Set Induction Questions
1. When have one of your differences caused you discomfort in a community of which you were a part?
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כל איש מישראל חייב בתלמוד תורה בין עני בין עשיר בין שלם בגופו בין בעל יסורין בין בחור בין שהיה זקן גדול שתשש כחו אפילו היה עני המתפרנס מן הצדקה ומחזר על הפתחים ואפילו בעל אשה ובנים חייב לקבוע לו זמן לתלמוד תורה ביום ובלילה שנאמר והגית בו יומם ולילה
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(Maimonides (1135-1204), Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Talmud Torah, Ch. 10)
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Every person is obligated to learn Torah, whether they are rich or poor, physically healthy or disabled, or whether they are young or old and failing in strength. Even if they are poor and supported by charity and begging, and even if they have a spouce and children, they still have to set aside time during the day and by night for Torah study, for it is written, "...but you shall engage in it by day and night
Discussion Questions:
1. How does Maimonides's requirement for Torah study inform a contemporary vision for Jewish education?
(לח) וְגַם־עֵ֥רֶב רַ֖ב עָלָ֣ה אִתָּ֑ם וְצֹ֣אן וּבָקָ֔ר מִקְנֶ֖ה כָּבֵ֥ד מְאֹֽד׃
(38) [When the Israelites left Egypt,] a mixed multitude went along with them; they also brought their flocks and their cattle.
Rabbi Kerri Olitzky
We are at a time in Jewish history that the term erev rav (mixed multitude) seems once again applicable. The Jewish community is made up of various groups, all of which add color, hue, and dimension to the beautiful tapestry we call the Jewish people. The Jewish community has never been monolithic.
Discussion Questions:
1. Why might the Israelites have benefited from being a diverse community?
2. When do communities benefit from homogeneity, and when do the they benefit from diversity?
(י) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶל־יְהוָה֮ בִּ֣י אֲדֹנָי֒ לֹא֩ אִ֨ישׁ דְּבָרִ֜ים אָנֹ֗כִי גַּ֤ם מִתְּמוֹל֙ גַּ֣ם מִשִּׁלְשֹׁ֔ם גַּ֛ם מֵאָ֥ז דַּבֶּרְךָ אֶל־עַבְדֶּ֑ךָ כִּ֧י כְבַד־פֶּ֛ה וּכְבַ֥ד לָשׁ֖וֹן אָנֹֽכִי׃ (יא) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֵלָ֗יו מִ֣י שָׂ֣ם פֶּה֮ לָֽאָדָם֒ א֚וֹ מִֽי־יָשׂ֣וּם אִלֵּ֔ם א֣וֹ חֵרֵ֔שׁ א֥וֹ פִקֵּ֖חַ א֣וֹ עִוֵּ֑ר הֲלֹ֥א אָנֹכִ֖י יְהוָֽה׃
Exodus 4:10 Moshe said to YHVH: Please, my Lord, I have never been a man of words, not from the day-before, not (even) since you have spoken to your servant, for I have a heavy mouth and tongue!
Exodus 4:11 YHVH said to him: Who placed a mouth in human beings or who (is it that) makes one mute or deaf or open-eyed or blind? Is it not I, YHVH?
Rabbi Jonathan Sachs:
Intimated here is one of the most striking themes of the Pentateuch. God chooses those who cannot do naturally what others take for granted. . . . Moses, bearer of the divine word, is the man who says, ‘I am not a man of words… I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue’ (Exod. 4: 10). Israel is the people whose achievements are transparently God-given. What for others is natural, for Israel is the result of divine intervention. Israel must be weak if it is to be strong
Discussion Questions:
1. How do we learn from the adversities that we face in life?
2. When have you overcome being at a disadvantage in life? What did you learn from it?
3. How does adversity develop grit?
4. What role has God played in helping you overcome a challenge?
(יד) לֹא־תְקַלֵּ֣ל חֵרֵ֔שׁ וְלִפְנֵ֣י עִוֵּ֔ר לֹ֥א תִתֵּ֖ן מִכְשֹׁ֑ל וְיָרֵ֥אתָ מֵּאֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ אֲנִ֥י יְהוָֽה׃
Leviticus 19:14 You are not to insult the deaf, nor place a stumbling block before the blind: rather, you are to hold your God in awe; I am YHVH!
(Etz Hayim, commentary ed. by Rabbi Harold Kushner)
The decency of a society is measured by how it cares for its least powerful members.
Discussion Questions:
1. What values does this text teach that you might want your children to embody?
2. What is the relationship between honoring God and treating others with dignity?
שאדם טובע כמה מטבעות בחותם אחד וכלן דומין זה לזה, ומלך מלכי המלכים הקדוש ברוך הוא טבע כל אדם בחותמו שלאדם הראשון, ואין אחד מהן דומה לחברו.
When a human beings mint coins, they do so from a mold, and all the coins are alike. Similarly, when The Holy One created humanity, he did so with Adam as his mold, yet every person is created unique.