Thursday, 1 September 2022

Avot in retrospect: a summary of last month's blogposts

In case you missed them, here's a list of items posted on Avot Today in AUGUST 2022:

Tuesday 30 August 2022: Watch what you say -- and what you do: a new slant on Avtalyon: It's not just a teacher's words that can mislead pupils, as the Tiferet Tzion explains.

Sunday 28 August 2022: Teachers and students: As the new academic year approaches, it's time to review the teaching relationship and the need for integrity and trust.

Friday 26 August 2022: Well-worn mishnah, well-worded explanation. Tiferet Tzion offers a neat and practical way to look at Yehoshua ben Perachya's classic teaching.

Tuesday 23 August 2022: Ethics without Avot? A reading of the 1972 essay collection Modern Jewish Ethics: Theory and Practice raises questions as to the relevance of the Ethics of the Fathers to ethics of any description.

Sunday 21 August 2022: Freedom of choice and lined writing paper: There is more than one way of viewing the famous free will v determinism conundrum of Rabbi Akiva.

Thursday 18 August 2022: Does God accept bribes? Both the written Torah and its oral counterpart assert that God has no favourites and takes no bribes -- but that has not stopped humans seeking to gain influence with Him.

Wednesday 17 August 2022: Abarbanel in brief. We welcome a precis of the Abarbanel's mammoth commentary on Avot.

Monday 15 August 2022: Hedgehogs, foxes and the "one great thing": Sir Isaiah Berlin's classic essay sparks off some thoughts on what it takes to be a practising Jew, contrasting the position of the written Torah with that of Avot.

Friday 12 August 2022: Harry Potter and the Tractate of TruthIs it appropriate to write an explanation of the teachings in Avot in light of the Harry Potter books, or is it disrespectful or downright harmful?

Thursday 11 August 2022: Kids' Stuff: We take note of a recent children's book that is designed as an entertaining introduction to Avot.

Monday 8 August 2022: Slipping into holiday mode: what would Shammai say? "Making one's Torah fixed" is not just a lesson for people learning Torah -- it applies to us when we go away on vacation too.

Friday 5 August 2022: Comforting us on Tisha be'Av: an application of Avot: On this saddest of days in the Jewish calendar, we recite the consolatory prayer of Nachem only in the afternoon prayers. A reading of Avot discloses why this may be so.

Wednesday 3 August 2022: Preparing to say goodbyeA recent program on planning for death opens a discussion here about how far Pirkei Avot addresses that delicate issue.

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Avot Today blogposts for July 2022 
Avot Today blogposts for June 2022 

Avot Today blogposts for May 2022
Avot Today blogposts for April 2022
Avot Today blogposts for March 2022
Avot Today blogposts for February 2022