and you possess it and settle in it, you will take some of the first fruits of the soil, which you harvest from the land that God has given it to you. And this is important. The Santa but but but team or by 10, a, you will place it in a basket and go to the place that God chooses to establish God's divine name. I don't even like back in 10 a, okay, this is the basket that's important. That little basket and you will go to the priest who is in charge at the time and say I acknowledge before your God this day that I have entered this land that God swore to our fathers to assign us and the priests will take the basket from your hand and set it down in front of the altar. And then you will recite the following script. My father was a wandering or a fugitive or a perishing Aramean he went down to Egypt with meager numbers and sojourn there, but there he became a great and populous nation. The Egyptians dealt harshly harshly with us and oppressed us and imposed heavy labor on us. And we cried out to the God of our ancestors. And God heard our plea and saw our plight and our misery and our oppression. And God freed us from Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and awesome power, and mighty signs and wonders bring us to this place and giving us this land a land with milk and honey and therefore wherefore now I bring you these first fruits of the soil, which You have given me. And I leave it before God and I bow low before your god you had Hey, love Hey, yes. And so Irene is noticing this looks familiar. This comes from the Passover Haggadah. And actually, no, it comes from the Torah. The Passover Haggadah thought that this set of words makes a lot of sense to say when you're gathered around a table celebrating freedom to actually remember back to where you came from, what you came through, and that if you're enjoying abundance in this moment, you have to you have to see it in context. It has to it has to be viewed not just as the abundance of this moment, but the fullness of what it took to get to this moment. And so I opened up the May hashey law, which is a, you know, sort of mystical Hasidic commentary writer this week just to see what he might have to say. And this is an he comments on a few particular things, but this was the one I thought was fun and wanted to go down this rabbit hole with you, the Santa but Tiffany, okay. So the basket, you will place it in a basket, but 10 a, in a basket, the gematria the numerical equivalent is the same as my Tove the sum equals 62. So if you want to actually see that in action, I had to I had to see it in action in order to believe it. So they and they even they don't just use the word for basket, it's, they use the in the so that is to test is nine so now we've got 11 None is 50. Now you've got 61 and Aleph is 162. Okay, motto of them is 40. Hey is 545 Ted is nine as we talked about, so now we're at 54 plus five is six is 60 plus bet is 262. So in a basket and how good equal the same value. All right, so hinted in this hinted in this numerical equivalence is the idea how good is something in its proper time? How good is something and its proper time, right? So this is sort of what we've been talking about today is having awareness in moments and regular moments throughout the day, that things are good that things are working in the way that they're supposed to, if they are and to just be grateful for that. The basket is said to be perforated like a woven straw basket to show that Toho Cafaro. And this I this is like I want to take us further down this rabbit hole but I'm gonna have to do it after after we do Kaddish because I don't want to keep those of you too long here who have places to go Who wants a cottage. But this is to show you to HK Navarro that its insides are like its outsides meaning honest. So what I'll do after we say Kaddish is we're going to actually open up the Talmud and look at this little section here. That introduces us to the idea of tahoka Varel. The insides should be like the outsides, meaning whatever the intention on the inside is, should be reflected in the behavior on the outside. So this is to show that even when one's intention is for the sake of heaven, if it appears unpleasant on the surface, a person won't do it. Because one wants the inner nature of the thing to be reflected in the outer nature of the thing. So this whole idea of insides matching outsides and there being a value a deep Jewish value in integrity, and having the you know, whatever is being performed on the outside be matched on the inside. We're going to explore this momentarily. This also gets into the story. We'll also touch back on the conversation we were having last week, about inclusivity versus excellence and holding high standards. In any case, just coming back to our basket and this idea that in you know this woven perforated basket you can see what's on the inside these first fruits and you're bringing them to the to the high priest and saying I bring these to you with gratitude for everything I've come through to arrive in this moment. And the fruit is beautiful on the inside. And the words are are sincere on the outside. And hopefully that helps us live with greater integrity. All right. We will close out with Kathy Shia tome, mourners Kaddish on the learning and for everybody we're thinking of this morning. Whose memory you are calling to mind. All right, bury your mom and anyone else

you're excited Rosie her owl. Miriam.

All right. Is there anybody who would like to lead us in Kaddish this morning?

Okay, I will need you to get down beads Kadesh shimmy Raba they are mad ever accurate tvm leaks multiple table Hi hon of your main home of Highgate hub at Surah l bog allow his man carry over Emeril

you can unmute go I mean yeah he

he parrotfish the backbeats Barbie drumbeat and I say it her diary at a lab it allows Schmieder could share with who they the LM in copier whatever Shirota Toshiba Taberna hamata can be ran VL NaVi room. Yeah Hey Schlemmer abdomen Shemaiah Hi Molina Val Colusa LVM room. Oh say Shalom be Romain who yeah say Shalom. Alina Vallco Israel. They'll call your Shriti Val, the admiral, min

and then and then that's your call. And I want to send us out this morning with a tune for Kaddish and I'll stick around after after this comes off but just to send us out this morning with some beautiful a beautiful tune we're going to do this one during Yizkor actually on Yom Kippur war?

This?

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All right. Well good morning everybody. Have a great day for those of you who aren't flying off to the four corners of the world. Okay? If you're staying we're gonna study a little bit of Talmud because it's like a kind of a juicy fun little bit. All right, you're here for it. Okay. feel okay. And feel free to unmute as we as we go. So what we were looking at before was pull this back up here. Where did it go? What we were looking at before was the section of Deuteronomy two Talking about the basket. And then we looked at this may have Sheila showing us how you shall place in a basket is the same is the same Gematria as my Tov, which he says is a little hint at this idea of integrity to Hulk Navarro. Literally what's in it to hoe? CoverGirl, what's on the outside? All right, so, and he says, See bruh Whoa, 27 B. So it turns out, it's actually it's on the next page. The background here, as we look into this idea of a value of, you know, like, like, maximal integrity, that one's outside actions reflect their inner intent. So, there's a whole story where this comes from, first of all, before we even got there. Is this an idea that you're familiar with as a Jewish idea? Feel free to like, unmute. I'll come off for a second here. Is this a Jewish idea? You know, like, we they like, what did you What did you evaluate? Oh, T Kuno. Lamb? Oh, like giving to the DACA. You know, have you ever heard of this, you know, like integrity inner and outer matching as a as a Jewish value like,

I have, because my niece and I have gone on this for hours when I used to pick her up. So I don't recall the conversations because they were like, seven, eight years ago. But yes,

okay. All right. Brian, you were also nodding.

Yeah, I've heard of that. In relation to a why like, a pig is not kosher. And a cow is

a more

I don't take ideas that a cow, you know, like animal to four legs or you chew their cud and have a split hoof. Okay. Yeah. And so a cow, you can see that right arm and Julian road and have their hoof is split. But a pig has, it looks as though it could be kosher. And that's why, but actually, it doesn't choose from that you wouldn't know that from just looking at a pig.

Because Because a pig also has split hooves, but it doesn't chew. The secret inner thing that is the reason why it's not kosher for you to eat.

Yeah, so that's sort of what I heard. And that the thing in a way, like what we eat, you know, becomes us in a spiritual way. And so it's important to have that kind of transparency, something like that.

Oh, very interesting. Very interesting. I mean, the idea that what we eat becomes us, I mean, well, first of all, like that's, like, literally, biologically accurate. But also, it's, it's part of what explains, you know, going down that road, all of the animals that are kosher, are not like animals of prey, they don't prey on other animals, they're all vegetarians. So we're sort of one we're one step removed, God wanted the original human beings to be vegan, you know, and put the original human beings in the garden and said, See those trees, see that grass, all of that green stuff, you can eat that. And then human beings were like, No, we think we'd rather you know, kill each other and, and so God's like, alright, alright, Uncle fine, you can eat animals, but it'll be these and you're not allowed to eat blood. And you know, and sort of creates parameters around it. And ultimately, the parameters created around the institution of cash rude have us eating not any animal, but only animals that adhere to the guidelines that God wanted us originally to adhere to in the Garden of Eden, you know, which sort of to make to make the point further, okay. So, I at least feel like I was always told your actions matter more than your insides. So like, you may not want to give sadaqa you know, it may be a higher spiritual attainment to feel completely, you know, aligned inside and outside, wanting to be generous wanting to give, but at the end of the day, it doesn't matter whether you want to, you should do it. You know, there is a right thing to do and whether or not your insides match your outsides, you should do the thing. I feel like I was always taught that at the end of the day was like the Jewish way, not to say you don't want to be you know, kind, honest, generous on the inside. But that at the end of the day, the thing that matters is your is your behavior. So, I so I found this value, you know, the introduction of this value, a really interesting one. So now we're gonna go to the Talmud and an intriguing one. So, this guy Rabban Gamliel. He was in charge of the Beit Midrash. He was in charge. He was the, you know, head rabbi, this is you know, we're back back in Talmudic times, or 2000 years in the past. And this is like we're getting to see He kind of the soap opera of all of the rabbis and there are disagreements and arguments. And a couple of these rabbis get into an argument Rabban Gamliel, the head guy gets into a disagreement with this guy Rebbi Yehoshua about some halacha ik thing. It's really not that big a deal. But he Rabban Gamliel routinely embarrassing and afflicts Rabbi Yehoshua, you know, asking him to stand all the time, like basically, you know, kind of isolates him and embarrasses him. And so they decide to remove Rabban Gamliel I'm gonna go up a little bit here. You know what Rabban Gamliel is like he's, he's, he's not the role model we need, they say. And so let's, I'm gonna move up here. I'm sorry, I, I kept the you had the screen at the wrong place. So they deposed him. Right. They said How long will Rabban Gamliel keep afflicting people last year he afflicted him he you know and then there's this whole you know the story of all the different ways Rabban Gamliel was afflicting different rabbis let us remove him from his position of power. Okay, this is it's actually it's a it's a really interesting moment of rabbinic accountability, where all of the other rabbis get together and they're like, this kind of leadership is not the leadership we need. It's not a good role model we don't want like his whatever it is where his insistence on a certain kind of excellence or obedience or whatever it is, is corrosive. We want to replace him. So they do it was so agreed, then the question arises, who will we establish in his place? This guy this guy? No, no, no. Eventually they decide to go with Eleazar ben Azaria, some of these names may be familiar to you also from the Passover Seder. Ribbon at Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaria is wise and rich, he's 10th generation down from Ezra. And you know, if Rabban Gamliel raises a challenge in matters of Torah, he will answer it and not be embarrassed. If he needs to pay if he needs to, like pay off Caesars court, he'll be able to do that. Okay, and then they say, Will you do it? He says let me go talk to my wife Eleazar ben Azaria, his wife says to him, Well, you know, what, if they remove you from office, he says, you know, like, look, I love this. He says, let a person use an expensive goblet one day and break it tomorrow. In other words, one should take advantage of an opportunity that presents itself and not concern themselves whether it will last. He's like, this is an incredible opportunity. I don't know how it'll go. But how can I say no to this? She said to him, you don't have any white hair. IE, you know, how can you be a sage nobody will really trust your experience if you don't have any white hair that Gematria relates on that day. He was 18 years old and a miracle transpired for him and 18 rows of his hair turned white. And though and so that's why, by the way, in the Passover Seder, you know, they quote him as saying, I am one who is 70 I am one who is like 70 years old, because he's not 70 he just looks at me. Okay, fine. On the day they remove Rabban Gamliel from his position and appointed Rabban Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaria to his place there was also this is an important part of a fundamental change in the general approach of the study hall, as they dismissed the guard at the door, and permission was granted for students to enter. So instead of Rabban, Gamliel, ELLs selective approach that asserted that the students must be screened before being accepted into the study hall. The new approach asserted that anyone who seeks to study should be given the opportunity to do so. Right and this is really like in dialogue with a conversation we were having last week about you know, do you sort of screen people for excellence before they walk in? Or do you say like the doors are wide open come on in anybody who wants to learn this is for you, you know, my all who are hungry Come and eat me all who are thirsty come and drink male who are curious come and study, because right on Galileo's approach was any student who's inside is not like his outside will not enter the study hall. And you can see this here in the Hebrew cold towel Mead, Shane Toho Cafaro lo Yukon s le beta Midrash. So Toho inside Cafaro like they're outside. That was his approach. And on that day, several benches were added to the study hall to accommodate the numbers of students who wanted to learn, Rabbi Yohanan said about being Yossef and docile and the rabbi's disputed this matter. Some of them said 400 benches were added to the study hall. Some said 700 benches were added to the study hall. I mean, did they also like add wings onto the study hall? 700 benches. Okay, let me stop for a moment before we go on. Who are you rooting for in the story right now?

Oh zarbin his area, why you're reading new way to the whole community? Okay, any other opinions? Tell me if you want me to put the screen back up, or you know, so you can see anything, you could sort of see both sides. Why do this in a way, just in the kind of concept of I mean, we're kind of dealing with with this right now, like, you know, say, admissions to a university, if you just let everybody come, which I think is a good thing, everybody should have a right to education. And if you have 600 students in your class, instead of a small seminar, where you can actually learn and talk or whatever, or dilution of, you know, you have people who are ready and other people who aren't all mixed together, you know, so it depends maybe on what it is that you're admitting everybody to? So I don't know, I don't know an answer, because I'm for education for everyone. But I can see the other side as well.

We're dealing with that right now. I'm on a board of old people. I'm one of the youngest, and we need new members of CPAs. Right. And trying to offer benefits and programs. Well, we don't need that we don't need that. Well, dammit, you want younger people they need, you know, and just change. It's changed. And just if you want to get extreme look, just look at our political race for president. I mean, the average ages would at No 85 Oh, my God, please,

there's this sense of like the doors should be flung open. Because the standards of kind of maintaining whatever we think is the old way, or the trustworthy people who you know, whose experiences the right experiences like actually, we need people with new and different experience, and the only way to get them in the door is to open the doors wider.

Can I add a Bismillah? Historical context? Oh, yeah. Because this Okay, so interestingly, this episode is very well documented in the historical record. It actually shows up in some of the early Christian, the corpus of writings as well, I guess you would call it scripture. And the historical context to this choice, this schism in the Sanhedrin is that at this point in time in the Roman Empire, and was experiencing a bit of a fad not unlike remember back in like the 90s, when Madonna put on a red bracelet and said she was she went to the Kabbalah Center, like it was a very similar moment. So the Sanhedrin had this influx of people who weren't ethnically Jewish, and did not. Were not raised in a Jewish home, wanting to convert, but not wanting to forego pork and shellfish and not wanting to circumcise their genitals. And there was a segment of the Sanhedrin, who very much like what Irene and Susan have said, are like education good. And also more of us good. Because the more of us there are, the more of us can push against Roman occupation. And then there was another segment of of the Sanhedrin. That said, Well, no, we can't give up these are fundamental aspects of our identity, cash route and readme law. We can't just give those up for the sake of expediency. So I find it very interesting that like this is coming up now in the fake in the context of our current climate.

Yeah, I guess what I wanted to add to what I thought I, I'm rooting for the students. So dead. I thought what it said that everyone who came online don't remember the quote that what it said exactly in there that if their insides match their outsides, then they'll stay. So it seems like if people come in their insides don't match their outsides, they won't stay.

No, it's the reverse. It's that the guard at the door who was the guard at the door there before was there to make sure that the students insides match their outsides, they got rid of the guard at the door. So there were no wonder if that was the standard before that standard is gone. Now. Everybody come on in. That's where we are.

Okay, because I guess I think that if someone is electing to study and do all of that, ultimately, if their insides don't match their outsides, or they don't want to follow the laws, like was said, then they would self select out. So that is also something and then also too, with regular society, if everyone is studying what happens to all the other things that need to happen in the community, so I'm not sure how you balance all that out, but

great, well, I just can't I want Want to see kind of where where we are and who we're like rooting for in this because the story's not totally over. So, right there arguing, you know, in retrospect how many benches were out at 407 100. The point is there were a lot of people, as Cassandra was describing, who want in on Jewish community and learning, and they're showing up to the study hall. So when he saw the tremendous growth in the number of students, Rabban Gamliel, was disheartened. And he said, perhaps, heaven forbid, I prevented Israel from engaging in Torah study. You know, he's like this self reflective leader, who is suddenly looking back and thinking to himself, maybe I've committed a grave mistake here, I was thinking that I had standards of excellence that made the Jewish people better by holding to these very high standards. Heaven forbid, maybe I've just been keeping people out of Jewish learning. And so he was shown a dream. They showed him in his in his dream, white jugs filled with ashes, alluding to the fact that the additional students were worthless idlers. So in a dream, he sees, like these beautiful jugs on the outside people who look like they want to learn, but then on the inside, there's nothing there. You know, they're not really serious. And, you know, I think about me and all of the people who studied or who started DAF Yomi, a couple years ago, anybody with me? You know, what DAF Yomi is DAF Yomi is the studying Tom Wood every single day, one page of Tolman, and it was very popular a couple of years ago, because it was the new cycle of DAF Yomi was beginning. And there were all of these people because of Safari, I really like because of this online tool that makes Talmud study so much more accessible, because they're translating it from Hebrew into English, they're giving all the context you need. By the way, when you're looking at this, the bolded part is what's actually in the words of the Talmud, the not bolded part is all of the context that is implied. But it's not a direct translation of the Hebrew, or Aramaic. And like, it's very hard to study this stuff, but they've made it as easy as as it can be. And so all of these people, myself included, were like, I am going to do it. I'm going to study a page of Talmud today. And after seven years, one page a day for seven years, you know, you get to the end of the Talmud, and then you celebrate with all of the Jewish people all around the world who are studying Gomorrah. Anyway, I made it like four days, maybe, I think Henry might still be on the bandwagon. But there were so many people who came in in that original pushing are like, yes, I want to learn, yes, I want to do this thing. Now that is made available to me. And, you know, some fraction, and I believe it is a small fraction of the people who walked in the door of the Beit Midrash, so to speak on that first day, are still there today, you know, three or four years in whatever it is. And so that's sort of what Rabban Gamliel season is dream, like, there are all of these people who walked in the Beit Midrash thinking like, yeah, I want to be a serious Jewish learner. And then they applied themselves for a few days or weeks, or whatever it was. And they were like, Oh, this is what this is. No, thank you, you know, just ashes on the inside of these white jugs. And so the Gomorrah continues. That it's actually not true that the students were worthless idlers. That dream was showed to him, just to ease his mind. So he wouldn't feel bad. That actually, nonetheless, it was still good to open up the doors of the Beit Midrash. But the powers that be who send us dreams in the middle of the night, sent him the right dream, to at least let his heart feel better so that he wouldn't be afflicted by his past which he cannot change. In any case. Yeah, and isn't it? And Sherry said, Isn't it good that they at least had a few good days of learning? And I think that's like, that's actually where the Talmud that's where this particular story. That's where this section of the story ends. But it seems Yeah, the Tom woods on the side of learning, you know, that like, okay, better than Rabban Gamliel shouldn't feel terrible about something he can't change in retrospect, but that ultimately, it was good to open up the doors of the Beit Midrash. Yeah. So

thank you for opening it up to us today. We can Yeah. It makes me feel better with all the things I started don't finish. So

yeah, totally. Totally. Yeah, yeah. And now we're We're not We're not here to be perfect. We're just here to get better by Marcin, Glenn O'Brien, everybody and Mary, Mary, were you about to say something by Bonnie river?

I want to say something, doesn't this. I just thought about the isn't it the Haftorah on Yom Kippur War, where Isaiah says, You were sackcloth and you put ashes on and you sit at the door at the gates and you weep oppressing your workers. So your outside is portraying the door. And on the inside, you're this terrible person. And that's not the kind of repentance that God's looking for. Yes, again, we need to match insides and outsides. That's right.

Yeah. It's basically saying like, here you are on Yom Kippur war, wearing your sackcloth and doing your like fasting. Oh, I'm afflicting myself. Oh, I'm so pious. I'm so holy. No, you're not you're afflicting your workers. You're not giving sadaqa you're violating the Sabbath. You're doing all of these things that you know 364 days a year, don't you dare come to Yom Kippur and like, Oh, I'm so holy, no, you're not. Your insides don't match your outsides. That's exactly what Isaiah is saying. Yes, yes.

Yes, I learned from my knees that you should always do miss photo good things. But a higher level is what's inside you to do it. And the highest is when they both mesh together. And this passage also reminds you have Suppori if you're gonna support me, right, they, they now realize this was a sanctuary. And there's a beautiful tile, the Zodiac where the Ark would be. And it's just the the integration of Jewish and Roman culture is like, whoa, because you're not supposed to have images in the synagogue. And at first they thought it was when I went the first time they thought it was some Romans office. And then as they did more excavation, they realized it was a synagogue. Because when I went they didn't find the pews and the chairs and the walls and all that all they found was the tile. But it's just interesting. Yeah.

Maryam, I feel like I want to You were you were waiting to speak and then I'll say,

I clearly missed something because I'm confused. Yes. Um, okay, so rip Gamliel opens the doors to the synagogue.

Rep. Gamliel was the guy who kept him, you know, kind of tight, tightly closed Eleazar bent Azaria.

I'm sorry about that, I'm sorry, opens the doors to the synagogue. kinds of people flow in there all Madonna's with with with red bracelets. We don't know that. We don't know that. But a lot of them seem to have been. It might have been Yes. It might have been. Yeah. And so he says, Oh, my gosh. Maybe I shouldn't have done this.

No. We don't hear from Eleazar ben Azaria, we assume Eleazar ben Azaria, the 18 year old who grow gray hair overnight. Who opened the doors, stands by his choice. Gamliel is the one we hear from the deposed ex

Nazi. That's what so he's the one who's regretting his decision.

He's the one who's regretting his former admissions policy.

That's right. Okay. Okay. That makes sense. And so then he has the stream that says, Oh, well, they're all like, they're Madonna's

Yes. Right. And then, yes, and then the Tom Wood goes out of its way to say they just showed him that dream. So he wouldn't feel so bad. But like, it was. Yeah, yeah. Oh,

no. Okay, that was very helpful. Thank you. I cool. I did not make the the jump between the two rabbis.

Yes. There are so many rabbis. Oh, my God. There's so many rabbis. Actually, I have a book back here somewhere. This book that the, for the 14 169 scholars of the Talmud, written by Brielle page wrestler, who's a rabbi, Dan, psychologist, and Alif. But anyway, she goes through. Literally every single every rabbi in the entire town would like where they lived when they lived in which pages of the Talmud they're referenced on. Anyway. Yeah, they're, like close to 1500 rabbis in the Talmud, there are a lot of them. Rabbi Visser, am I that? Yeah, it's a lot to keep track of. Anyway, they're all your friends and they all love you.

So I will say I don't think I'd ever heard of this idea of insights matching outside as a Jewish value. But as we were talking about it, I was reflecting that all the the, the kind of Jewish leaders, rabbis, whoever, whoever they might have been, so I have no most respected and learned from part of what I feel from them is that their insides are matching their outsides. And I what I mean by that is that they're like actions are very intentional, right? This huge intention, and you can feel that they are thinking, and this, you know, this includes you as a, that they're not just thinking about kind of what they want out of the interaction, but they're thinking about how to manage the interaction, so that it will produce the results they want, right? Like, that's a different. My best example about it is, is actually for me with parenting, because I feel like for a long time, I made the mistake of which I think many parents make, right, like you, you want something for your child, and you're worried it's not going to happen. And so you kind of like nudge them or pressure them in some way, when in fact, what you need to be doing is thinking, Okay, well, how can I strategically get, you know, make them feel good enough about themselves to take the step? Or? Or how can I contribute to them wanting to do this, as opposed to telling them? Oh, my God, you're not gonna be in college if you don't do right. So I, yeah, that's what I've noticed in it, that I see that from people who I think are really learned and are serious about it. Even if I don't, hadn't thought of it as a Jewish value. Yeah.

Can I just add one thing Tim, comes to mind with Miriam. So just to build on what Miriam is saying, in one little piece, that something else came to mind that the Mishkan was constructed the portable Jewish Wi Fi hotspot was built out of wood, right, but covered in gold on both sides, right, inside and outside. And so that outside to be like the inside, but that the inner part is actually wood. And so I have somewhere in my head, the idea that I heard that. That gold part is what we aspire to do. But actually, we're wood and and becoming gold is something that happens in layers, and that we can build a build up to that.

That's beautiful. And then there are these implements in the Mishkan that are like gold on the inside gold on the outside like that, like individual pieces. And I'm going I'm not remembering what they are. I don't know, like, but but this theme of inside being like outside and sort of aspirational versus, you know, sort of like starting off that way versus like building toward it is is a theme that repeats itself if you're looking for it in the most unexpected places, like for example in the construction of a building, you know, what's on the inside, what's on the outside. It's a beautiful connection. Thanks, Brian. Jeff, Jed, nice to see you on time notes. See, how's it going

too long going well, and I just want to thank you and those who are still on for a new way of looking at the phrase, walk the walk. Because, you know, to me walking, the walk is combining the inside with the outside. And this more scholarly discussion is very helpful.

That's like, that's what Judaism is. It's like you could put the you could put the end result on a bumper sticker, you know, just like be good. But then you need like, hundreds of pages of Talmud to you know, have fun exploring it and turning it over and but like, how good and when and why. And but what happens if you don't feel good while you're doing that, but does it matter? It's you know, that's the fun. That's the fun part.

I think you need both. Both, right.

I unfortunately have to run but I love seeing you all and I will see you soon. Have a great Thursday so much. Take care everybody. Good shots.