Wednesday 29 March 2023: Patience! Pirkei Avot is full of encouragement to practise various virtues, but not all are immediately apparent. Where, for example, does it teach about patience?
Monday 27 March 2023: But learning isn't quite everything. The significance and correlative benefits of Torah study are well known. But Avot 6:1 offers the prospect of a wide interpretation of what engagement in Torah actually entails.
Wednesday 22 March 2023: A "fitting" application of a prudent mishnah. Taking a view of what's coming ahead isn't just the prerogative of the scholar. Rabbi Shimon ben Netanel's advice applies to shelf-fillers too.
Friday 17 March 2023: Is the devil really in the detail? How does Pirkei Avot strike a balance between viewing the big picture and narrowing one's perspective?
Wednesday 15 March 2023: Body, soul and a torn-up prayer? How "fixed" does a prayer need to be? Pirkei Avot shines a light on a well-known Talmud passage concerning the last two congregants left in a place of prayer at night.
Monday 13 March 2023: Don't rush to answer! We learn from Avot of the importance of taking one's time before answering a question. There's more than one reason why this is a good reason.
Friday 10 March 2023: For heaven's sake! Forget fun, let's just talk of doing things well. Rabbi Yose HaKohen (Avot 2:17) teaches that whatever we do should be for the sake of heaven. Here Rabbi Berel Wein offers an original explanation of what this means.
Tuesday 7 March 2023: Purim! Handle with care. Many people get quite drunk when celebrating the festival of Purim. This practice comes with responsibilities too.
Monday 6 March 2023: Judging the Chafetz Chaim favourably. In his great book on guarding one's speech, the Chafetz Chaim looks as though he has missed a trick and forgotten to quote a mishnah from Avot. But this need not be the case.
Friday 3 March 2023: What the Dickens! Let's treat our children with respect. Rabbi Elazar ben Shammua (Avot 4:15) sets the bar high for the way we should behave towards our schoolkids.
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Avot Today blogposts for February 2023
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