Big Ben

The goal of this blog is to chase down some "true" wisdom at your Shabbat table.... please print and share.

Happy Anniversary to Lawrence and Amy and Happy Birthday to Steve, all in California! Live long and prosper. (To dedicate a future Table talk - send an email.)
This week I had the honor of attending a unique event.

It was the bar mitzvah celebration of a young man in California.

His name is Ben.

It was unique in the very true sense that Ben is unique. It had his unmistakable imprint.

Some of the guests were nonplussed at the venue - a golf club instead of a synagogue? Is that allowed??

In my opinion, the essence of a bar mitzvah is not the ritual, it is the bar mitzvah boy's (or girl's) speech. He's teaching us a bit of Torah wisdom that he has learned.

That is his true coming-of-age - taking ownership of the tradition.

As I told him, "It's your Torah as much as it is mine."

What Ben said was inspired and inspiring.

He spoke of his favorite pastime - the game of golf - and how Torah lessons can be applied to the game. He then expanded the theme to point out that the same is true for life itself.

After all, Ben concluded:

The Torah’s full name is Torat Chayin – which means wisdom for living, wisdom for life. So you could say that the entire book is wisdom not just one section. One of the great rabbis, Ben Zoma, said: the person who is wise is someone who learns from all others. I think this is a great way to sum up the entire Torah.
The obvious question for your table is, What in the world does Ben Zoma mean? How can he define wisdom as "learning from all others"? Does he really mean all others?

Mazal tov Ben!

and Shabbat Shalom
PS - Here's your countdown timer to remember how many days til Hannuka.
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Who's a Hero?

The goal of this blog is to make you the hero of your Friday night dinner table. Please print and share.

Smack in the middle of the Jewish Book of Ethics (Pirkei Avot), the Rabbi Ben Zoma asks four questions:

Who is "rich"?
Who is "wise"?
Who is "strong"?
Who is "honorable"?

All good stuff for your Shabbat Table.

Now here's your answer key:

1. One who is contented.
2. One who learns from everyone.
3. One who has self-control.
4. One who honors others.

If you don't mind, I'd like to add a 5th question to Ben Zoma's list:

Who's "a hero"?

After everyone at your table contemplates that for a bit, try these:

1. Can you name a well-known person generally treated as rich, wise, strong or honorable but according to Ben Zoma is not? Can you think of anyone who is?

2. I say that a hero is someone who is falling short in one or more of Ben Zoma's ideals but then works on himself and masters it — even just one of the four. If you could become a hero in just one of them in this lifetime,  which would you choose?


Shabbat Shalom

PS - The word is getting around - Amazing Nature for Teachers is amazing! - Click here to see for yourself: AmazingNature4Teachers.com. Please let your favorite educator or school know about it! Just highlight this paragraph and click "forward".


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As always, this message can be read online at http://rabbiseinfeld.blogspot.com.

Are You a VIP?

The purpose of this email is to promote life-altering conversation at the Shabbat table. Please print and share.
 
The other day, the five-minute hourly newscast included this breaking news.... can you fill in the blank?

"Actor Allan Arbus has died. He was best known for his role as _________________."

So strong is the lure of the VIP that some people who cannot achieve it do the next best thing, try to take the VIPs down from their pedastals. There is even a cottage industry in death hoaxes, such as this recent one.

These news items lead us to this week's first question for your table: Are you at all tempted to click on the graphic to the left?

Even the slightest bit?

Not even slightly curious about what it takes?

Come on, be honest.

If you look around our world, who are the VIPs?

It's easy to tell. Whoever, when they die of old age, their passing away gets mentioned in the news:

- Just about anyone who ever starred in a movie or television show, even if it was 50 years ago
- Anyone who invented, created or discovered something useful or unusually beautiful
- Anyone who broke some kind of record, even if it was entirely by accident (like the world's tallest man)
- Anyone with a billion dollars or more.
- Anyone else?

A rabbi in the Talmud rejects all those definitions of VIP.

The true path to VIP-hood, says the rabbi called Ben Zoma, is open to anyone. It's a level playing field. Follow his advice and you can become a true VIP, regardless of your talent, genes or luck.

What it takes to be a true VIP is simply treating others with respect.

Your spouse, your children, your parents, your neighbors, the clerk in the grocery store, the stranger on the street.

The greatest VIPs are those who honor others all the time.

Did I mention your spouse?

Did I mention your parents?


Second question for your table:

On a scale of 1 to 10, how big a VIP are you? What's missing?


Shabbat Shalom

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