I am observant, though I would not describe myself as pious. In a similar way, I enjoy the study of Jewish texts, though I am not a Torah scholar. Here is what I do on a daily and weekly basis.
Every day, I read a page of the Talmud as part of the Daf Yom program. I began doing this in late 2018, after a chance encounter with a former classmate. At this pace, one finishes in seven years.
I use the Artscroll edition and read most of the text in the English translation. When I have time, I tune into an online class in the evenings. Most often, I read the page in the early morning.
As you know from reading this blog, I also review (quickly) the weekly Torah reading before every Sabbath, and try to draw lessons and connections between the portion and what is going on in the world.
Since my Hebrew birthday on Friday, I have added daily study -- in Hebrew -- of a single chapter of Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, a summary of Jewish doctrine. At this pace, one finishes in 3 years.
I should also mention that I work daily -- for about 10-15 minutes -- on a play I am writing that tells the story of David and Bathsheba from the Second Book of Samuel. I find it endlessly fascinating.
This week's show will be slightly different from the norm: we'll focus on clips and topics, rather than guests -- and that, hopefully, will mean more input from the callers (unless you are all watching football on opening weekend).
Topics:
- The state of the economy
- The fight against crime
- The midterm election fight
- The struggle for peace between Russia and Ukraine
- The airstrike on the Venezuelan drug cartel
- The attempt to sink Kennedy
- The war in Gaza
- The case against Harvard
- The Trump presidency
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This week's Torah portion includes several laws about conduct in civic and personal life, the common theme of which is boundaries -- setting bounds to what one may do at home, at work, and even in the battlefield.
One noteworthy passage concerns Amalek, the evil nation that attacked the Children of Israel as they made their Exodus from slavery to freedom. Deuteronomy 25:17-19 commands Jews to obliterate Amalek's memory.
The South African government accused Israel of genocide on the basis of a story about Amalek in the Book of Samuel, in which King Saul was commanded to wipe out the entire evil Amalekite nation.
Because Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quoted this week's portion -- "Remember what Amalek did to you" (25:17), the South African government claimed he was commanding soldiers to commit genocide.
It was an absurd and malevolent misreading of the Bible and of Jewish tradition. The commandment, as observed by Jews today, is to remember the evil of Amalek and fight ...
