By His Light Shiurim: Recent Episodes
Rafael Elchanan
These Shiurim were based on 'By His Light' discussing a variety of Hashkafic topics such as:
Man's purpose on Earth Balancing work and Torah studies The nature of man's relationship with Hashem The importance of Learning Torah Spiritual specialisation vs generalisation Being good vs being 'frum' Bittachon - trust in Hashem The Holocaust A Jew's responsibilities to the rest of Klal Yisrael Teshuva - repentance Modern Orthodoxy
Disclaimer: These recordings were made entirely independently of any organisation or Rabbinic authority.
Please feel free to contact me at rafael.elchanan@gmail.com, or check out 'By His Light' for yourself at https://korenpub.com/products/by-his-light-character-and-values-in-the-service-of-godhardcover
This recording discusses how modern Orthodoxy is being implemented practically and how we can do it better.
Topics include:
- Is modern Orthodoxy an ideal or an excuse?
- Instilling Passion
- The Need For Spirituality
- Diffusion And Dilution
- The Ascendancy Of The Moral Over The Intellectual
- “Do not fear any man”
Disclaimer: Before hearing about modern Orthodoxy, it is imperative to first understand what Orthodoxy is. "There is a reason this is shiur number 25 of this series". Please listen to earlier shiurim or at least be comfortable with the theocentric existential objective of שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד before listening to Chapter 12 shiurim.
This recording discusses the potential benefits of secular education, brings a more balanced perspective to Zionism and introduces the concept of 'Torah and..'.
Topics include:
- Literary, Psychological And Historical Sensitivity
- Attitudes Toward Zionism
- “Torah only” or “Torah and”
- The Possibility Of Integration
- Theory And Practice
Disclaimer: Before hearing about modern Orthodoxy, it is imperative to first understand what Orthodoxy is. "There is a reason this is shiur number 25 of this series". Please listen to earlier shiurim or at least be comfortable with the theocentric existential objective of שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד before listening to Chapter 12 shiurim.
This recording discusses what the concept of modern Orthodoxy is and what are the main criticism against it.
Topics include:
- The Shift To The Right
- The Need For Soul-Searching
- Commonalities And Differences With The Right
- Shaking Our Confidence In General Culture
- The Complexity Of Experience
Disclaimer: Before hearing about modern Orthodoxy, it is imperative to first understand what Orthodoxy is. "There is a reason this is shiur number 25 of this series". Please listen to earlier shiurim or at least be comfortable with the theocentric existential objective of שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד before listening to Chapter 12 shiurim.
This recording discusses how a person's internal character and external actions combine to form a complete Avodah.
Topics include:
- A Different Type Of Teshuva: Molding Of Personality
- Inwardness In Judaism
- The Need For Balance
- Our Task
This recording discusses the need to do Teshuva for character flaws, and why character refinement is an integral part of Serving Hashem, even if not explicitly one of the 613 Mitzvot.
Topics include:
- Repentance For Negative Character Traits
- Spiritually Corrosive Triats, But Not Specifically Prohibited
- Anger, Hatred, Envy, Frivolity, Pursuit of Wealth, honour and Food
- The challenge of this type of teshuva
This recording discusses the mindset a Jew should aspire to have after Teshuva.
Topics include:
- Do Not Forget Sinai And Torah
- Perpetual Remembrance
- The Sin that Crouches At our Door
- Creeping Secularism And Dampened Passion
- Nearness To God
This recording opens the discussion about Teshuva.
Topics include:
- 1) Teshuva As Repentance From Sin
- 2) Teshuva As Return To God
- 2.1) Total Obliviousness To God
- 2.2) Inattention To God
- Forgetfulness And Pride
Looking at the development of Esther's character, this recording discusses a Jew's relationship and duties to the wider Jewish community.
Topics include:
- Why is the Megilla named after Esther?
- Esther I: Passive and Generic
- Esther II: Active and Proudly Jewish
- The Transformation Between Esther I to Ester II
- Do We Really Care?
This recording discusses the difficult topic of the Holocaust, how we as Jews could think about it and how we can grow from it.
Topics include:
- Some common answers used to explain why it happened
- Fundamental issues with those answers - we can never understand
- Lessons we should learn going forward: זיכרון, אחדות, הַחזָקַת טוֹבָה, ענוה, אמונה, שליחות
This recording concludes the subject of Bittachon, discussing how to teach Bittachon to our students, children and all those around us.
This recording discusses how Bittachon has been viewed over time, between:
- Bittachon of everything will be ok (based on אמונה - faith)
- Bittachon of I will stay with Hashem no matter what (based on אהבה - love)
Topics include:
- The Duality of Bittachon in Tehillim
- Historical Development of the Two Types of Bittachon
- Bittachon Today
This recording discusses two approaches to Bittachon:
- Everything will be ok (based on אמונה - faith)
- I will stay with Hashem no matter what (based on אהבה - love)
This recording concludes with a powerful message of why the second approach is so important.
This recording discusses opens the discussion about Bittachon - Trusting in Hashem. This recording specifically asks whether a person should be self-reliant or trust Hashem will help them. Topics include:
- Medical Intervention
- The Halakhic Emphasis On Human Effort
- Do Not Rely On A Miracle
This recording concludes the discussion about Goodness, morality and religion.
Topics include:
- Without God, Everything Is Lawful
- Conflicts Between Religion and Morality - the Akeida
- Risks and Priorities
- Love Not Morality Less, But Piety More
- Education impacting our view or morality and Frumkeit
This recording discusses a person who is religious but immoral and whether such a person can exist.
Topics include:
- Tzadik Ra and Rasha Tov
- "Though You Pray At Length, I Will Not Listen"
- “His Mitzvot are thrown back in his face”
- Active Evil and Obliviousness
- Interim Summary
This recording opens the discussion on the Relationship Between Religion and Morality.
Topics include:
- Defining Goodness
- Defining Frumkeit
- Socrates’ Question
- The Power And The Beauty: Two Conceptions Of God
- Hashem’s Moral Essence
- The Value Of Obedience
This recording discusses some of the potential risks of spiritual specialisation, as well as concluding the conversation of Spiritual Specialization vs Spiritual Breadth.
Topics include:
- The dangers of spiritual narrowness
- The variety of religious approaches
- Examples of people who have specialised spiritually
- Caveats of spiritual specialisation
- What should I do?
This recording discusses some of the benefits of spiritual specialization, as well as a potential approach to balancing spiritual specialization and Spiritual breadth.
Topics include:
- The limitlessness of certain Mitzvot
- Advantages to an individual of specialising
- A "liberal" approach to Avodat Hashem
This recording asks whether a person should strive to perfect one specific area of religious life at the expense of developing in other areas, or whether they should aim to grow equally in all areas - even if it means they will not become distinguished in anything specific.
Topics include:
- Division of labour in the Biet HaMikdash
- A person engaged in one Mitza is exempt from another
- Each engages in his own labour
- personal duty and public need
This recording discusses the value of learning the depths of Torah, not just learning on a surface, superficial level.
This recording discusses the Centrality of Torah Study and expounds on Shamai's statement "עשה תורתך קְבַע - make your Torah permanent". Perspectives include:
- Learning by default
- Setting a daily minimum
- Make Torah permanent in the world
- Make Torah part of you
This recording discusses a core philosophical concept in Judaism - living a theocentric life, with theocentric values.
Topics include:
- The secular world's anthropocentric world-view and self-fulfillment
- Mitzva and our relationship with Hashem
- Dual Meaning of Mitsva
- Picking and Choosing Mitzvot
- Identifying with Hashem’s Will
This recording continues to discuss some of the factors to take into consideration when trying to balance work and Torah learning.
Topics include:
- The Ideal: Maximizing Torah
- Torah and Kemach (flour)
- Labouring in Torah
This recording discusses some factors to take into consideration when trying to balance work and Torah learning.
Topics include:
- Davar Mitsvah vs Davar Reshut
- THREE PILLARS OF JEWISH PHILOSOPHY
- Divine Service Via One’s Profession
- Aspiring To Torah Only
- Torah and work - which is Primary?
- Combining Torah With Work
- Allocating time between Torah and work
Two main topics in this episode.
- Responding to a question: "Where does Pirkei Avot value work"
- Does Torah law is replacing or adding to the universal law given to Adam?
Topics include:
- Matan Torah: Renewing or completing?
- Can the Torah Permit what universal Law Forbids?
- Derech Eretz Kadma LeTorah
- A Mensch And A Ben-Torah
This recording discusses the divine mandate for mankind to cultivate the world - the value of working.
Topics include:
- Maintaining the world vs perfecting the world.
- The importance of working
- Reasons for work (Psychological, Social, Religious)
- The redemptive quality of work
- Divine mandate
- Criticism of hedonism
This recording introduces some of the background to the Sefer ' By his Light' and discusses man's role as a guard in Hashem's world.