The Stoic Jew: Recent Episodes
Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss
My name is Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss. I am, first and foremost, an Orthodox Jew. My primary area of focus is the teachings of Shlomo ha'Melech (King Solomon) in Mishlei (Proverbs) and Koheles (Ecclesiastes). I also consider myself to be a student of the Stoic masters: Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius. Over the past two decades I have been exploring the relationship between Judaism and Stoicism - where they overlap, where they differ, and how they complement each other. This year I started a daily reading of Marcus Aurelius with an aim to explore these questions. I'll read a passage from Aurelius's Meditations and then muse (or meditate aloud) on my thoughts about what he said and what the Torah would have to say. As Seneca taught: "Each day acquire something that will fortify you against poverty, against death, indeed against other misfortunes as well; and after you have run over many thoughts, select one to be thoroughly digested that day" (Letter #2). If this podcast serves that purpose, then it will have been of value.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 5 minutes 30 seconds
Synopsis: This short, unplanned, off-the-cuff Erev Yom ha'Kippurim episode has been brought to you by my less-than-stellar seudah ha'mafsekes, and the insights it led to. Gmar chasimah tovah to us all!
Sources
(will find later)
The Torah Content for this week is sponsored by Rifka Kaplan-Peck in memory of Shira Malka (a”h) "who taught me that seeking knowledge of God is the greatest gift."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
YU Torah: yutorah.org/teachers/Rabbi-Matt-Schneeweiss
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 29 minutes 7 seconds
Synopsis: After yet another unintended hiatus, we're back for another Gratitude Journal milestone! In this episode we reflect on gratitude, slowing down time, being present, illusions about the future, mezuzah vs. cheap Amazon trinkets, and tapping into what's eternal. I know I've said this in the past, but THIS time I have a plan for relaunching a more regular frequency of TSJ content. I'm optimistic that it'll work, בג"ה.
Sources
- folk saying; source unknown
- Abraham Lincoln, Address Before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society (September 30, 1859)
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 2:14 (trans. Waterfield)
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah: Hilchos Tefilin, u'Mezuzah, v'Sefer Torah 6:13
The Torah Content for the month of September is sponsored by Meir Areman in loving memory of his grandmother, Esther Chasha bas Meir Gedalya, who recently passed away on the 25th of Av. Tehei nishmasah tzerurah b’tzror ha’chayim.
My Zoom account has been sponsored for the entire year by Isaac and Aviva Lichter, with hakaras ha’tov to Hashem in honor of Navonah’s first birthday: “We couldn’t have known how much joy and wonder she’d bring into our lives. רבות מחשבות בלב איש, ועצת ה' היא תקום."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
YU Torah: yutorah.org/teachers/Rabbi-Matt-Schneeweiss
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 29 minutes 25 seconds
Synopsis: AND WE'RE BACK! This episode is brought to you by the letter "I"—for insomnia. In a spontaneous decision to return to my old practice, I turned a sleepless night into a new installment of TSJ. If you're looking to up your gratitude game, this one's for you. We start with a recap of my gratitude journal practice, explore an idea in Modim and the Jewish approach to gratitude, then dive into an excerpt from a Seneca letter, using it as a springboard to discuss Rabbi Jonathan Sacks's understanding of Pesach storytelling—and how all of this ties into one of the key benefits of meditation. As always, if you have feedback, I'd love to hear it!
Sources
- Abudarham - Commentary on Modim
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah: Hilchos Tefilah u'Birkas Kohanim 7:14; Hilchos Berachos 1:1-4
- Seneca: Letter #13
- Pesachim 10:4
- Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks: The Jonathan Sacks Haggada - Collected Essays on Pesach, Begin with Shame, End with Praise
Other Resources Mentioned
- Rabbi Dr. Elie Feder, "Gematria Refigured: A New Look At How The Torah Conveys Ideas Through Numbers"
- Sam Harris: the "Waking Up" app
The Torah content from now until Erev Pesach has been sponsored by Yehudis Korn l'zecher nishmas Moshe ben Yeshayahu Yehuda.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 21 minutes 25 seconds
Synopsis: There's nothing like a real-world example to showcase Stoic principles. This incident that happened to me a couple of weeks ago illustrates one of the core ideas in Epictetus's teachings: the use of "impressions." Not only that, but it also exemplifies one of the chief benefits of tefilah.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18-30
The Torah content for the first month of the new school year has been sponsored by the Brevique BrewLid. The BrewLid integrates coffee directly into the lid, offering a cleaner, more convenient, and eco-friendly coffee experience. By eliminating the need for machine contact, it reduces contamination risk, minimizes steps, cuts down on waste, and keeps the aroma around longer while delivering every last drop of flavor. If you love coffee and want to get in on the ground floor of BrewLid, check out the Kickstarter!-----
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 14 minutes 6 seconds
Synopsis: In an effort to jumpstart weekly TSJ episodes, I've decided to start from the beginning of Meditations Book 7 and work my way through. Chapter 1 is very reminiscent of Koheles ... or is it? You can be the judge of that.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:1
- Koheles 1:9-11
The Torah content for the first month of the new school year has been sponsored by the Brevique BrewLid. The BrewLid integrates coffee directly into the lid, offering a cleaner, more convenient, and eco-friendly coffee experience. By eliminating the need for machine contact, it reduces contamination risk, minimizes steps, cuts down on waste, and keeps the aroma around longer while delivering every last drop of flavor. If you love coffee and want to get in on the ground floor of BrewLid, check out the Kickstarter!-----
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 14 minutes 9 seconds
Synopsis: On July 19th, while I was in Seattle for the summer, my car - which I had been renting to a talmid - was rear-ended. What followed was a rollercoaster of bureaucratic insurance annoyances accompanied by anxiety from afar. The saga ended on August 23rd, this past Erev Shabbos, when they finally finished repairing my car 15 minutes before the shop closed. I arrived home and immediately recorded this episode while the emotions were fresh in my mind.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1:1
The Torah content for the first month of the new school year has been sponsored by the Brevique BrewLid. The BrewLid integrates coffee directly into the lid, offering a cleaner, more convenient, and eco-friendly coffee experience. By eliminating the need for machine contact, it reduces contamination risk, minimizes steps, cuts down on waste, and keeps the aroma around longer while delivering every last drop of flavor. If you love coffee and want to get in on the ground floor of BrewLid, check out the Kickstarter!-----
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 59 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (8/7/24), in our final Stoic Jew Shiur of this summer, we learned the fourth entry in Marcus Aurelius's journal. This, too, is a self-reminder to keep his principles at the forefront of his mind - but this is the first time in the Meditations that Marcus explicitly mentions his own mortality. As we've found in nearly every one of these shiurim, there is tremendous overlap between these Stoic teachings and the teachings of Judaism!
מקורות:
Aurelius - Meditations 2:4 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
רמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות תשובה ז:א-ב
משלי י:ה
The Torah Content for the first two weeks of August has been sponsored by Avital, "in gratitude for all the incredible brachah in my life right now and Mishlei and Stoicism for helping me handle it. Thank you Rabbi!"
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 1 hour 28 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (7/31/24), in our Stoic Jew Shiur, we deviated from our sequential learn-through of Meditations and took up a timely question: What do Stoicism and Judaism have to say about the double-assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr? The specific questions we examined were: (1) What should or shouldn't we feel about the deaths of evildoers in general? (2) What should or shouldn't we feel in this case, given the uncertainty of the ramifications? It ended up being an enjoyable and insightful analysis which (I hope) yielded some practical clarity on these current events.
מקורות:
Rabbi Scott Khan - Death of a Moderate
Aurelius - Meditations 2:3 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
Tefilas Neilah
Mishlei 11:10; 24:17-18
Rabbeinu Yonah - Avos 4:19
Rabbeinu Yonah - Mishlei 11:10
Mishnah Berachos 9:2,3,5
Rambam - Commentary on the Mishnah Berachos 9:3,5
Moed Kattan 16b
The Torah Content for the remainder of July has been sponsored by the Lichters in honor of Jonny Schneeweiss, just "for being Jonny."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 1 hour 19 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (7/24/24), in our Stoic Jew Shiur, we learned the third entry in Meditations Book II, which deals with some weighty topics: God, the universe, hashgachah (providence), and theodicy (the question of evil in the world). We began by underscoring the fundamental differences between the Stoic view of God and the teachings of Judaism, but by the end of the shiur, nearly everything that Marcus wrote is consistent with Judaism's teachings! Special shoutout to the Rambam and R' Yehudah ha'Levi for providing such a solid framework, which enabled us to answer all of our questions.
מקורות:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoic_physics
https://plato.stanford.edu/ENTRIES/stoicism/
Aurelius - Meditations 2:3 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
ר' יהודה הלוי - כוזרי ג:יא (קאפח)
רמב"ם - מורה הנבוכים ג:י,יב,יז
https://rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/p/how-i-teach-maaseh-bereishis-part-2-of-2
The Torah Content for the remainder of July has been sponsored by the Lichters in honor of Jonny Schneeweiss, just "for being Jonny."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 1 hour 28 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (7/17/24), in our Stoic Jew Shiur, we learned and discussed the second chapter in Book II, which had a markedly different tone than the first chapter. Here we see Marcus reminding - or rebuking himself - in order not to lose sight of who he really is. We raised a TON of questions and emerged with a nice, unified understanding of the chapter.
מקורות:
Aurelius - Meditations 2:2 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
Mortimer J. Adler, "How to Read a Book"
דרשות הר"ן - הדרוש העשירי
רמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות יסודי התורה ד:ז-ט
קהלת יב:יב
The Torah Content for the remainder of July has been sponsored by the Lichters in honor of Jonny Schneeweiss, just "for being Jonny."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 15 minutes 31 seconds
Synopsis: I can't believe it, but this past Friday marked three YEARS of gratitude journaling! In this episode, as I usually do in these "gratitude milestone episodes," I recap my gratitude journal practice and identify the benefit or level-up that currently stands out the most in my mind since my last milestone. And in this case, I go into yet another example of applying Stoicism to insomnia!
Related Episodes About Gratitude:
- 7/8/21: The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- 10/15/21: 100 Days of Gratitude
- 11/29/21: TSJ Interlude: Post-Thanksgiving Musings
- 2/18/22: 225 Days of Gratitude
- 5/4/22: TSJ Interlude: 300 Days of Gratitude
- 7/11/22: 365 Days of Gratitude
- 11/23/22: 500 Days of Gratitude
- 5/7/23: Purim, Providence, and 600 Days of Gratitude
- 8/9/23: Two Years (Plus) of Gratitude
- 4/14/24: 1000 Days of Gratitude (Haggadah)
The Torah Content for the remainder of July has been sponsored by the Lichters in honor of Jonny Schneeweiss, just "for being Jonny."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 1 hour 10 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (7/10/24), in our Stoic Jew Shiur, we achieved our goal of finishing our analysis of the opening entry of Book II. After reviewing and continuing what we did last time, we raised a question that has bothered me for years: Judaism has a clear statement about what our ultimate value system is, but what is the underlying value system in Stoicism? We then analyzed the final argument in the chapter and concluded by reading the chapter we'll cover next time. I'm really glad we spent three sessions on this! Not only did we emerge with a clearer understanding of the particulars, but we also discussed a lot of fundamentals!
מקורות:
Aurelius - Meditations 2:1 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
Robin Waterfield – Marcus Aurelius Meditations: The Annotated Edition, Introduction (pp.xl-xli)
רמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות תשובה ט:א-ב
ירמיהו ט:כב-כג
אבות ג:ב
רמב"ם - אבות ד:ד
The Torah content for the first half of July has been sponsored by Rachayl with “a heartfelt thank you.” Summer is now fully underway! In addition to my new Stoic Jew Shiur (Wednesday nights from 8:00-9:30pm EDT) and my relaunched Rambam Bekius podcast, I will be writing more substack articles over the next two months, some of which will be exclusively for paid subscribers. If you appreciate my writing, my recorded content, and my free Zoom shiurim and would like to support what I do, consider becoming a paid subscriber on the Rabbi Schneeweiss Substack today!-----
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you. If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
The Stoic Jew Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
Machshavah Lab Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
Mishlei Podcast: mishlei.buzzsprout.com
Rambam Bekius Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
Tefilah Podcast: tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp (where I post my content and announce my classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon: amazon.com
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 1 hour 32 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (7/3/24), in our Stoic Jew Shiur, we attempted to do an orderly review of what we covered last time, but instead, we slipped right into a fresh analysis of some of the most fundamental questions in ethics: What do we mean by good and bad? We debated whether and to what extent Marcus Aurelius's answer to this question overlaps with our understanding of the Torah's stance. We became so involved in this debate that we didn't even get to the part of the chapter that I thought we'd spend the bulk of our time discussing! Needless to say, we didn't resolve any of the fundamental issues of ethics we raised, but as I mentioned at the very end of shiur, THIS is what a philosophy shiur ought to be about - the exploration of these very questions, regardless of whether we arrive at definite answers.
מקורות:
Aurelius - Meditations 2:1 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
Robin Waterfield – Marcus Aurelius Meditations: The Annotated Edition, Introduction (pp.xl-xli)
רמב"ם - מורה הנבוכים ג:יא; נג
מיוחס לרד"ק - משלי ג:ו
The Torah content for the first half of July has been sponsored by Rachayl with “a heartfelt thank you.” Summer is now fully underway! In addition to my new Stoic Jew Shiur (Wednesday nights from 8:00-9:30pm EDT) and my relaunched Rambam Bekius podcast, I will be writing more substack articles over the next two months, some of which will be exclusively for paid subscribers. If you appreciate my writing, my recorded content, and my free Zoom shiurim and would like to support what I do, consider becoming a paid subscriber on the Rabbi Schneeweiss Substack today!-----
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you. If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
The Stoic Jew Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
Machshavah Lab Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
Mishlei Podcast: mishlei.buzzsprout.com
Rambam Bekius Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
Tefilah Podcast: tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp (where I post my content and announce my classes): https://chat.w
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 1 hour 37 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (6/26/24) was our inaugural "Stoic Jew Shiur"! After a brief overview of who Marcus Aurelius was and what his Meditations are, we dove RIGHT into the text of Book 2 Chapter 1. We quickly discovered that this opening paragraph was rich in ideas and fruitful in providing insights into how we - or at least, how I - learn the writings of Stoics and non-Torah other philosophers and thinkers as Orthodox Jews. The shiur was scheduled for an hour, but after 90 minutes, we were still deep in our analysis. We decided to stop. Next time (בג"ה) we'll review what we learned, finish our analysis, and move on to the next chapter!
For a video recording of the shiur, in which I display the text and notes, check out the YouTube version.
מקורות:
Aurelius - Meditations 2:1 (trans. Long, Farquharson, Waterfield)
Richard Mitchell - On Knowing vs. Knowing About (excerpt from The Gift of Fire), https://rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/p/richard-mitchell-on-knowing-vs-knowing
Tim Urban - Taming the Mammoth: Why You Should Stop Caring What Other People Think https://waitbutwhy.com/2014/06/taming-mammoth-let-peoples-opinions-run-life.html
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Meir Areman, l'zeicher nishmas Zelda bas Ziesel, his grandmother, whose yahrzeit is on the 21st of Sivan.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
I should have made this announcement more than an hour before the first shiur, but better late than never! 😅
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Meir Areman, l'zeicher nishmas Zelda bas Ziesel, his grandmother, whose yahrzeit is on the 21st of Sivan.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 25 minutes even
Synopsis: You might have heard of Bruce Lee's "Be Water, My Friend" analogy, and if you're a listener of this podcast, you might have also heard of Marcus Aurelius's fire analogy, but have you heard of Seneca's BEE analogy? I know I hadn't! In this episode we review all three analogies, discussing how they integrate with Torah (thanks to Rav Kook) and how they can be applied to life.
Sources:
- Bruce Lee
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 4:1
- Stephen Brown, Dealing with Reality: A Lesson from Bruce Lee
- Seneca, Letter #84: On Gathering Ideas
- Avos 4:1
- Mishlei 1:20-21
- Rav Kook, as cited (from a source I wasn't able to find) by R' Eliezer Melamed
- shout out to my student, Allan W., for getting me thinking about bees this week
The Stoic Jew Podcast content from the beginning of May until Shavuos has been made possible by Dan Horowitz, who has graciously taken up my experimental request for an "accountability sponsorship" in hopes that this will result in more Stoic Jew content.-----
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 19 minutes even (Steven)
Synopsis: This episode was inspired by four occurrences that recently befell me, each of which involved what we'll dub "a minor monetary fluctuation." The rest of the episode is devoted to unpacking the insights from these occurrences, using Epictetus as our guide, Jerry Seinfeld as our role model, and Rambam as the teacher who connects it back to Torah.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 4- Rambam: Commentary on the Mishnah, Berachos 9:5
I'd like to thank Aaron K. for sponsoring this week's Torah content. June is less than a month away which means that I'll soon be transitioning into "summer writing mode," with more substack articles and fewer recorded shiurim. The bulk of these articles will remain free. However, if you would like to support my Torah AND access to additional spicy written content, consider becoming a paid subscriber by going to rabbischneeweiss.substack.com.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_
Support the Show.
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!
Length: 17 minutes 48 seconds
Synopsis: Yesterday I walked into a swarm of bees. In this episode, I reflect on that experience and follow my musings to the writings of Epictetus, to the bee reference in Tehilim 118, to musings about Israel's present war, and to yesterday's commemoration of the Holocaust.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1:5; Discourses 2:18- Malbim on Tehilim 118:10-12
- Bamidbar 10:9
I'd like to thank Aaron K. for sponsoring this week's Torah content. June is less than a month away which means that I'll soon be transitioning into "summer writing mode," with more substack articles and fewer recorded shiurim. The bulk of these articles will remain free. However, if you would like to support my Torah AND access to additional spicy written content, consider becoming a paid subscriber by going to rabbischneeweiss.substack.com.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_
Support the Show.
Length: 21 minutes
Synopsis: And The Stoic Jew Podcast is BACK! Or is it? Well, it's back for at least this episode, in which I reflect on 1000 days of gratitude and muse on the relationship between my gratitude accountability practice and the mitzvah of recounting the Exodus from Egypt. Whether this marks the return of regular TSJ episodes is up to my listeners!
Related Episodes About Gratitude:
- 7/8/21: The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- 10/15/21: 100 Days of Gratitude
- 11/29/21: TSJ Interlude: Post-Thanksgiving Musings
- 2/18/22: 225 Days of Gratitude
- 5/4/22: TSJ Interlude: 300 Days of Gratitude
- 7/11/22: 365 Days of Gratitude
- 11/23/22: 500 Days of Gratitude
- 5/7/23: Purim, Providence, and 600 Days of Gratitude
- 8/9/23: Two Years (Plus) of Gratitude
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:7
- Devarim 26:3, Saadia Gaon, Ibn Ezra, Ibn Kaspi
- Haggadah shel Pesach
- Rambam: Sefer ha'Mitzvos, Aseh #157
The Torah content from now through Pesach has been sponsored by the Koffsky family, in loving memory of Adira (a"h), who loved big ideas and asking big questions.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_
Support the show
Length: 22 minutes
Synopsis: And we're back! By "we" I mean The Stoic Jew Podcast AND my insomnia! :D I've been up since 3:35am this morning, and I decided to make a podcast episode about my latest Stoic Jew take on my situation, based on the words of Marcus Aurelius and Koheles (Ecclesiastes), as explained by Ralbag (Gersonides).
Related Episodes about Insomnia:
- Blaming My Insomnia on Satan
- A Cure for Insomnia … I Hope
- Applying Epictetus to My Insomnia
- Post-Insomnia Stoic Jew Self-Talk
- When Life Gives You Insomnia, Bake a Cake and Rejoice in Yisurin
- Purim, Providence, and 600 Days of Gratitude
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 6:1-2; 2:14- Ralbag (Gersonides), Commentary on Koheles (Ecclesiastes) 9:10-12
- Gandalf, the Grey, The Fellowship of the Ring
Other:
- Natalie Goldberg, Three Simple Lines: A Writer’s Pilgrimage into the Heart and Homeland of Haiku
- Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals
The Torah content for the remainder of 2023 has been sponsored by Rivkie and Dovi Siderson with the following message from Rivkie: "Thank you to Rabbi for providing me with a solid foundation of Torah and Jewish philosophy, and for 8+ years of great learning! And to Avital on her 23rd birthday (even though we can’t be there in person). I’m so grateful for your friendship, mind, and support. I love learning with you and from you, and can’t wait to continue, IY”H. Happy birthday from the Sidersons!"
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist:
Support the show
Length: 34 minutes 10 seconds
Synopsis: What will you do or say in your last moments, when (God willing) you are on your deathbed? In this episode I reflect on the final words of U.S. presidents, the death poems of Zen monks and Japanese haiku poets, the statements and attitudes of the Sages of the Talmud about the particular circumstances in which we die, the final moments of the Jews massacred on October 7th (may Hashem avenge their blood), and the final day of my beloved rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l.
Sources:
- The Last Words of 38 Presidents
- Japanese Death Poems: Written by Zen Monks and Haiku Poets on the Verge of Death, compiled by Yoel Hoffmann
- Kesubos 103b
- R' Yitzchak ben Moshe Arama, Akeidas Yitzchak: Chayei Sarah, Shaar 22- R' Chayim ben Dovid ha'Levi, Shu"t Aseh Lecha Rav 2:9
- WhatsApp correspondence with Mrs. Moskowitz (11/20/23)
God, Love and Loss: A Compilation of Literary Work by Gap Year Students, published in loving memory of Adira Koffsky a"h
This week's Torah Content has been sponsored by Lou Landau in honor of launching his new business.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
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Length: 8 minutes 11 seconds
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2.5-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 11/17/23, entitled: God of Time or Dog Eating Its Own Vomit? I wrote this in lieu of a parashah article because I needed to write it for myself. If I don't write for myself, who will write for me? And if not now, when? (parashah article can be found at the end)
The Torah content for the remainder of this week has been sponsored by those who make recurring contributions via Patreon and Chase. You are the bedrock of support for everything I teach. If you're interested in becoming a Patron, go to www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, become a paid subscriber to my substack at rabbischneeweiss.substack.com and you'll gain access to exclusive Torah content. Thank you ALL my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
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Length: 29 minutes 47 seconds
Synopsis: In today's unscripted "Stoic self-talk workshop" episode, I reflect aloud on a mistake I caught myself making, in which I fell victim to the "God fantasy" of living life as though I were outside of time.
Related Content:
- for my most recent shiur on the phrase "b'Shem Hashem El Olam," here's Part 1 and here's Part 2; I gave these shiurim in September 2020, and have no recollection of what I said, so if you listen to it, let me know if it still holds up!
Sources:
- Rashi on Bereishis 3:4-5
- Sforno on Bereishis 21:33
- Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, pp.48-49- Seneca, On the Shortness of Life
The Torah content for the remainder of Cheshvan has been sponsored anonymously in memory of those who were murdered by Hamas. May our Torah learning lead to living in line with G-d's will and all the goodness that entails.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Length: 18 minutes 28 seconds
Synopsis: My morning reading of Marcus Aurelius's Meditations, combined with my review of the Rambam's Hilchos Teshuvah and my reading of the most recent issue of The Imperfectionist (by Oliver Burkeman, author of my current favorite non-fiction book: Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals), led me to a more effective way to approach the Aseres Ymei Teshuvah than in years past.
Related Content:
- Don't Believe in Yourself (given at Lomdeha)
- Don't Believe in Yourself (article version)
- Nitzavim: What Would Teshuvah Look Like If It Were Easy?
Sources:
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 5:11
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Teshuvah 3:3-4
- Oliver Burkeman, The Imperfectionist: Doing things is what counts (9/7/23)
- Avos 2:4
The Torah Content for the month of Elul has been sponsored anonymously in loving memory of Henya bas Tzirel - a mother who cared deeply about her children's engagement with Judaism.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Length: 16 minutes 9 seconds
Synopsis: This morning I read a passage in Meditations which answered a question I've had about the formulation of vidui (confession) for many years. This answer is similar to answer I happened to reread from the Rav (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik) this morning. In this episode I compare and contrast these two answers, which complement each other quite nicely.
Sources
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 10:30)
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Teshuvah 1:1-2
- Machzor Mesorat Harav l'Yom Kippur: with commentary adapted from the teachings of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, p.111
The Torah Content for the month of Elul has been sponsored anonymously in loving memory of Henya bas Tzirel - a mother who cared deeply about her children's engagement with Judaism.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 29 minutes 44 seconds
Synopsis: Seven days ago I made an episode about my thoughts and feelings about starting this new teaching job. In this episode I talk how four Stoic principles from Epictetus helped me to have the best first week imaginable.
Related Content:
- 8/28/23: Stoic Jew Thoughts on the First Day at a New School
- 8/23/23: Two MAJOR Professional/Life Updates for the 2023-2024 Academic Year
The Torah Content for the month of Elul has been sponsored anonymously in loving memory of Henya bas Tzirel - a mother who cared deeply about her children's engagement with Judaism.
The Torah content for remainder of Chodesh Av has been sponsored by my Patrons on Patreon. Your generosity is the foundation which makes it possible for me to continue giving free shiurim, writing free articles, and sharing my content freely on YouTube and my podcasts. It means a great deal to me that you support what I do enough to support what I do. If you're not currently a Patron but have gained from what you've learned from me, consider joining for as little as $3 per month. Go to www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss and sign up today!
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 9 minutes 25 seconds
Synopsis: I recorded this while sitting in the parking lot before entering my new school on Day 1 in the few minutes before school started. I wanted to preserve my thoughts and feelings in a manner untainted by hindsight. (If you missed the life update, check out the previous episode.)
Sources:
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 2:1; 4:8
- Rambam, Mishneh Torah: Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Talmud Torah 4:4
Related Content:
- Two MAJOR Professional/Life Updates for the 2023-2024 Academic Year
- 10th Grade Boys Are Animals
The Torah Content for the month of Elul has been sponsored anonymously in loving memory of Henya bas Tzirel - a mother who cared deeply about her children's engagement with Judaism.
The Torah content for remainder of Chodesh Av has been sponsored by my Patrons on Patreon. Your generosity is the foundation which makes it possible for me to continue giving free shiurim, writing free articles, and sharing my content freely on YouTube and my podcasts. It means a great deal to me that you support what I do enough to support what I do. If you're not currently a Patron but have gained from what you've learned from me, consider joining for as little as $3 per month. Go to www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss and sign up today!
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length of audio: 47 minutes
Synopsis: Have you been what I'll be up to this coming year? Have you heard me allude to a MAJOR update that I said I'd announce about my professional life in the near future? Are you aware of one of these updates, but not the other? Well, if none of this interests you, then by all means, feel free to skip this. But if you are at all curious about my exciting plans for 2023-2024, then here is the FULL story. I intended to make this short, but failed miserably because there's just so much to update you on! If you want a tl;dr or a teaser, here it is:
Update #1 (0:00 - 26:00): I will be switching from full-time rebbi and administrator at YBT to part-time rebbi in order to explore and expand my own Torah content creation horizons.
Update #2 (26:00 - end): I will be returning to the high school classroom … sort of!
The Torah Content for the month of Elul has been sponsored anonymously in loving memory of Henya bas Tzirel - a mother who cared deeply about her children's engagement with Judaism.
The Torah content for remainder of Chodesh Av has been sponsored by my Patrons on Patreon. Your generosity is the foundation which makes it possible for me to continue giving free shiurim, writing free articles, and sharing my content freely on YouTube and my podcasts. It means a great deal to me that you support what I do enough to support what I do. If you're not currently a Patron but have gained from what you've learned from me, consider joining for as little as $3 per month. Go to www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss and sign up today!
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 13 minutes 43 seconds
Synopsis: I used to think there was something ... illicit (?) about my fusion of Judaism and Stoicism - at least, from the perspective of "Orthodox Stoicism." However, I recently learned that what I'm doing isn't too different from what Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius did with their Roman Stoicism. I'm just doing in the name of Judea!
Sources:
- William B. Irvine, A Guide to the Good Life: the Ancient Art of Stoic Joy- Bruce Lee
- Avos 4:1
The Torah content for this week has been dedicated by the family of Mindy Pincus for her 20th yahrzeit. She loved wisdom, was always looking to grow, and devoted her life to raising a family in the path of Torah.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 12 minutes 20 seconds
Synopsis: I accidentally invented a new form of meditation this morning, which I call "taking a gratitude bath." I subsequently realized that I already "take a gratitude shower" every day when I say the morning blessings. I could have waited until I tweaked this technique and compiled sources to support it, but in the spirit of my breaking-through-podcaster's-block, I decided to just record it in my parked car without any texts in front of me.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 8/9/23: Two Years (Plus) of Gratitude, 300 (Plus) Episodes, and Smashing Through Podcaster's Block (Plus)
Sources:
- William B. Irvine, A Guide to the Good Life: the Ancient Art of Stoic Joy
The Torah content for this week has been dedicated by the family of Mindy Pincus for her 20th yahrzeit. She loved wisdom, was always looking to grow, and devoted her life to raising a family in the path of Torah.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 22 minutes 45 seconds
Synopsis: This week, the historic city of Lahaina (Maui, Hawaii) was utterly destroyed by wildfires. As of the time of this recording, 36 people are dead, and hundreds of buildings have burned to the ground. (Update: the death toll is now at 53.) Upon reading this tragic news, my mind immediately went to the burning of Lyons and the burning of Yerushalayim. This episode, which includes a lengthy reading from Seneca's letter about the burning of Lyon, focuses on the technique of premeditatio malorum - how it should be implemented, and why it is in our best interest to practice it on a regular basis.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 8/9/23: XTREME Premeditatio Malorum, Vaynerchuk Style
- 9/2/21: Does Stoicism Promote Catastrophizing?
- 8/3/21: Animaniacs, Plucky Duck, and Premeditatio Malorum
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #91
The Torah content for this week has been dedicated by the family of Mindy Pincus for her 20th yahrzeit. She loved wisdom, was always looking to grow, and devoted her life to raising a family in the path of Torah.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 14 minutes 55 seconds
Synopsis: Thank God, I've been sick for the past five days. In this episode I recount three lessons I have been reminded of and implemented during this time. As per my new/old plan: I recorded this primarily for myself, but if you gained from it, feel free to let me know!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 8/9/23: Two Years (Plus) of Gratitude, 300 (Plus) Episodes, and Smashing Through Podcaster's Block (Plus)
Sources:
- Tara Brach, Trusting the Gold
The Torah content for this week has been dedicated by the family of Mindy Pincus for her 20th yahrzeit. She loved wisdom, was always looking to grow, and devoted her life to raising a family in the path of Torah.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
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Length: 18 minutes 13 seconds
Synopsis: After battling the resistance (and losing) all summer, I finally broke through and recorded my 300th episode! Originally this was supposed to coincide with my "two years of gratitude" milestone (which I passed 27 days ago), but better late than never! I address these topics and more in this stream-of-consciousness episode.
Related Content:
- 11/26/20: A Stoic Emperor's Thanksgiving
- 7/8/21: The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- 10/15/21: 100 Days of Gratitude
- 11/29/21: TSJ Interlude: Post-Thanksgiving Musings
- 2/18/22: 225 Days of Gratitude
- 5/4/22: TSJ Interlude: 300 Days of Gratitude
- 7/11/22: 365 Days of Gratitude
- 11/23/22: 500 Days of Gratitude
- 5/7/23: Purim, Providence, and 600 Days of Gratitude
Sources:
- Steven Pressfield, The War of Art, pp.158-159
The Torah content for this week has been dedicated by the family of Mindy Pincus for her 20th yahrzeit. She loved wisdom, was always looking to grow, and devoted her life to raising a family in the path of Torah.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_s
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I don't usually do this, but since my latest article on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ fits so perfectly into The Stoic Jew podcast, I decided to cross-post the audio version here. Speaking of which, I'm genuinely curious as to how many listeners of TSJ are even aware that I have a substack.
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 7/12/23, entitled: Freddie Mercury, Shadal, and the Crisis of Human Finitude. What do Freddie Mercury and Shadal have in common? And what does this have to do with us? More than one might imagine. I'm certainly speaking for myself, but I hope I'm speaking for all of us.
The Torah content for the month of July has been sponsored by the Richmond, VA learning community, “with appreciation for Rabbi Schneeweiss’s stimulation of learning, thinking, and discussion in Torah during his scholar-in-residence Shabbos this past June.” Thank YOU, Richmond, for your warmth, your curiosity, and your love of Torah! I'm already excited for my next visit!
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Length: 10 minutes 24 seconds
Synopsis: The aim of this short episode is to explain why I haven’t made an episode since before Pesach, but the REAL reason I’m making this episode is to help jumpstart my production of content for TSJ again. If you're interested in the secret episode, feel free to email me or reach out to me on WhatsApp. If you'd like to help me build my Instagram presence, check out https://www.instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/ and follow my account (if you are so inclined).
The Torah content for the first part of this week has been sponsored by Shmuel "with hakaras ha'tov to Hashem (and many yidden) on his engagement to Hadassa."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Length: 23 minutes 35 seconds
Synopsis: In this episode we examine the practice of making a vow to Hashem at a time of distress - one of the major themes in Tehilim 116, which we recite in Hallel. We compare and contrast this to Seneca's views on gratitude (which align with Judaism) and his attitude towards vows (which does not). We focus on the real-world example of R' Sinai Adler, who made such a vow to Hashem at the gates of the crematoria of the Mauthausen, which he devoted his life to fulfilling after being saved.
Related Content:
- 4/5/23: Pesach During the Holocaust
- Tzav: Korban Todah - Thanking Hashem with a Chametz and Matzah Party
- shiurim on Tehilim 116 (Part 1 and Part 2)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letters #73 and 31
- Radak, Tehilim 116:12-19
- Devarim 8:10-18
- Rabbi Sinai Adler, Your Rod and Your Staff: A Young Man’s Chronicle of Survival, p.89,117
The Torah content from now through the end of Pesach has been sponsored by my friend and colleague, Rabbi Dr. Elie Feder, author of Gematria Refigured: A New Look At How The Torah Conveys Ideas Through Numbers. Stay up-to-date by joining the Gematria Refigured+ WhatsApp group, and subscribe to the Gematria Refigured+ Podcast.
-----If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show
Length: 20 minutes 25 seconds
Synopsis: In this pre-Pesach episode I share an insight I had this year while learning the halachos of Pesach which resulted in a rush of gratitude which is appropriate to Pesach for a number of reasons. If only Marcus Aurelius knew what he was missing out on.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:49,8
- Haggadah shel Pesach, Yachol me’Rosh Chodesh
- Mesivta Haggadah, pp. 424-425
- Rabbi Sinai Adler, Your Rod and Your Staff: A Young Man’s Chronicle of Survival
The Torah content from now until Pesach has been sponsored by my friend and colleague, Rabbi Dr. Elie Feder, author of Gematria Refigured: A New Look At How The Torah Conveys Ideas Through Numbers. Stay up-to-date by joining the Gematria Refigured+ WhatsApp group, and subscribe to the Gematria Refigured+ Podcast.
-----If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Length: 29 minutes
Synopsis: I’ve recently been asked by several people about my current meditation practice and what I get out of it. I decided to make an episode in which I recap my history with meditation practices, review some of the key benefits of meditation according to Stoicism and Judaism, and conclude with a summary of my current relationship with meditation.
Related Content:
- On Doing Nothing: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4
- Q&A #06, Question #3
- Letting Go and Letting Be (my favorite Tara Brach meditation)
Sources:
- Dan Harris, 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works – a True Story
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 20
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:3
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Tefilah u’Birkas Kohanim 4:16
- Rambam: Commentary on the Mishnah, Berachos 5:1
- R’ Avraham ben ha’Rambam: Ha’Maspik l’Ovdei Hashem, Chapter 24: Obligations of Tefilah
The Torah content for Rosh Chodesh Nisan has been sponsored by my friend and fellow Ralbag-enthusiast, Rabbi Dovid Campbell. Be sure to check out his website, NatureofTorah.com, and the article he published in the most recent edition of Hakirah entitled. Imitations and Semblances: How the Mitzvos Direct Our Exploration of Reality.
-----If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show
Length: 23 minutes
Synopsis: The impetus for this morning’s (unplanned) episode was yet another night of insomnia, in what has amounted to nearly a full week of insomnia. I decided to make this episode to help me process my thoughts as I tossed and turned in bed between 4 and 5am after being awakened at 2:15am by a guy blaring music in his car outside of my apartment for over an hour. But what started off as an episode of me venting my frustration ended up becoming a means of feeling empathy and compassion, and acceptance of – no! love for – God’s will. If you haven’t listened to an episode of TSJ, I would recommend this one as being a good example of what I’m trying to do here.
Related Episodes about Insomnia:
- A Cure for Insomnia … I Hope
- Applying Epictetus to My Insomnia
- Post-Insomnia Stoic Jew Self-Talk
- When Life Gives You Insomnia, Bake a Cake and Rejoice in Yisurin
- Purim, Providence, and 600 Days of Gratitude
Sources:
- Talmud Bavli, Bava Basra 16a
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:8-12
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20
The Torah content for the rest of Adar has been sponsored by my friend and chavrusa Zack, with the following dedicatory message: When asked, "Who is a leader you greatly admire?" my grandfather z”l immediately comes to mind. Each person who entered his presence was brought closer to a better version of themselves. This was due to his staunch belief in people and his uncompromising values. Knowledge is similar — it is indiscriminate and uncompromising in its power to help us become our best selves. Thank you Rabbi Schneeweiss for spreading knowledge, and may the memory of my grandfather, Naftali ben Tzvi, be a blessing.
-----If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Support the show
Length: 10 minutes 43 seconds
Synopsis: This is the eulogy I delivered at the funeral of my Popo (grandmother), Helen Chang (10/5/1924 - 2/2/2023) on 3/13/23 in Honolulu, HI. I originally uploaded it to my Machshavah Lab podcast, where I post my miscellaneous shiurim and content, but I realized that it would be appropriate to upload it here as well.
Click here for the video of my eulogy, and click here for the transcript. Be sure to check out the beautiful eulogy given by my brother, Jonny, by clicking here.
Support the show
Length: 23 minutes
Synopsis: This past Shabbos was my 600th day of gratitude, and I decided to delay making an episode until Purim so that I could talk about the common themes. Unfortunately, I got zero sleep last night - yes, ZERO - which yielded a benefit and a detriment. The benefit is that I got to use last night's insomnia as an example of how the gratitude journal has changed my life. The detriment is that the quality of this episode is not up to my standards, and is a bit rambly. I decided to upload it anyway, in hopes that someone will gain something from it. If you feel you gained something after listening to it, please let me know, since this will increase the odds of me getting back into the routine of making episodes of TSJ again. Happy Purim!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 11/26/20: A Stoic Emperor's Thanksgiving
- 7/8/21: The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- 10/15/21: 100 Days of Gratitude
- 11/29/21: TSJ Interlude: Post-Thanksgiving Musings
- 2/18/22: 225 Days of Gratitude
- 5/4/22: TSJ Interlude: 300 Days of Gratitude
- 7/11/22: 365 Days of Gratitude
- 11/23/22: 500 Days of Gratitude
Sources:
- Epictetus: Enchiridion 1, 5,8,20; Discourses 1:6:1-2
- Esther 5:10-14
- Ralbag on Esther 5:14
- Avos 2:4
The Torah content for the rest of Adar has been sponsored by my friend and chavrusa Zack, with the following dedicatory message: When asked, "Who is a leader you greatly admire?" my grandfather z”l immediately comes to mind. Each person who entered his presence was brought closer to a better version of themselves. This was due to his staunch belief in people and his uncompromising values. Knowledge is similar — it is indiscriminate and uncompromising in its power to help us become our best selves. Thank you Rabbi Schneeweiss for spreading knowledge, and may the memory of my grandfather, Naftali ben Tzvi, be a blessing.
-----If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Length: 18 minutes
Synopsis: My primary goal in making this episode was to remove my "podcaster's block" that has been in place since the news of the four deaths reached me on 2/2/23. After recapping those events and their aftermath, I examine Marcus Aurelius's healthy approach to grief, followed by Epictetus's unhealthy approach, and then the superior approach of halacha as presented by the Rambam.
Sources:
- Ryan Holiday, Daily Stoic email (5/10/22)
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 3
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 13:11-12
Articles I wrote in my grief:
- 2/5/23: My Eulogy for Adira Koffsky z"l (2004-2023)
- 2/8/23: Thoughts on Yesterday's Shivah Call in Detroit
- 2/9/23: Thoughts on the Seventh Morning
- 2/10/23: Spectral Clergy, Living Torah, and My Izzet Grieving Process
Related TSJ episodes:
- 2/1/23: Preparing to Grieve for Popo, My 98-Year-Old Grandmother
- 12/16/21: Yet Another Inhuman Facet of Epictetus's Stoicism
- 5/17/21: How the Jedi Order Gives Stoicism a Bad Name, Part 1: Yoda
- 4/22/21: Thinking Aloud About My Fundamental Disagreement with Epictetus-----
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Sarah and Moshe Eisen, with the following message: "Dedicated in honor of Popo, who shined bright and brought joy to so many of us. And to Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss who shared her with us and continues to share thoughts, insights, and Torah."-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far from Elizabeth Kübler-Ross’s On Grief and Grieving, it’s that we all process grief differently, and there’s no wrong way to grieve. As of the recording of this episode, Popo is still with us, but all indications point to the fact that she won’t be with us for much longer. This has been on my mind, and when I woke up this morning, I knew I had to make this episode to process my impending grief.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 1/11/23: Reflections on My 39th Birthday, New Years 2023, and 2nd Semester
- 8/16/21: Tallis as a Vehicle of Gratitude and a Reminder of Death
Sources:
- Avos 5:21 with Rabbeinu Yonah, Rashi, Abravanel, Rashbatz
- Seneca, Letters #23,26,101; On the Shortness of Life; Consolation of Marcia 10:4
- Jacques Louis David, The Death of Socrates - Elizabeth Kübler-Ross and David Kessler, On Grief and Grieving p. 39- David Foster Wallace, This is Water-----
The Torah content for the remainder of this week has been sponsored by my Patrons. If you gain from my Torah content and would like to help support it on a regular basis, please consider signing up for my Patreon at patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss - or, better yet, you can set up a recurring donation through Chase (so that Patreon doesn’t take a cut). Even a small contribution goes a long way, and small recurring contributions go an even longer way! I’d also like to remind listeners of how to access my content. I have my five podcasts (The Stoic Jew, Mishlei, Machshavah Lab, Rambam, and Tefilah), my YouTube channel, my substack (which has replaced my blog), and my WhatsApp group (where I post ALL my content and shiur announcements). The links to all these resources can be found in the show notes at the bottom of my podcast episodes and my YouTube videos. Thank you for listening, watching, reading, and participating!
-----If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Synopsis: Today’s episode was brought to you by my “mortality chavrusa,” who texted me yesterday saying that he can’t wait to hear my birthday recap. It may not be YOUR 39th birthday, but we all recently experienced New Years and many of us have recently started or will soon start our 2nd semester of the academic year. I figured this would be a good time to share some valuable tools I recently acquired from listening to Tim Ferriss’s interview of James Clear, author of Atomic Habits. I’m especially excited to share five powerful questions you can ask yourself in preparation for the upcoming year and semester.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 12/1/2: Reflection on Counting 52 Weeks of My Life
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #83
- The Tim Ferriss Show, Episode #648: James Clear, Atomic Habits — Mastering Habits, Growing an Email List to 2M+ People, Selling 10M+ Books, Cultivating Self-Awareness, and Much More
- Meiri and Rabbeinu Bachye on Avos 5:22
- my Facebook note from 1/10/20
Other Resources
- to sign up for James Clear’s 3-2-1 newsletter, click here
- to order James Clear’s Atomic Habits, click here
The Torah content for the remainder of January has been sponsored by Yehuda in gratitude for fifteen years of friendship and learning.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_s
Support the show
Synopsis: In today’s episode I share a practical (albeit difficult) way to implement the injunction of the Sages to “judge every person favorably.” The technique was originated by Byron Katie, but I only just heard about it for the first time on Tim Ferriss’s interview of Tristan Harris. Even though I haven’t delved into Katie’s writings myself, I felt the need to share this as soon as I stumbled upon it because of its potential to translate one of Epictetus’s key teachings into action.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 5/4/21: Three Questions for Assessing Our Complicity in Our Own Suffering
- 6/14/21: Cold Showers, Complaining, and How We Cause Our Own Suffering
- Avos 1:6: Dan l’Chaf Zechus (Part 1 and Part 2)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 5
- Rambam on Avos 1:6
- The Tim Ferriss Show: Tristan Harris — Fighting Skynet and Firewalling Attention (#387)
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Rachayl as a "thank you" to me for teaching, and as a "thank you" to all those who participate in my shiurim and share their thoughts and questions.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today's somewhat-longer-than-usual episode, I recap my recent 30-day "Coffee Replacement Experiment," then reflect on (roughly) three insights I gleaned from the experience, in light of the teachings of Judaism, Stoicism, and Aristotle.
Sources:
- Michael Pollan, This is Your Mind on Plants- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18- Seneca, Consolation of Helvia 11:14
- Seneca, Letter #39- Mortimer J. Adler, Desires Right and Wrong: The Ethics of Enough
- Saadia Gaon on Mishlei 23:1-3
The Torah content for the month of Kislev has been sponsored by Serena and Paul Koppel, who want to be makir tov and express gratitude.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: I don’t know about anyone else, but I have been FASCINATED with OpenAI GPT – the latest incarnation of an artificial intelligence chatbot which (for now) is freely available for the public at large. I’ve been equally parts amazed and horrified by its capabilities and their implications, despite never being interested in AI in the past. Since I’m still in the “honeymoon phase” of this interest, I figured I’d record my initial thoughts. I didn’t have much of a game plan going into this episode, but it ended up being a discourse on the Stoic and Jewish conceptions of the soul (as explained by Marcus Aurelius and Sforno, respectively) and a reflection on how the technological progress in AI will prove to be beneficial for our conception of what makes us human.
Sources:
- OpenAI GPT chatbot: https://chat.openai.com/chat#
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:2,17; 3:16
- Sforno on Bereishis 1:26-27
The Torah content for the month of Kislev has been sponsored by Serena and Paul Koppel, who want to be makir tov and express gratitude.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Exactly one year ago I launched the “Weeks of My Life” calendar experiment. I was reminded of this by a friend who just listened to the Counting the Weeks of My Life episode I made upon launching that experiment (see the show notes for the link), who asked me how this weekly experiment has impacted me since then. I decided to make an impromptu episode in which I answer his question.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Counting the Weeks of My Life (12/1/21)
- Tallis as a Vehicle of Gratitude and a Reminder of Death (article and podcast) (8/16/21)
Sources:
- Ibn Ezra on Tehilim 90:12
- Seneca, On the Shortness of Life
- Gandalf
Other Resources:
- Weeks of My Life calendar
The Torah content for the month of Kislev has been sponsored by Serena and Paul Koppel, who want to be makir tov and express gratitude.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today marks the 500th day of my gratitude journal, and since this happens to fall out on Erev Thanksgiving, I figured I’d make a Thanksgiving episode in which I discuss the benefits – nay, the NECESSITY – of a gratitude accountability practice, and reflect on some of the more recent benefits I’ve gained from this habit. If you’re interested in listening to other episodes about gratitude and Thanksgiving, I’ve linked most (if not all) of them in the show notes. Happy Thanksgiving!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- 11/26/20: A Stoic Emperor's Thanksgiving
- 7/8/21: The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- 10/15/21: 100 Days of Gratitude
- 11/29/21: TSJ Interlude: Post-Thanksgiving Musings
- 2/18/22: 225 Days of Gratitude
- 5/4/22: TSJ Interlude: 300 Days of Gratitude
- 7/11/22: 365 Days of Gratitude
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 3:1
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Berachos 10:26
- Mishlei 23:12
- Devarim 8:10-18
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20; 10:16
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously, by a listener who always manages to find me supplemental sources which enhance my shiurim.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Both Judaism and Stoicism employ the technique of “the cosmic perspective,” albeit for different ends. This weekend I read an article about a cosmic explosion which led me to discover a new application of the cosmic perspective technique which might help us to cope with life’s unexpected turns.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Don’t Cry Over Spilled Almond Extract
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #99: On Consolation to the Bereaved
- Aurelius, Meditations 9:36
- Tehilim 90:1-4
- “The biggest space explosion ever seen,” The Week Magazine, 11/4/22, p.21
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1
- Berachos 9:3
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously, by a listener who always manages to find me supplemental sources which enhance my shiurim.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: The Gemara tells us that four of our greatest Sages “entered Pardes (the Orchard)” – that is, they embarked on the study of the deepest areas of metaphysics. One of those sages was Ben Azzai, who “glanced [at the Orchard] and died.” In this episode we unpack what that means, as explained by the Rashbatz, and we examine the practical ramifications for the role that learning plays in our life, in light of a passage from Oliver Burkeman’s Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, and the concluding chapter of Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Choose What to Learn Before You Die
Sources:
- Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, pp.222-24
- Chagigah 14b
- Rashbatz, Commentary on the Haggadah: Arbaah Banim
- Aurelius, Meditations 12:36
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously, in gratitude for making my Torah available and accessible to everyone. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Tzvi ha'Kohen ben Shoshanah Geylah.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Since I’m recording this during the week of Parashas Vayeira, which contains what the Rambam chose as the “crowning pasuk” for every book he ever wrote, I thought it would be appropriate to share my musings on that pasuk as it relates to Stoicism, especially since this happens to be a major theme in the book I’m currently reading: Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, by Oliver Burkeman. Spoiler alert: if you think you have time, then I hope this episode convinces you that you really don’t.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- You Can’t Be Present Yesterday (previous episode, which is relevant)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:14
- Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, pp.117,59
- Ibn Ezra, Koheles 3:11
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 2:13
- Sforno and Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch, Bereishis 21:39
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem grant a refuah shleimah to Rachel bas Rivka Chana.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode was brought to you by an amusingly profound epiphany I had, prompted by an interrupted sleep I had, a mistake in app-usage I made, and a book I happened to be reading. If you’re looking to make time for learning in your busy schedule, then perhaps this insight will come from just the right weird angle to make a difference.
Sources:
- Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, pp.135-136
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:14
- Rabbeinu Yonah on Avos 2:4
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by my friend and colleague, Rabbi Dr. Elie Feder. Rabbi Feder recently published a book called Gematria Refigured: A New Look at How the Torah Conveys Ideas Through Numbers (2022, Mosaica Press). The approach to gematria he presents in this book is neither fluffy nor fanciful, but rational. If you're interested in some sample chapters, click here. If you have a social media platform and are interested in promoting or reviewing Rabbi Feder's book, let me know and I'll put the two of you in touch. The book is available for purchase at https://mosaicapress.com/product/gematria-refigured/.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode is my first attempt to answer a question asked by one of my students: “Can you give me practical advice on how to not care about being liked by everyone?” In the first half of the episode I share a few different approaches, but then we switch gears and discuss a different way to approach the problem altogether.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- (I’m fairly certain I made an episode on how not to care about what people you admire think about you, but I can’t seem to locate it; if this rings a bell and you know which episode it is, please let me know!)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #52: On Choosing Our Teachers
- Epictetus, Discourses 1:21
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:62
- Aesop’s Fables
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by my friend and colleague, Rabbi Dr. Elie Feder. Rabbi Feder recently published a book called Gematria Refigured: A New Look at How the Torah Conveys Ideas Through Numbers (2022, Mosaica Press). The approach to gematria he presents in this book is neither fluffy nor fanciful, but rational. If you're interested in some sample chapters, check out the link below. If you have a social media platform and are interested in promoting or reviewing Rabbi Feder's book, let me know and I'll put the two of you in touch. The book is available for purchase at https://mosaicapress.com/product/gematria-refigured/.
Link to sample chapters: https://tinyurl.com/3xmrufuv
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode has been brought to you by my insomnia. That’s right: ANOTHER episode of TSJ about my struggles with insomnia. I believe you’ll find that this one is far happier and more optimistic than the other three (which are linked in the show notes) – in part because it involves cake and an idea about kaparah (atonement).
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- A Stoic Cure for Insomnia ... I Hope
- Applying Epictetus to My Insomnia
- Post-Insomnia Stoic Jew Self-Talk
- Shemini Atzeres 5781: The Festival of Holding On
- Kaparah u'Teshuvah: (Part of) a Shiur from The Kuntress
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20
- Plutarch, On Virtue and Vice 4 (101d-e)
- Bava Basra 16a
- Rashi on Vayikra 23:36
- La’Mekadeach u’le’Machroz, Kaparah u’Teshuvah + Shofar Shel Issur Hanaah
- Ramban on Bereishis 9:13; 31:42
- Koheles 7:20
- Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals pp.65-68
This week's Torah learning has been sponsored by Vanessa, the first person who offered to cover the costs of my Zoom account for the year. Thank you, Vanessa!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today's episode I answer the following question, submitted by a listener: "I get very stressed out when I am late for something, and I would like to stop getting so stressed or get better at calming down. This feels like a stoicism type of thing. Do you have any podcast episodes that talk about this?" If you, too, get stressed out when you're late, try these out and let me know what you think! And if you have strategies of your own, please let me know!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
- Does Stoicism Promote Catastrophizing?
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook), Chapters 1,4,17- Aurelius, Meditations 4:8
- Seneca, Letter #13: On Groundless Fears- Koheles 7:20
- Mishlei 24:16
This week's Torah learning has been sponsored by Vanessa, the first person who offered to cover the costs of my Zoom account for the year. Thank you, Vanessa!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today's (unplanned, disorganized, and rushed) episode, we compare and contrast the short prayer formulated by Marcus Aurelius in his Meditations with the short prayer uttered by the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) in the Temple Service of Yom Kippur. We conclude by examining both prayers in light of an excerpt from Emerson's Self-Reliance on what prayers should and shouldn't be.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Stoic Approach to Tefilah (Seneca Letter #67 - On Ill-Health and Endurance of Suffering)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:7- Yoma 5:1, with Rambam's Commentary
- Rambam, Mishneh Torah: Sefer Avodah, Hilchos Avodas Yom ha'Kippurim 4:1
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance
This week's Torah learning has been sponsored by Joey and Estee, whom I'd like to thank for being such an important part of my life.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today's episode we examine Marcus Aurelius's analysis of the lesser and greater motives for doing acts of tzedakah (righteousness), and compare his view with Judaism's, as taught by Shlomo ha'Melech (King Solomon) in Sefer Mishlei (the Book of Proverbs).
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Mishleic Spectrum: A Glossary of Mishlei Personalities (note that these definitions are NOT current, but they will still prove to be insightful)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:6- Yirmiyahu 9:22-23
- Rambam, Moreh ha'Nevuchim 3:54
- Rambam, Mishneh Torah: Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Teshuvah 10:2
The Torah content for the first two weeks of yeshiva has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Moshe Gavriel Ben Malka.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today's episode we read how Marcus Aurelius grappled with (what he deemed to be) his own intellectual inferiority. After getting the pshat of his meditation, I then turn the lens onto myself and recount how I grappled with my own intellectual inferiority in my yeshiva days, and how many of these feelings surged up yesterday when - for the first time in 13 years - I rejoined my rebbi's Gemara shiur in yeshiva. I recommend that my own talmidim and talmidot listen to this episode if they, too, have struggled with coming to terms with their own intellectual inferiority.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- My Story
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:5
The Torah content for the first two weeks of yeshiva has been sponsored by Avital H. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Moshe Gavriel Ben Malka.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today’s inaugural episode of TSJ Season 10 (Fall 2022-2023) I make a case for why we should all aspire to pain and suffering during “teshuvah season” (i.e. Elul and the Aseres Ymei Teshuvah). Not ALL kinds of pain, but a specific kind of suffering which necessarily accompanies true growth and development.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Bruce Lee: On Lefum Tzaara Agra
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 3:23- Avos 5:23
- Bruce Lee
- Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Halakhic Man, Footnote 4
The Torah content for the first two weeks of yeshiva has been sponsored by Avital H. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Moshe Gavriel Ben Malka.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Synopsis: We’ve spoken about the concept of Stoic invulnerability in past episodes (some of which are linked below). This morning I stumbled upon a rather nice explanation from Marcus Aurelius about how it works – an explanation which lines up perfectly with some halachos from the Rambam in the Mishneh Torah.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Convince Mom That You’re Invulnerable
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:8: The Stoic Definition of Harm
- The Obstacle is the Way to Knowledge of Hashem
- The Medallion Experiment
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 10:33; 4:8; 5:20
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Yesodei ha’Torah 3:11, 4:2; Hilchos Teshuvah 5:1-2
- Tehilim 118:6
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Courtney K.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Synopsis: I can imagine someone saying something like this: “Look, I get that YOU find value in the ideas of the Stoics, and feel the need to teach those ideas, but why can’t you do so EXCLUSIVELY through Torah sources? Why do you have to actually present the ideas from the Stoic texts themselves?” This episode is my answer to that question.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Interlude: A Defense of This Podcast
- Why Do You Value Stoicism as a Jew?
- Reflections of Truth
Sources:
- Hillel Goldberg, Between Berlin and Slobodka: Jewish Transition Figures From Eastern Europe- Lawrence Kaplan, Review Essay: Jewish Orthodoxy in the Twentieth Century Between Two Worlds- Mishlei 1:20-21
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance (1840)- Rabbi Bernie Fox, Thoughts on the Parashah, Concluding Paragraph of Thank You Letter
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Ariel Rachmanov, a friend and Mishlei talmid of mine. Ariel works for Keller Williams Real Estate and has generously offered to donate to the Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund a percentage of any business that comes his way as a result of this sponsorship, resulting in a Mishleic "win, win, win" scenario for all parties involved. Ariel is based in New York but will be happy to help you meet your real estate needs in all 50 states.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Synopsis: Today’s episode was prompted by a minor kitchen mishap and my childish reaction to it. I didn’t set out to record an episode about runny noses, uncurable diseases, and the limits of prayer, but that’s what I ended up recording.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Daven for a Sick Person Who is Beyond Recovery
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 1:6
- Berachos Chapter 9 Mishnah 3
- Ari Bleicher, Tefillat Shav: The Limits of Prayer as a Means to Understanding its Transformative Nature
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Ariel Rachmanov, a friend and Mishlei talmid of mine. Ariel works for Keller Williams Real Estate and has generously offered to donate to the Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund a percentage of any business that comes his way as a result of this sponsorship, resulting in a Mishleic "win, win, win" scenario for all parties involved. Ariel is based in New York but will be happy to help you meet your real estate needs in all 50 states.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
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Synopsis: Today’s episode is an amalgamation of insights spurred by my (non-halachic) 48-hour fast on the 11th of Av, following our observance of Tishah b’Av on the 10th of Av. Special thanks to Marta bas Baisos and R’ Tzadok.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- My Experience Fasting for 48 Hours on the 9th and 10th of Av (article version + podcast version)
- A Stoic Perspective on Tishah b’Av
- Seneca - Letter #18: On Festivals and Fasting (Part 1)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #18: On Feasting and Fasting
- Gittin 56a
- Mishlei 28:14 (cited on Gittin 55b)
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 50
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Ariel Rachmanov, a friend and Mishlei talmid of mine. Ariel works for Keller Williams Real Estate and has generously offered to donate to the Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund a percentage of any business that comes his way as a result of this sponsorship, resulting in a Mishleic "win, win, win" scenario for all parties involved. Ariel is based in New York but will be happy to help you meet your real estate needs in all 50 states.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: My initial answer to this question prompted by a letter from Seneca was, “No!” but then I realized that the question is more nuanced than I thought. The answer and its implications are not as simple as they seem. In this episode I offer some thoughts, examples, and questions on this topic in light of a pasuk in Mishlei cited by the Rambam and elucidated by a midrash.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #13
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 6:1
- Midrash on Mishlei 13:20
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Ellis and Janice Cohen in memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today's more-scattered-than-usual episode was brought to you by my insomnia. I got zero sleep last night, and rather than keep my Stoic Jew self-talk to myself, I figured I'd think it out loud - for my own sake and for the sake of others.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- A Stoic Cure for Insomnia ... I Hope - Applying Epictetus to My Insomnia
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 6:31
- Mishlei 18:8; 26:22
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Ellis and Janice Cohen in memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today's episode was brought to you by the Internal Revenue Service, which might or might not have taken $800 from me. You can be the judge of that in light of the ideas in this episode.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Saga of the Resurrected Shirt
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 11
- R' Yosef Kara on Iyov 1:20-22
- Malbim on I Divrei ha'Yamim 29:14
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Judah and Naomi Dardik in loving memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt''l, who taught his students to pursue truth by asking questions, who modeled love of Torah and learning, and who exemplified living a life of the mind.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today's episode I discuss what I believe will be my next level-up in Premeditatio Malorum. It's a technique called EFT (Episodic Future Thinking), and I learned about it from a book I'm reading by Jane McGonigal. After recapping my overview (which I wrote about in a blog post, linked below) we examine some of the many Stoic/Mishleic benefits of this practice. I'm certainly excited about what this practice will yield in my own future, and I hope I can get you excited about it as well!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- EFT Training: A Summer 2022 Experiment
- Judaism and the Benefits of EFT
- XTREME Premeditatio Malorum, Vaynerchuk Style
- Why Do You Value Stoicism as a Jew?
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #91
- Jane McGonigal – Imaginable: How to see the future coming and feel ready for anything – even things that seem impossible today, pp.27; 82-83
- Saadia Gaon, Introduction to Mishlei
- Mishlei 24:31-34
- Aurelius, Medidtations 9:30; 12:24
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Judah and Naomi Dardik in loving memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt''l, who taught his students to pursue truth by asking questions, who modeled love of Torah and learning, and who exemplified living a life of the mind.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode is a bit experimental. A friend of mine asked me: “Do you have a post or a quick answer as to what makes you value stoicism and/or how it augments or interacts with Judaism?” and this is my attempt at a concise answer.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- literally all the other episodes of TSJ
Sources:
- Mishlei 15:33; 28:14
- Koheles 12:13-14
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 8,5,1
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:12
- Seneca, Letter #91
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:11
- Avos 3:1
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Judah and Naomi Dardik in loving memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt''l, who taught his students to pursue truth by asking questions, who modeled love of Torah and learning, and who exemplified living a life of the mind.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Have you ever seen the audition tape for Henry Thomas, the kid who played Elliot in Stephen Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial? Well, if you haven’t, drop everything you’re doing and watch it now, because it’s one of the best performances of a child actor I’ve seen – and it was all improvised! Not only that, but it led to an insight about Stoicism which, in turn, led to an insight about human perfection, and that’s what this episode is about. That, and a story about how Stoicism kicked in after I lost my car keys this past Friday.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18
- YouTube: Henry Thomas Audition for E.T. “Ok, kid, you got the job”.
- YouTube: The Story of Casting Elliot in E.T.
- Ralbag, Bereishis, Introduction to Section 8 (2:4 – 3:24)
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Judah and Naomi Dardik in loving memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt''l, who taught his students to pursue truth by asking questions, who modeled love of Torah and learning, and who exemplified living a life of the mind.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
mishlei.buzzsprout.com
thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
tefilah.buzzsprout.com
https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: I am pleased (and grateful) to say that my Gratitude Journal practice has reached its one-year milestone! In today’s episode I reflect on how these last 365 days of gratitude journaling have changed me, and how this whole process has exemplified the habit cultivation principles stated by Aurelius, Epictetus, and the Rambam.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- 100 Days of Gratitude
- 225 Days of Gratitude
- TSJ Interlude: 300 Days of Gratitude
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:16
- Tara Brach (can’t remember specific citations)
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Deios 1:7
- Ibn Ezra, Devarim 30:14
The Torah content for these two weeks has been sponsored by Judah and Naomi Dardik in loving memory of Rabbi Moskowitz zt''l, who taught his students to pursue truth by asking questions, who modeled love of Torah and learning, and who exemplified living a life of the mind.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
WhatsApp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: We’re back! Since the last episode I posted was my eulogy of Rabbi Moskowitz, and since today (the day of the recording) is Rabbi Moskowitz’s shloshim, I decided to devote this episode to one of Rabbi Moskowitz’s many virtues – one which is discussed by Marcus Aurelius, and is shared by Judaism and Stoicism.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 6:21
- Saadia Gaon, unsourced quotation (according to Rabbi Moskowitz’s unreliable memory)
- Emerson, Self-Reliance, Essays: First Series----------
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Naomi Mann in honor of Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l, whose shloshim is this week.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
I'm sharing this recording on all five of my podcasts, regardless of their subject matter, because Rabbi Moskowitz is responsible for all the Torah I learn and teach.
This is the audio of the eulogy I gave for my beloved rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l on Erev Rosh Chodesh Sivan 5782 (May 30th, 2022). For the video, click here.
I plan on typing up the transcript of the abridged version of the eulogy (which is the one I gave), as well as the full version of the eulogy (which I haven't yet completed). I'll post links here once they're complete.
If you're interested in the video of the full levaya, which includes the other six incredible and moving eulogies that were given, contact me and I'll send you the link. (I'm not posting it here because I haven't yet asked Mrs. Moskowitz whether she wants the video of the levaya shared publicly on YouTube.)
מקורות:
ב' מלכים פרק ב
אברבנאל שם
רלב"ג שם
רמב"ם - משנה תורה: ספר המדע, הלכות תלמוד תורה ה:א
This week's Torah content is dedicated to the loving memory of my rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l. May his soul be bound up in the bond of life.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: My insomnia has been particularly bad lately ... OR HAS IT? This episode begins with a recap of Epictetus's approach to "impressions," the Jewish counterpart of which is what Shlomo ha'Melech refers to as ormah ("cunning"). I then walk you through an application of this perspective to my own problem of chronic insomnia, which was the involuntary co-sponsor of today's episode.
Note: I recorded this on Wednesday. My sleep improved the next night, but - due to recent events and upcoming events - I have a feeling the trend is likely to continue for a couple of weeks.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- A Stoic Cure for Insomnia ... I Hope
- (I feel like I've spoken about my insomnia on other episodes, but I can't seem to recall which.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18
- Rabbeinu Yonah on Mishlei 1:4
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Alex K. "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss's shiurim." Thank YOU, Alex, for listening to and supporting my shiurim!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode was inspired by a conversation I overheard between my neighbor (who is an exterminator) and an overconfident customer. This conversation led to yet another insight into how moral philosophy should and shouldn’t be approached, according to both Judaism and Stoicism.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #71: On the Supreme Good- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 2:1-2
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Alex K. "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss's shiurim." Thank YOU, Alex, for listening to and supporting my shiurim!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode is an example of how a familiar idea can be imbued with a new level of insight if one finds a new way of engaging it. In this case, the old idea was the opening thesis of Koheles and the Rambam’s explanation of mezuzah, and the new way of engaging it was a writing exercise suggested by Natalie Goldberg.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Sacred Pause as Applied to Mezuzah
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:23- Natalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones Deck, Card #3- Koheles 1:2
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Tefilin, u’Mezuzah, v’Sefer Torah 6:13
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Alex K. "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss's shiurim." Thank YOU, Alex, for listening to and supporting my shiurim!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today’s episode we go over a practical habit cultivation (or habit removal) tip from Epictetus, which is expanded upon by James Clear in Atomic Habits. The mitzvah of Sefiras ha’Omer serves as the ideal scaffolding for this method, and there are enough days left in this year’s count to initiate a habit cultivation experiment of your own!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Why Do We Count the Omer? Three Explanations You (Probably) Haven't Heard
- Stoicism, Habit Cultivation, and Elul
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18
- Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman, The Daily Stoic, May 16th: The Chain Method- James Clear, Atomic Habits, Chapter 16: How to Stick with Good Habits Every Day
The Torah content from now through Lag ba'Omer has been sponsored by Adam and Estee Goldberg in honor of Savta Shoshana Sham'eh bat Menachem. May her memory be a blessing.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today’s episode explores one of the fundamental differences between the Jewish and Stoic approach to ethics (based on my experience) and the approach to ethics via Moral Philosophy, as exemplified in the book I just read, How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question, by Michael Schur.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Stoic Anxiety vs. Torah Anxiety
- Book Review WhatsApp Chat
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 3:21; 2:9
- Michael Schur, How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question
- Rambam, Avos 3:9
The Torah content from now through Lag ba'Omer has been sponsored by Adam and Estee Goldberg in honor of Savta Shoshana Sham'eh bat Menachem. May her memory be a blessing.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Happy Mother's Day! Today's episode is dedicated to my mom, and to her mom - my grandma, a.k.a. Popo - in gratitude for who they are, and how they have helped me to become who I am.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
-Happy Being Happy
- How to Convince Mom That You’re Invulnerable
- Seneca’s Ruthless Consolation of His Mother
- A Stoic Perspective on Shavuos, True Wealth, and Constant Partying
Source:
- Seneca, Consolation for Helvia
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 13:11-12
The Torah content from now through Lag ba'Omer has been sponsored by Adam and Estee Goldberg in honor of Savta Shoshana Sham'eh bat Menachem. May her memory be a blessing.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: I recently took a stroll down memory lane and reflected on my very first encounter with the teachings of Epictetus, which happened at a critical time in my development. In this episode I share the exact transcript of that encounter.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Convince Mom That You’re Invulnerable (Seneca – Consolation of Helvia)
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:8: The Stoic Definition of Harm- Aurelius - Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:6: 10th Grade Boys Are Animals
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 1- Aurelius, Meditations 4:8
- Richard Mitchell, The Gift of Fire, excerpt from Chapter 11: The World of No One At All
The Torah content from now through Lag ba'Omer has been sponsored by Adam and Estee Goldberg in honor of Savta Shoshana Sham'eh bat Menachem. May her memory be a blessing.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: Today marks the 300th day of my Gratitude Journal. In today's episode I reflect on one of the many benefits I've noticed from this daily practice, which I illustrate through a recent example of something that happened in my apartment. I conclude the episode by connecting this daily practice with Epictetus's Stoicism.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
--225 Days of Gratitude (Aurelius - Meditations 9:6)
-- 100 Days of Gratitude (Seneca - Letter #81: On Benefits)
-- The Gratitude Accountability Experiment (Aurelius – Meditations 9:6)
Sources:
-- Keith Seddon, introduction to Epictetus's Enchiridion
The Torah content from now through Lag ba'Omer has been sponsored by Adam and Estee Goldberg in honor of Savta Shoshana Sham'eh bat Menachem. May her memory be a blessing.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show
Synopsis: In today’s episode I attempt to express my thoughts about the type of daagah (anxiety/stress/worry) that can be generated by the attempt to live by Stoic principles as if they were laws, and how the Torah is structured in a manner which aims to sidestep this problem.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 50
- Michael Schur, How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question, Ch8 pp.146-150
- Ralbag, Introduction to Torah
- Rabbeinu Yonah on Avos 2:7
The Torah content from now through Lag ba'Omer has been sponsored by Adam and Estee Goldberg in honor of Savta Shoshana Sham'eh bat Menachem. May her memory be a blessing.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I hadn’t planned on recording any episodes of TSJ during Pesach, but after visiting Bruce Lee’s grave on R' Soloveitchik’s yahrtzeit yesterday morning, I had to express my thoughts while they were still fresh in mind. And if the title of this episode isn’t the perfect embodiment of my own eclectic approach to learning, teaching, and life, then I don’t know what is.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- A Glimpse Into Bruce Lee's Impact on My Methodology of Teaching and Learning: Part 1 and Part 2
- Be Fire, My Friend
- Bruce Lee on Dynamic Combat and Why Pirkei Avos Isn’t For Everyone
Sources:
- Rambam, Mishneh Torah: Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 4:4
- various writings from Bruce Lee
- Rabbi Bernie Fox, Thoughts on the Parashah: Concluding Letter
- Aurelius, Meditations 12:1
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this cutting-it-too-close-to-the-holiday Pesach episode I attempt to round up and articulate my thoughts on the difference between Judaism’s concept of freedom and that of Epictetus, in light of my recent reading of Viktor Frankel’s Man’s Search for Meaning. My primary goal in recording this podcast was to get out as many of my thoughts in one take as I could. Afterwards I realized that there were points I had intended to make but forgot to mention. Oh well – at least I got something out before Pesach!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Epictetus on How Adherence to Judaism Leads to True Freedom (Pesach 2021/5781)
- Is “Subjugation” to Stoicism a Bad Thing?
Sources:
- Viktor E. Frankel, Man’s Search for Meaning
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:56----------
The content on this podcast has been sponsored by my Patrons on Patreon. The total cost of maintaining my five podcasts in 2021 amounted to over $2000 - all of which would have come out of my own pocket were it not for your generosity. Thank you for helping me make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Although I am loath to engage in celebrity gossip, I felt I HAD to make an episode about the incident that has dominated the U.S. news cycle these past couple of days: Will Smith publicly slapping Chris Rock in the face on stage at the 94th Academy Awards. I had to actively suppress my irrationally ambitious urge to produce a comprehensive treatment of Judaism’s and Stoicism’s stance on anger. Instead, I contented myself with sharing the three thoughts I had when I saw the video of the assault: one from Epictetus, one from Rambam, and one from Seneca and Rabbeinu Yonah on Mishlei.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 20
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 2:3
- Seneca, On Anger
- Rabbeinu Yonah, Mishlei 1:22
The Torah content for the remainder of Adar II has been sponsored by David Campbell, and is dedicated "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss and all those who work to produce a grounded and thoughtful Judaism."----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode emerged from a confluence of sources: (1) a basic facet of Epictetus’s Stoicism, (2) an anecdote from the childhood of lion tracker Boyd Varty, and (3) a scene in a TV show I’ve been obsessed with for the past three weeks. All three of these sources are rooted in the Rambam’s theory of evil.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18
- Boyd Varty, The Lion Tracker’s Guide to Life
- undisclosed TV show episode (ask me if you don’t mind spoilers)
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:11
The Torah content for the remainder of Adar II has been sponsored by David Campbell, and is dedicated "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss and all those who work to produce a grounded and thoughtful Judaism."----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This episode was inspired by a Rumi poem I've been thinking about lately. After reading and analyzing the poem, we compare and contrast it with two similar examples: a decision made by Claire Wineland, as a child, to decorate her hospital room, and a halachic institution which I won't spoil by naming it in the synopsis.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 3
- Rumi, A Given (translated by Coleman Barks)
- Claire Wineland at Zappos All Hands Meeting
- Sukkah 2:9
The Torah content for the remainder of Adar II has been sponsored by David Campbell, and is dedicated "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss and all those who work to produce a grounded and thoughtful Judaism."----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this episode I share some thoughts I had about how the ideas of Purim embody some fundamental differences between Judaism and Stoicism with regards to factors outside of our control. These thoughts were prompted by the writings of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (a.k.a. the Rav). I’m sure my ideas can be developed, but I figured it would be better to get them out there before Purim starts. Happy Purim!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Seneca on Purim Drinking (Seneca: Letter #18 – On Festivals and Fasting)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 4:4:39; 2:16:1
- Megillat Esther Mesorat HaRav: Commentary Based on the Teachings of Rabbi Joseph B.
Soloveitchik, p.56; 76-77
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Zmanim, Hilchos Taaniyos 1:1-3
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 1:10
The Torah content for the remainder of Adar II has been sponsored by David Campbell, and is dedicated "in honor of Rabbi Schneeweiss and all those who work to produce a grounded and thoughtful Judaism."----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today's episode we unpack a popular saying - "tafasta merubeh lo tafasta" - as explained by Epictetus and Mark Nepo, and as exemplified by the wisdom of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 3:9:22- Wikipedia, Tafasta merube lo tafasta- Mark Nepo, The Book of Awakening, March 7th
- Talmud Bavli, Gittin 56b
- Avos d'Rebbi Nosson 4:5
- Rabbi Dr. Binyamin Lau, The Sages: Character, Context, & Creativity, Volume 1: The Second Temple Period
The Torah content from now through Shushan Purim has been sponsored anonymously. This is the last sponsorship we have lined up. If you would like to sponsor a week's worth of content, you know how to find me!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today's episode we explore an advanced method of premeditatio malorum (the premeditation of evils). After reviewing the basic technique - as formulated by Seneca, Shlomo ha'Melech, and Chazal - we read and reflect on a more extreme method, as articulated by serial entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk. This practice is not for the faint of heart, but is something we can practice on a smaller scale until we become capable of the truly extreme version.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content
- The Medallion Experiment
- Animaniacs, Plucky Duck, and Premeditatio MalorumSources
- Seneca, Letter #91
- Mishlei 28:14
- Tamid 32a
- Gary Vaynerchuk, quoted in Tribe of Mentors, by Tim Ferriss
- Link to the medallions on The Daily Stoic Store
The Torah content from now through Shushan Purim has been sponsored anonymously. This is the last sponsorship we have lined up. If you would like to sponsor a week's worth of content, you know how to find me!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This morning I misread a quotation from Seneca. Thankfully, both the actual quotation AND the misreading led to insight - thanks to Sigmund Freud, Dick Schwartz, and Rashi's citation of Chazal on Koheles.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #13
- Rashi on Koheles 4:13
The Torah content from now through Shushan Purim has been sponsored anonymously. This is the last sponsorship we have lined up. If you would like to sponsor a week's worth of content, you know how to find me!----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This past Monday (2/28/22) I declared my intent to make an episode each day in an effort to break my "podcaster's block." Not only did I succeed in that, but I also rediscovered an important truth along the way, and was reminded of a fundamental difference between Judaism and Stoicism.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The One-Page Article: a Summer 2021 Experiment
- Hunting for Treasure vs. Panning for Gold on the Beaches of Nome
Sources:
- Mishlei 2:4 with Rabbeinu Yonah
- Birkas ha'Torah
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Yesodei ha'Torah 2:1-2
- Rambam: Sefer ha'Mitzvos, Aseh #3
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Sarah, in memory of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks zt"l, who changed many lives with his Torah and sterling middot.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this episode we take a look at a sharper formulation of a familiar and fundamental concept in Stoic decision-making, Mishleic thinking, and gaming strategy.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Keanu Reeves, Free Will, and Results-Oriented Thinking
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1
- Koheles 11:1-6
- Julia Galef, cited in Tim Ferriss’s Tribe of Mentors
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Sarah, in memory of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks zt"l, who changed many lives with his Torah and sterling middot.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Lately the numbers of attendees in my shiurim have been fluctuating, and that fluctuation has given rise to … feelings. In this episode I put those feelings into perspective by reflecting on why I teach, drawing upon one of my favorite Seneca quotations, a halacha in the Rambam, and a mishnah in Pirkei Avos.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #7: On Crowds
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Talmud Torah 5:13
- Avos 3:6
- Ralbag on Shemos 20:21
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Sarah, in memory of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks zt"l, who changed many lives with his Torah and sterling middot.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this episode I share two “experiments” I conducted this February which were aimed at creating more time in my busy schedule. This may be viewed as a sequel to the episode I made last year with a similar name, which I recap at the beginning of this one.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- My February 2021 Experiments in the Art of Creating Time
- Reflection on a Year of COVID and the Sanctification of Time
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #1: On Using and Wasting Time
- Sforno on Shemos 12:2
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Sarah, in memory of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks zt"l, who changed many lives with his Torah and sterling middot.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In an effort to break my “podcaster’s block,” I’m going to attempt to make five episodes this week, and I’m going to do my best to make them closer to 10 minutes than to 20. We’ll begin by returning to where we left off in Meditations, with a meditation on death which pairs nicely with a Rambam in the Moreh ha’Nevuchim.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:4- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:12- Bereishis 2:7; 3:19
The Torah content for the remainder of February has been sponsored by Jeremy Gelbart of Boca Raton, FL, in gratitude for Rabbi Schneeweiss's teaching.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This episode is another attempt on my part to articulate a problem I have with Epictetus’s presentation of Stoicism. I’d like to believe that it’s less a critique of the content of his teachings and more a critique of Epictetus’s presentation – or, to be more accurate, the presentation of his student, Arrian – but I still believe that Epictetus’s Stoicism lends itself to this criticism than that of Marcus Aurelius or Seneca.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Yet Another Inhuman Facet of Epictetus's Stoicism
- Thinking Aloud About My Fundamental Disagreement with Epictetus
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 4:4:1-2; 15; Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1
- Pesachim 50b
- Naval Ravikant, quoted in Tim Ferriss’s Tribe of Mentors----------
The Torah content for the remainder of February has been sponsored by Jeremy Gelbart of Boca Raton, FL, in gratitude for Rabbi Schneeweiss's teaching.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I had planned on updating you about my Gratitude Journal when I reached 200 days, but since that fell out during my winter break, I decided to update you at 225 days instead. In Part 1 of today's episode I speculate about why gratitude is a more central theme in Judaism than in Stoicism. In Part 2 I reflect on the three positive changes I've noticed in my Gratitude Journal Practice over the past 125 days.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content
- 100 Days of Gratitude (Seneca - Letter #81: On Benefits)
- The Gratitude Accountability Experiment (Aurelius – Meditations 9:6)
- Hashgachah Clarification from the Rosh ha’Yeshiva
Sources
- Aurelius, Meditations 9:6- Rabbeinu Bachya ibn Paquda, Duties of the Heart
- Janna Levin, cited in Tim Ferriss's Tribe of Mentors----------
The Torah content for the remainder of February has been sponsored by Jeremy Gelbart of Boca Raton, FL, in gratitude for Rabbi Schneeweiss's teaching.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I recorded this episode in conjunction with a review I wrote (and shared on Facebook and in my WhatsApp Book Review group) of Philip Lister’s A Short Good Life: Her Father Tells Liza’s Story of Facing Death. I initially intended to share ONLY new thoughts in this episode, but I ended up recapping much of what I wrote in the review. I’ve included a link to purchase the book in the shownotes below. Let me know if you buy it, and if you read it, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Related R' Schneeweiss Content:
- Counting the Weeks of My Life
- Aurelius vs. Akavya ben Mahallalel on Memento Mori
- Body of Clay and Soul of Gold
Sources:
- Seneca, On the Shortness of Life- Philip Lister, A Short Good Life: Her Father Tells Liza’s Story of Facing Death
The Torah content for the remainder of February has been sponsored by Jeremy Gelbart of Boca Raton, FL, in gratitude for Rabbi Schneeweiss's teaching.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of R' Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: We're putting our "Seneca on Hashgachah" plans on hold for now in order to address a time-sensitive topic: my insomnia. This was a hastily planned episode that I decided to make this morning, after two consecutive nights of my chronic insomnia. In this episode I articulate what I hope will be a strategy for combatting this persistent problem of mine.
Sources:
- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 6:31
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1:1-2
- Adon Olam
- Talmud Bavli, Berachos 33b
The Torah content for the remainder of February has been sponsored by Jeremy Gelbart of Boca Raton, FL, in gratitude for Rabbi Schneeweiss's teaching.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Since my last episode was about hashgachah (Divine providence), I thought it would be interesting to examine the Stoic view of hashgachah, as expounded by Seneca. In today’s episode we compare Seneca’s tacit rebuke of his student’s impatient inquiry of this lofty topic with the challenges I faced when I was asked to teach Sefer Iyov (The Book of Job) to my high school students. A harsh remark by the Ramban in the Shaar ha’Gemul underscores the difficulty of the educational dilemma which I faced, and although I found a path, I’m still not sure whether it is the correct approach to take.
Sources:
- Seneca, On Providence 1:1- Ramban, Shaar ha’Gemul 3:41- Carl Sagan
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Ann with gratitude to Rabbi Moskowitz for teaching us and enabling us to have better lives.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: On Day #5 of my January 2022 solo cabin retreat, I got a call from my Rosh ha’Yeshiva. The subject? Hashgachah pratis. This longer-than-normal episode is my recollection of that conversation, supplemented by my own extensive footnotes and reflections. I’m posting this as an episode of The Stoic Jew Podcast AND the Machshavah Lab podcast for reasons that are explained therein.
מקורות:
ברכת הגומל
אסתר ד:יד
דברים לא:יז-יח עם פירוש הרלב"ג
תהלים קכא:ד
אבות א:יא עם פירוש הרמב"ם
אבות א:ג עם סיכום פירוש הרמב"ם
רמב"ם - הקדמה לפרק חלק
רמב"ם - מאמר תחיית המתים
משלי טז:א
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Ann with gratitude to Rabbi Moskowitz for teaching us and enabling us to have better lives.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This is the second installment of a two-part reflection on my upcoming Winter Break 2022. In today’s episode, we revisit the excerpts from Seneca and Marcus Aurelius which I reflected on after Winter Break 2021, and reexamine them in light of the tools I’ve gained since then. Next, we discuss my discovery of avodah zarah thinking in my application of premeditation malorum. Finally, I reflect on another pitfall that workaholics such as myself are prone to falling into. And with that, I begin my Winter Break 2022!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Seneca Letter #2 - On Doing Nothing: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism
Sources:
- Seneca, Letters #2 and #83- Blaise Pascal, citation unknown
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:3- Tara Brach, Radical Acceptance
- Mishlei 27:1
*This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by someone whose identity even I don't know. Since I can't ask them for a dedicatory message, we'll just dedicate it to my January 10th birthday, and - God willing - to another year of learning, teaching, and life.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This is the first installment of a two-part reflection on my upcoming Winter Break 2022. In today’s episode, Seneca and the Meiri join forces to give me permission – within the framework of my own psychological drives – to take this winter break, and actually use it to relax and recharge.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Thank Iron Archer (and IFS) for Today’s Non-Episode Episode
- 38th Birthday Reflections: On Self-Harm and Self-Actualization
Sources:
- Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind 17:5 (with commentary by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman)
- Meiri, Beis ha’Bechirah Shabbos 118b
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by someone whose identity even I don't know. Since I can't ask them for a dedicatory message, we'll just dedicate it to my January 10th birthday, and - God willing - to another year of learning, teaching, and life.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: What does it mean to "live an authentic life" or to "be an authentic person"? In this episode I argue that the answers given by Judaism and Stoicism are closely related, if not identical - in contrast to the popular conception. I then apply this idea to a rather amusing experience that happened to me a few months ago.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Mishlei 21:1 Mishleic Fatalism
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:3
- Rabbeinu Bachya ibn Paquda, Chovos ha'Levavos (Duties of the Heart), translated by Daniel Haberman
- Avos 4:1
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by someone whose identity even I don't know. Since I can't ask them for a dedicatory message, we'll just dedicate it to my January 10th birthday, and - God willing - to another year of learning, teaching, and life.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This episode begins with a review of what I think of as the three stages of Stoic development. I then share a new way of conceptualizing these stages as three ways we relate to fate (i.e. to those things we cannot control), which I apply to a situation of uncertainty I am currently facing in my life.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Medallion Experiment
- The Obstacle is the Way to Knowledge of Hashem
- The Obstacle is the Way Back to New York
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 8 (with Keith Seddon’s commentary)
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20- Nietzsche (citation needed)
- Avos 2:4
- Talmud Bavli, Shabbos 88b
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by someone whose identity even I don't know. Since I can't ask them for a dedicatory message, we'll just dedicate it to my January 10th birthday, and - God willing - to another year of learning, teaching, and life.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today is my 38th birthday! In this episode I reflect on where I was last year at this time, what happened in between, and where I hope I’m going.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Interlude - 37th Birthday Reflections: On the Allegory of the Soldier
- Torah as Melachah (Craft)
- Simone Biles is My Hero
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:6
- Ralbag, Vayikra 23
- Greg McKeown, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less----------
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by someone whose identity even I don't know. Since I can't ask them for a dedicatory message, we'll just dedicate it to my January 10th birthday, and - God willing - to another year of learning, teaching, and life.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I recently attended the wedding of a dear friend. It would be accurate to say that the dancing at the wedding started out the same as at any Orthodox Jewish wedding and ended as a rave. In this episode I argue that this was a GOOD thing, and that it reflects a concept I suspect is unique to Judaism: simchah shel mitzvah. The episode concludes with a reflection on how the melody of the popular song “Hashem Melech” was taken from "C'est la vie," by Algerian raï singer Khaled, which is a song about the life of taivah (base pleasure).
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #59
- Talmud Bavli Shabbos 30b
- Hashem Melech
- Khaled, C’est La Vie
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Albert Hanan and Justin Coskey in honor of Aryel's and Batya's wedding.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s (short!) episode we compare Epictetus’s unrealistic and inhuman standards of grieving (or lack thereof) with the tempered and realistic alternative taught by Seneca, as codified by the Rambam in the Mishneh Torah. The explanation Seneca provides for why people grieve excessively raises an interesting question about the psychodynamic forces behind our own experiences of suffering and loss.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Yet Another Inhuman Facet of Epictetus's Stoicism
- Shooting Yourself With the Second Arrow
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 3- Seneca, Letter #63
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 13:11-12
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Yael Weiss, in honor of Rabbi Moskowitz's birthday last week, and in gratitude for all the Mishlei he has taught his many generations of students.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I came across a quotation from Thoreau which resonated with me, thanks to my “Counting the Weeks of My Life” experiment. In this episode we expand upon Thoreau’s thoughts with excerpts from Epictetus, du Lair, and Pirkei Avos.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Remember that You're ALREADY Dead
- How to Shower Like You're Dying
- Counting the Weeks of My Life
Sources:
- Thoreau, Walden- Epictetus, Enchiridion 12:2; 25:4-5; Discourses 1:29:21- Guillaume du Lair, The Moral Philosophy of the Stoics
- Avos 2:1
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Yael Weiss, in honor of Rabbi Moskowitz's birthday last week, and in gratitude for all the Mishlei he has taught his many generations of students.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I recently started reading a book called The Anatomy of Peace. This morning’s reading triggered an insight into another critique I have of Epictetus’s Stoicism, beyond what I’ve expressed in the past. In my opinion, Marcus Aurelius’s Stoicism doesn’t partake of this flaw in the same way, and Judaism’s ethics actively opposes it. This is a new and developing insight, but I wanted to capture it in its nascent stage.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How the Jedi Order Gives Stoicism a Bad Name, Part 1: Yoda
- Thinking Aloud About My Fundamental Disagreement with Epictetus
- On Stoic Compassion for Those Who Stumble
- Divine Compassion Toward a Foreign Fly
- Review of Stoic Compassion in Light of IFS
- Stoic Strategies for Coping with the Kosher Ice Cream Truck
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 3- Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, An Ecology of Love- Devarim 28:9; see Rambam: Sefer ha’Mitzvos Aseh #8, Sefer ha’Chinuch Mitzvah #611
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by a student of mine in support of "a life of increased clarity."
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Content Guide: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sha
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Since today is the 10th of Teves, I decided to devote the episode to a reflection on how the very existence of The Stoic Jew Podcast is directly related to one of the three events we commemorate on this day – namely, the translation of the Torah into Greek.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Interlude: A Defense of This Podcast
- Asarah b'Teves 5781: A Live Prophecy About an Ongoing Tragedy
Sources:
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Zmanim, Hilchos Taaniyos 5:1
- Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 580:1-2
- Aruch ha'Shulchan ibid.
- Maseches Sofrim 1:7
- Selichos l'Asarah b'Teves (Koren translation)
- Rambam: Letter to Shmuel ibn Tibbon
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously by a student of mine in support of "a life of increased clarity."
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Last night I gave a Chumash shiur on the brief and bizarre conversation between Yaakov Avinu and Paroh in Parashas Vayigash. Three of the interpretations we learned featured Stoic ideas: two from Shadal (one in the name of Rav Reggio and Gesenius, and the other in the name of his late son, Filosseno), and another from Rav Hirsch. I decided to repackage those three interpretations as today’s episode, and to release it on Thursday instead of Friday for the sake of those who are in Israel (since it’s on the parashah, and is therefore more “time-sensitive” than the usual episode).
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously with appreciation for all the learning opportunities offered by YBT over Zoom.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Vayigash: Yaakov's Brief and Bizarre Conversation with Paroh
- Remember that You're ALREADY Dead
- How to Shower Like You're Dying
- Counting the Weeks of My Life
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 7, 1- Bereishis 47:7-10 with Shadal and Rav Hirsch
- Tehilim 119:19 with Rashbam and Radak; Tehilim 39:13 with Radak
- Seneca, On the Shortness of Life 3
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I seem to be on a memento mori kick as of late. In today’s episode I discuss the biggest impact (thus far) of my “Counting the Weeks of My Life” experiment, which I spoke about in one of last week’s episodes. For those who are turned off to memento mori practices because they see them as overly negative or morbid might find Marcus Aurelius’s alternative approach to be more appealing.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Counting the Weeks of My Life
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last
- Mattos/Masei: Leaving an Out for Your Enemy
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:56- Aaron Sorkin, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip – Episode 9: The Option Period- Band of Brothers (not sure which episode)
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously with appreciation for all the learning opportunities offered by YBT over Zoom.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today we return to a familiar theme: how to live like it’s your last day. In past episodes we’ve discussed the challenges to implementing this in practice. Thanks to some insights from Mark Nepo and Steve Jobs, I think I’ve found another piece to the puzzle. This is one of those “thinking aloud” episodes in which I explore how these ideas can apply to my own life. I hope that listening to my own musings helps you to adapt these ideas to your own situation in life.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored in memory of Rabbi Dr Leon & Frances Gersten.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last
- Counting the Weeks of My Life
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:11- Mark Nepo, The Book of Awakening, November 15 (pp.376-377)
- Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic, December 2 (p.358)
- Steve Jobs, Stanford Commencement Address 2005
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I reflect on the unique experience I had in which I counted every single week of my life. Like, I physically marked off each of my 1,977 weeks on the “Weeks of My Life” calendar I bought on Amazon. Will this help me to internalize the ideas in Tehilim 90:12, Seneca’s On the Shortness of Life, and Thornton Wilder’s Our Town: Act III? Only the future weeks will tell, if Hashem grants me the time.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored in memory of Rabbi Dr Leon & Frances Gersten.
Related R' Schneeweiss Content:
- Tallis as a Vehicle of Gratitude and a Reminder of Death
Sources:
- Seneca, On the Shortness of Life- Tehilim 90:12 with Ibn Ezra
- Thornton Wilder, Our Town: Act III (check out this video then this video for an excellent performance)
Other:
- Weeks of My Life calendar
- video of me checking off the boxes
- my current calendar
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of R' Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I muse out loud about some thoughts I had on and about Thanksgiving in light of my Thanksgiving meal and my reflections on my 21st geriversary (i.e. anniversary of converting to Judaism).
This week's Torah content has been sponsored in memory of Rabbi Dr Leon & Frances Gersten.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Interlude - A Stoic Pep Talk on My Mild Anxiety About Meeting Up With My Dad's Family for Thanksgiving
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:48
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This Thanksgiving (i.e. tomorrow) I'll be meeting up with my dad's family. Some I haven't seen in a few years; others, in a decade; others in two decades; still others, I've never met. I thought I wasn't nervous about this reunion, but the fact that I woke up this morning at 3:30am and couldn't stop thinking about it would suggest otherwise. I figured: What better way to process my mild anxiety than by recording an episode of The Stoic Jew Podcast about it? If this episode comes across as more meandering than usual, that's only because I was working it out on the spot, and I wanted to do it in one take. Hopefully this will help others deal with similar cases of mild anxiety, whether about Thanksgiving or about caring what others think in general!
Sources:
- Rabbeinu Bachya ibn Paquda, Chovos ha’Levavos 5:5- Aurelius, Meditations 7:62 and 12:4- Seneca: Letter #7- Plato, Crito- Montaigne, Of Solitude- Schopenhauer, The Wisdom of Life- Seneca, Natural Questions IV A, Pref. 14,18- Mivchar ha'Peninim: Shaar ha'Tznius----------
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem grant a refuah shleimah to Tehila Bat Ora Sara.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In my Rambam Bekius Chavurah we’ve been learning Hilchos Talmud Torah Chapter 3, in which the Rambam prescribes guidelines for attaining the Crown of Torah. I recently came across a letter from Seneca in which he tells his pupil, Lucilius, what he’ll need to do in order to succeed in the life of philosophy. I couldn’t help but notice the parallels between these two exhortations, and I decided to make an episode about them.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Shirley, and since she didn't specify a dedicatory message, then I'm going to dedicate this to the entire Sinclair family - Shirley, David, and Ken.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Rambam Bekius Podcast Season 6 Episodes 23+ (11/4/21)
Sources:
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Talmud Torah 3:6-12
- “Avos” 6:4 with “Rashi’s commentary”
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 4:4
- Seneca: Letter #53
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This morning we attempt to understand Marcus Aurelius’s nonchalant statement about how easy it is to instantly attain inner peace, which is reminiscent of Moshe Rabbeinu’s nonchalant statement about how easy it is to fear Hashem. The question that prompted this episode is the question in the title: is it really THAT easy?
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Shirley, and since she didn't specify a dedicatory message, then I'm going to dedicate this to the entire Sinclair family - Shirley, David, and Ken.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Happy Being Happy (Seneca: Consolation of Helvia 5)
- The Habit of Hating Handshakes (Epictetus – Discourses 3:12)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:1
- Devarim 10:12-13
- Talmud Bavli Berachos 33b
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 5
- Tara Brach, Trusting the Gold: Uncovering Your Natural Goodness- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this episode we explore the parallels between the halachic and Stoic approaches to kibud u’mora av v’eim (honoring and revering one’s parents), in light of an observation made by Moshe Halbertal in his biography of the Rambam.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Shirley, and since she didn't specify a dedicatory message, then I'm going to dedicate this to the entire Sinclair family - Shirley, David, and Ken.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion(The Handbook) Chapter 30
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Mamrim 6:1,6-7
- Moshe Halbertal, Maimonides: Life and Works, pp. 201-202
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: The first instance of a neder (vow) in the Torah in Parashas Vayeitzei, when Yaakov Avinu makes a neder upon waking up from his dream about the ladder. Rav Hirsch provides a beautiful exposition on the folly of making nedarim. Ironically, his comments contain far more Stoicism than the actual writings of the Stoics on this topic!
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Margalit Esther bat Ettel and Noam Binyamin Refael ben Dina Nili.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Parashas Mattos: Bli Neder
- Tehilim 116 (Ahavti) Part 1 and Part 2
- If you're interested in a full shiur on this, check out Vayeitzei: Practical Insights from Yaakov Avinu's Neder.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #31
- Rav S.R. Hirsch, Bereishis 28:20
- Rav S.R. Hirsch, Horeb 471
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Do you find yourself making the same bad decisions again and again because you’re duped by your own emotions? Epictetus repeatedly warns us to not be “taken by impressions” – that is to say, fooled into making mistakes based on inaccurate perceptions of reality. In this excerpt from the Discourses, Epictetus teaches us a powerful technique – one which is endorsed and explained by Shlomo ha’Melech in Mishlei.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Margalit Esther bat Ettel and Noam Binyamin Refael ben Dina Nili.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism (Epictetus – Discourses 2:18)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 3:12 and 2:18
- Mishlei 11:15 with Rabbeinu Yonah
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Do you hate yourself? Do you love death? You might instinctively think the answer is, “Of course not!” but Marcus Aurelius, Shlomo ha’Melech, and Dr. Theodore I. Rubin beg to differ. Today’s episode is about a single line from the first chapter of Meditations Book 5 and focuses on an idea I alluded to at the end of the previous episode, which I felt warranted its own separate treatment.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem send a refuah shleimah to Margalit Esther bat Ettel and Noam Binyamin Refael ben Dina Nili.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Get Out of Bed on a Cold Morning (Aurelius - Meditations 5:1)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:1
- Mishlei 8:36 with Ralbag and Meiri (can’t directly link, but it’s available here)
- Theodore I. Rubin, M.D., Compassion and Self-Hate: An Alternative to Despair----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I’ve mentioned on numerous occasions that my favorite chapter in Aurelius’s meditations is 2:1, in which the Stoic Emperor talks about how he’d begin his day. But there’s a very important step which comes before this: getting out of bed. In today’s episode we compare Aurelius’s advice on how to get out of bed when it’s cold outside to Shlomo ha’Melech’s similar advice in Mishlei (as explained by the Meiri) and Yehuda ben Teima’s advice in Pirkei Avos (as explained by the Tur).
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously for the continued recovery of Rabbi Moskowitz. May Hashem grant Ha'Rav Meir ben Esther Malka a refuah shleimah.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- shiurim on Mishlei 6:6-11: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:1
- Mishlei 6:11 with Meiri’s commentary (can’t directly link, but it’s available here)
- Tur Orach Chaim Siman 1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Rufus taught “The human being is born with an inclination toward virtue.” Would Judaism agree? In today’s episode we take a look at the Sforno’s revolutionary interpretation of a familiar statement from Chazal (which was already preempted by the Rambam), which sheds a new light on how Hashem helps us in the battle against the yetzer ha’ra on a daily basis.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously for the continued recovery of Rabbi Moskowitz. May Hashem grant Ha'Rav Meir ben Esther Malka a refuah shleimah.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Saga of Kayin (Part 4)
Sources:
- Rufus, Lectures 2:7:1-2
- Talmud Bavli, Sukkah 52a-b
- Sforno on Bereishis 4:7
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Teshuvah 6:5
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this episode – the last chapter in Book 4 of Meditations– I attempted to record WITHOUT extensive preparation in an effort to follow through on the intentions I stated in my recent episode about my struggles with perfectionism. Ironically, the theme of Aurelius’s chapter was consonant with this goal. Let’s hope I succeeded in following his injunction!
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by R.R. in appreciation for all the growth and insight that she has gained from these shiurim. To that I say, "Thank YOU, R.R., for helping make that possible!"
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Interlude: Struggles with Perfectionism ... AGAIN (Aurelius - Meditations 10:16)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:51
- Koheles 7:29 with the commentary attributed to Rashbam
- Doug Taylor, Getting it Straight: Practical Ideas for a Life of Clarity
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: For better or for worse I decided to record today’s episode when my mind was feeling a bit scattered … and it shows. We begin by reading Aurelius’s “unphilosophic” thoughts about how to put death in perspective, which we compare to the Torah’s stance as spelled out by the Rambam. We then read Epictetus’s counterpoint to the Rambam which leaves us in a quandary, and we compound that quandary with an excerpt from Barbara Ehrenreich’s thoughts on diminishing returns in the efforts to prolong life at the expense of living. Where do we end up? With exactly what is advertised in the title: scattered thoughts.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by R.R. in appreciation for all the growth and insight that she has gained from these shiurim. To that I say, "Thank YOU, R.R., for helping make that possible!"
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:50- Epictetus, Discourses 3:10- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 4:1
- Barbara Ehrenreich, Natural Causes: An Epidemic of Wellness, the Certainty of Dying, and Killing Ourselves to Live Longer ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode Marcus Aurelius shares the secret of how to be immune to misfortune. His approach includes a number of fundamental ideas in Judaism and Stoicism that we’ve discussed in previous episodes (see the show notes for a partial list), but he ties them together in a compelling way which parallels David ha’Melech’s approach in Tehilim.
Today's Torah content has been sponsored by someone who makes regular contributions, not only to the Torah content fund, but also to my shiurim.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:8: The Stoic Definition of Harm
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
- Shooting Yourself With the Second Arrow
- Tehilim 20 (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3)
- Tehilim 118 (Part 5)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:48; 4:8; 2:1; 5:20
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. -------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we compare similar statements made by Marcus Aurelius in the Meditations Akavya ben Mahallalel in Pirkei Avos, as explained by the Rambam and the Meiri, but first we attempt to answer the question, “To what extent does Stoicism prepare a person for facing death?”
Today's Torah content has been sponsored anonymously. May Hashem send a refuah shelaimah to Devorah Yentel bat Sarah Chana Gittel.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Medallion Experiment
- Holding a Dying Man in My Arms: a True Memento Mori
- Tallis as a Vehicle of Gratitude and a Reminder of Death (article and podcast)
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:17: Memento Mori ... but How?
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:48
- Avos 3:1 with Rambam and Meiri
- Yerushalmi Sotah 2:2
Other
- Claire Wineland
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.-------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I reflect on my 100th day of gratitude journaling! I focus on two of the many benefits I’ve gained from this practice: (1) a little something I call “premeditatio gratias,” and (2) a developmental tool for “amor fati,” inspired by an interpretation of a phrase in Modim by the Ri Bar Yakar and Rashi.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor, whom I consider to be both a friend and a role model.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Gratitude Accountability Experiment (Aurelius – Meditations 9:6)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letters #81 and #91
- Ri Bar Yakar on Modim
- Rashi on Tehilim 60:6
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s (self-indulgent) episode I discuss how my own struggles with perfectionism have once again generated problems with my content-production, as far as this podcast is concerned. I made this episode because I needed to express these thoughts and feelings in a public format, but I hope that my choice to do so proves to beneficial to others who struggle with similar problems.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor, whom I consider to be both a friend and a role model.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Follow-up: Applying "Tiny Habits" to My Podcaster's Block
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 10:16
- Saadia Gaon, Introduction to Mishlei
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s focus is on a one-liner from Marcus Aurelius: “Stop talking about what the good man is like, and just be one.” We use this as a springboard to reflect on our 200th episode, and whether we have fallen into this trap through this podcast, or whether the Torah’s values offer a different perspective on the Stoic Emperor’s self-rebuke.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor, whom I consider to be both a friend and a role model.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Milestone - Reflections on Our 100th Episode (!) and Epictetus on Becoming a Good Stoic Jew
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 10:16
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:9
- Rambam: Hilchos Krias Shema 1:2
- Rambam: Hilchos Yesodei ha’Torah 2:2
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Believe it or not, Seneca has a theory about the Mabul. He believes that God has destroyed the world with the flood in the past, but – unlike us – he believes that God will do it again. I figured that this was an appropriate topic for Erev Shabbos Parashas Noach.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor, in memory of her grandmother, Golda Henya bat Devora a"h.
Sources:
- Seneca, Natural Questions 3:28-30
- Rashi on Bereishis 11:1
- Ralbag on Bereishis 6:3
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today's episode is about Marcus Aurelius's memento mori thought experiment: If God told you that you are going to die either today OR tomorrow, would the difference of a day make a difference? And would Judaism offer a different response than Stoicism?
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor, in memory of her grandmother, Golda Henya bat Devora a"h.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last (Aurelius – Meditations 7:69)
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:17: Memento Mori ... but How?
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:47
- Seneca, Consolation to Marcia 2:13
- Koheles 6:6
- Berachos 5b with Maharsha Chidushei Aggados
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we attempt to wrest meaning from Marcus Aurelius’s list of “Top Heraclitus Hits.” Our meditations on his meditation lead us to Koheles, Rambam, and Mufasa. Did we succeed in gaining something of value from Aurelius’s cryptic chapter? You tell me!
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor, in memory of her grandmother, Golda Henya bat Devora a"h.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:46 with Farquharson’s commentary
- Koheles 1:4-7 with Ibn Ezra’s commentary
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Yesodei ha’Torah 4:3-5
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:10
- Mufasa’s Circle of Life Speech
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s bonus episode we review the similarities and differences between Seneca’s version of sukkah and the Torah’s, as explained by the Rambam and Rashbam. We conclude with a question (or cluster of questions) about simchah (joy/rejoicing) as a theme of Sukkos and as an avodah (divine service) in its own right. Chag sameach!
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor in gratitude to the YBT community for being so welcoming to the new guys, and to the "old" guys.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- A Stoic Perspective on Tishah b’Av
- Seneca - Letter #18: On Festivals and Fasting (Part 1 and Part 2)
Sources:
- Seneca Letter #18
- Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:43
- Rashbam on Vayikra 23:43
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Zmanim, Hilchos Shofar v’Sukkah, v’Lulav 8:15
- Ibn Ezra on Devarim 28:47
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/li
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: “Memento Mori” (remembering death) is a major theme in Stoicism and in Judaism – especially when it comes to doing teshuvah. We begin this episode by reflecting on statements by Chazal, the Rambam, and Marcus Aurelius about the sense of urgency created by the awareness of our mortality. But what can we do to incorporate this awareness into our experience of Yom ha’Kippurim? I believe that if we understand how Chazal framed the mitzvah of Vidui Yom ha’Kippurim, then we can convert it into a valuable “memento mori” tool which we can use to enhance our teshuvah on Yom ha’Kippurim.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor in gratitude to the YBT community for being so welcoming to the new guys, and to the "old" guys.
Sources:
- Avos 2:10
- Rambam: Teshuvah 7:1-2; 3:4; 2:7
- Bachya ibn Paquda: Admonition
- Aurelius Meditations 2:7,11; 4:17,37
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this episode I share an insight I had on Rosh ha’Shanah into the famous statement “teshuvah, tefilah, and tzedakah remove the evil decree” – or should I say, “the evil OF the decree.” I share a real-world example of this which transpired on the second day of Rosh ha’Shanah this year.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by an anonymous donor in gratitude to the YBT community for being so welcoming to the new guys, and to the "old" guys.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Obstacle is the Way Back to New York
Sources:
- Unesaneh Tokef
- Eichah 3:38-40
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20 (medallion available for purchase at The Daily Stoic store)
- Talmud Bavli Berachos 5a
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Since today is Erev Rosh ha’Shanah, I thought it would be useful to explore the difference between the concept of Yom ha’Din (Judgment Day) in Stoicism and in Judaism. We compare and contrast Aurelius’s comments about time and the universe with the picture of Yom ha’Din synthesized from the writings of Rav Hirsch, Meiri, Malbim, and the Abravanel. Although this episode is longer than most, I wanted to be sure to provide a complete framework for approaching the Yom ha’Din this year.
Today's Torah content has been brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Universe as Organism vs. Universe as Melachah
- Yom ha’Din vs. Yom Teruah (article, video, audio)
- Malbim on Hashgachas Hashem and Human Responsibility
- Meditations on Rosh ha'Shanah 5781: The Meaning of "Shanah Tovah"
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:40,45
- Yechezkel 29:3
- Rav S.R. Hirsch, Horeb 354
- Meiri on Avos 4:2
- Malbim on Iyov 35:8
- Abravanel on Vayikra 23:24
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode (#192) we examine the distinction between the beneficial Stoic technique of “Premeditatio Malorum” (the Rehearsing of Harms) and the unhealthy activity of “catastrophizing.” We begin with the definition of the latter from the American Psychological Association; next, we see how both types of mental activity are acknowledged by Shlomo ha’Melech in Mishlei; lastly, we apply these insights to a real-world scenario, involving the crazy weather from Hurricane Ida that battered the East Coast last night.
Today's Torah content has been brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Medallion Experiment
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #91: On the Lesson to be Drawn from the Burning of Lyons
- Tim Ferris’s interview with Dr. Sue Johnson
- Definition of “Catastrophize” (Merriam Webster)
- Definition of “Catastrophize” (APA)
- Mishlei 28:14 with the commentary of Malbim and R’ Yosef Kimchi
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode continues on the theme of change with a focus a technique for escaping the patterns of personal drama which are the cause of so much of our anxiety.
Today's Torah content has been brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Change: Neither Good Nor Bad (Aurelius - Meditations 4:42)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:44; 6:46
- Bruce Tift, Already Free: Buddhism Meets Psychotherapy on the Path of Liberation- Koheles 1:8-11
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode focuses on the familiar themes of change and impermanence. We reflect on a meditation from Anthony de Mello and discuss how it can be used to bring out the impact of these themes from their anchor-points in Jewish and Stoic sources.
Today's Torah content has been brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Change: Neither Good Nor Bad
- Shooting Yourself With the Second Arrow
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditation 4:43 and 9:32
- Koheles 12:13
- Anthony de Mello, Stop Fixing Yourself, The River Meditation
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah: Sefer Ahavah – Hilchos Tefilin, u’Mezuzah, v’Sefer Torah 6:13
- Seneca, Letter #99----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode is about another one-sentence chapter. We examine Aurelius’s words through the eyes of the Rambam in the Moreh ha’Nevuchim, the Sforno on Koheles, Epictetus in the Enchiridion, and Bruce Tift on Buddhism.
Today's Torah content is sponsored by an anonymous donor, out of gratitude for all of the awesome opportunities for learning over Zoom that are available at YBT.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:42
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:10 and 3:12
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1:5- Bruce Tift, Already Free: Buddhism Meets Psychotherapy on the Path of Liberation----------
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode is about the one-sentence chapter. I hate to use the phrase “short but sweet” to describe anything that has to do with corpses, but it is an apt characterization of this sentence.
Today's Torah content has been brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditation 4:41
- Saadia Gaon, Introduction to Sefer Mishlei
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we compare and contrast the metaphor used by Marcus Aurelius to characterize the universe with the metaphor used by the Torah.
Today's Torah content has been brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How I Teach Maaseh Bereishis - Part 2 of 2
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditation 4:40 (with Farquharson’s commentary) and 2:1
- Albert Einstein
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: The chapter we focus on in today’s episode is a review of some fundamental concepts that we’ve discussed in past episodes, such as how to be impervious to harm, what good and evil are – ya know, some basic stuff!
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Joey and Estee Lichter in honor of the marriage of Isaac and Aviva.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Shooting Yourself With the Second Arrow
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:8: The Stoic Definition of Harm
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:39 and 4:8
- Sforno on Bereishis 1:26
- the statement I erroneously said was in Sanhedrin is actually in Bereishis Rabbah, and is cited by the Rambam in the introduction to Perek Chelek in Sanhedrin; I can’t seem to track down the original source
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-m
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we return to Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations with a one-liner cautioning us to remember the humanness of the wise.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Joey and Estee Lichter in honor of the marriage of Isaac and Aviva.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:38
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 6:1
- John Steinbeck, East of Eden- Plato, Crito----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode – which was recorded immediately after yesterday’s episode, as a follow-up – I apply BJ Fogg’s Tiny Habits behavioral diagnosis framework to the mild case of “podcaster’s block” I’ve been experiencing with The Stoic Jew Podcast. Thankfully, it helped! As a result, this podcast will be undergoing a major change … or should I say, a major change BACK!
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Joey and Estee Lichter in honor of the marriage of Isaac and Aviva.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Stoicism, Habit Cultivation, and Elul
Sources:
- BJ Fogg, Tiny Habits: The Small Changes that Change Everything----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.----------
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode, which was supposed to air on Rosh Chodesh Elul, we examine the underappreciated role of habit cultivation in Stoicism, and I teach a valuable technique for establishing new habits which I learned from James Clear’s Atomic Habits and BJ Fogg’s Tiny Habits.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Joey and Estee Lichter in honor of the marriage of Isaac and Aviva.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18- James Clear, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones- BJ Fogg, Tiny Habits: The Small Changes that Change Everything----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today's unplanned episode is an update on three (two? three? ten?) of the "experiments" I'm conducting for the sake of my own development. My hope is that this will encourage others to initiate their own experiments, especially during the month of Elul.
Today's Torah content has been sponsored by the generous contributions of my Patrons on Patreon.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Gratitude Accountability Experiment
- The Obstacle is the Way Back to New York
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we take another look at the similar teachings of Marcus Aurelius, who urges us to “be fire,” and Bruce Lee, who urged us to “be water.” I set out to record this episode without planning what I would say, and the result may come as a surprise. I am definitely open to hearing your input.
Today's Torah content was sponsored by someone who wishes to remain anonymous for someone else whom they wish to remain anonymous for an occasion that I'm told should not be mentioned. I would have found some sneaky way to show honor and gratitude to those involved and for the event being commemorated, but I must respect true tznius when I see it.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:1
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:1- Bruce Lee
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s “zany to the max” episode was inspired by the lyrics of two shows I watched as a kid in the 90’s – Animaniacs and Tiny Toon Adventures – which were stuck in my head this morning. After reflecting on their Stoic implications, we examine the broader implications of this particular kind of free association. Far from being accidental, this is something I strive to cultivate, in myself and in my students, and I thought that this would be a good opportunity to talk about it in explicit terms.
Today’s Torah content is sponsored by Avygayl Zucker in honor of the 90th birthday of her grandfather, Yedidyah Halimi, whose dedication to Torah and mitzvos continues to be an inspiration. May Hashem grant him many more years of health and happiness!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Medallion Experiment
- Hunting for Treasure vs. Panning for Gold on the Beaches of Nome
Sources:
- Animaniacs Theme Song
- Tiny Toon Adventures Theme Song
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapters 17 and 8- Mishlei 1:20-21
- Netflix: The Movies That Made Us----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I reflect on a real-world example that I’ve passed by on my walk to yeshiva every day involving two totaled cars; from there we extend the insight to our reputations, in light of an excerpt from Awareness, by Anthony de Mello.
Today’s Torah content is dedicated to the joyous occasion of the marriage of Jon Deutsch and Avigayil Lev. Jon has "graduated" from student, to coworker, to chavrusa and friend. Avigayil, another former student and fellow Slytherin, remains a daily presence in my virtual beis midrash. I am happy for them and I'm excited to see where their life leads them.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- My Stoic Injury and TSJ Summer Update
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 1- Anthony de Mello, Awareness: the Perils and Opportunities of Reality----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.----------
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I discuss the three Stoic medallions I purchased – what they say, how their ideas are based in Judaism, and why I purchased them – as well as the fourth medallion which I have not yet purchased because I’m not on the level.
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Sol and Chummie Azose, in honor of the upcoming 81st birthday of the Rosh ha'Yeshiva, Rabbi Yisroel Chait, and the 91st birthday of Sol's father, Hazzan Isaac Azose.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Obstacle is the Way Back to New York
- Holding a Dying Man in My Arms: a True Memento Mori
- Mishlei 3:5-6 – Trusting in Hashem vs. Relying on Your Own Understanding Part 1 and Part 2
Sources:
- Link to the medallions on The Daily Stoic Store
- Mishlei 1:9
- Seneca, Letter #91
- Mishlei 28:14
- Talmud Bavli Tamid 32a
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20
- Mishlei 3:6
- Avos 2:4
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:11
- Koheles 7:2
- Avos 3:1
- Nietzsche (I don’t know the source)
- Mishlei 3:12
- Talmud Bavli Shabbos 98b
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today's ANTI-planned episode is about how to turn your problems into non-problems, how to make yourself immune to hurt, and how to turn any stumbling block into a stepping stone. How's THAT for a synopsis?
This week's Torah content has been sponsored by Sol and Chummie Azose, in honor of the upcoming 81st birthday of the Rosh ha'Yeshiva, Rabbi Yisroel Chait, and the 91st birthday of Sol's father, Hazzan Isaac Azose.Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Holding a Dying Man in My Arms: a True Memento Mori
- The Obstacle is the Way Back to New York
- Thank Iron Archer (and IFS) for Today’s Non-Episode Episode
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:7-8 (medallion available for purchase at The Daily Stoic store)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher, a tutor, or a teaching mentor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Last night I held a dying old man in my arms. This episode is about that experience.
Today’s episode of The Stoic Jew Podcast is dedicated to the joyous occasion of the marriage of Isaac Lichter and Aviva Rubenstein. Isaac is my talmid chaver: my dear friend, my fellow student of Torah and chochmah, and a talmid who attended ALL of my shiurim this past year, morning, afternoon, and night. Aviva is also a student of mine, whom I taught for four years in Shalhevet and who attended my Lomdeha shiurim last year. Words cannot express how happy I am about their upcoming marriage, and I am grateful to Hashem that we are in each other’s lives. May they flourish together in this next chapter of their journey.Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Obstacle is the Way Back to New York
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:11 (medallion available for purchase at The Daily Stoic store)
- Philippe de Champaigne, Still Life With a Skull- Koheles 7:2
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
This week's Torah content is sponsored by a generous donor who wishes to remain anonymous, and told me, "No thanks needed!" so I'm not going to thank them.
Synopsis: In today’s episode I discuss my conflicted feelings about my imminent return to New York and how Marcus Aurelius helped me to accept, use, and “love my fate.”
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Putting The Stoic Jew Podcast on Sacred Pause
- My Stoic Injury and TSJ Summer Update
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:20 (medallion available for purchase at The Daily Stoic store)
- Thoreau, Walden----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.----------
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
This week's Torah content is sponsored by a generous donor who wishes to remain anonymous, and told me, "No thanks needed!" so I'm not going to thank them.
Synopsis: I accidentally lived a day to its fullest, and that day was Tishah b’Av. This episode is a debriefing in which I “follow the bright spots,” examining what led to this unexpected success.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last
- Teach Us to Count Our Days
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:69
- Seneca, Letter #101- Chip and Dan Heath, Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard- Tehilim 90:12
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus ----------
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss*. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.*----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
This week's Torah content is sponsored by a generous donor who wishes to remain anonymous, and told me, "No thanks needed!" so I'm not going to thank them.
Synopsis: In today’s (unplanned, longer-than-usual) episode I share some (unorganized, more meandering-than-usual) thoughts about how to apply Seneca’s Stoic technique of Premeditatio Malorum (“the premeditation of evils”) to the observance of Tishah b’Av.
Related Content:
- The Induction of Metaphysical Trauma (article and podcast)
- The Necessity of Metaphysical Trauma for National Teshuvah (article and podcast)
- Seneca - Letter #18: On Festivals and Fasting (Part 1)
- Seneca - Letter #18: On Festivals and Fasting (Part 2)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #18
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:8; 2:11; 7:22- R’ Yosef Kara on Eichah 3:38-40
- Rambam: Hilchos Teshuvah 5:2
- Elie Wiesel, Night- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago
---------- If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to Torah Content of Rabbi Schneeweiss:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
This week's Torah content is sponsored by the Reznik family in dedication to the loving memory of Silvia Tanzer (Sora Hesha bas Chaim Moshe) and Irving Tanzer (Yisroel ben Yechezkel).
Synopsis: Today’s episode was inspired by Irving Tanzer, in whose memory this content was dedicated. His granddaughter described him as "happy being happy," and I wanted to explore that idea through the lens of Stoicism and Judaism in light of an idea from Tara Brach and another idea from Anthony de Mello.
Related Content:
- Sameach b'Chelko as Unconditional Happiness
- A Stoic Perspective on Shavuos, True Wealth, and Constant Partying
Sources:
- Seneca, Consolation of Helvia, Section 5- Tara Brach, Trusting the Gold: Uncovering Your Natural Goodness- Anthony de Mello, Awareness: the Perils and Opportunities of Reality
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:8----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
---------- If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhase
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
This week's Torah content is sponsored by the Reznik family in dedication to the loving memory of Silvia Tanzer (Sora Hesha bas Chaim Moshe) and Irving Tanzer (Yisroel ben Yechezkel).
Synopsis: Today’s episode was as unplanned as my unplanned 4-hours of sleep last night. Thankfully, I was able to use the Stoic method of “the obstacle is the way” – or the Jewish method of “gam zu l’tovah” – to transform this “bad” sleep into a “good” sleep!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- The Obstacle is the Way to Knowledge of Hashem (Aurelius – Meditations 8:32-33)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 8:32----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus---------- If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
This week's Torah content is sponsored by the Reznik family in dedication to the loving memory of Silvia Tanzer (Sora Hesha bas Chaim Moshe) and Irving Tanzer (Yisroel ben Yechezkel).
Synopsis: Today’s episode focuses on something that Judaism and Stoicism have in common, namely, a recognition that it is the soul, not the body, that is the essence of a person. Our reading is supplemented by a real-world example, in the form of Claire Wineland, and a real-world mashal, as expounded upon by Tara Brach. This episode closes by relating this theme to the memory of Silvia Tanzer, in whose memory this content was dedicated.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #66: On Various Aspects of Virtue
- Tara Brach, Radical Compassion: Learning to Love Yourself and Your World with the Practice of RAIN, pp. 33-34; see the Wikipedia article Gold Buddha (statue) for more info
- Mishlei 11:22
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
---------- If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: My post-Sacred Pause summer has been filled with a number of experiments. One of these was proposed by my chavrusa yesterday, and is the subject of today’s episode. I hope that some of you decide to join us in this experiment, and pair up with your own gratitude accountability buddy. If you do, let me know how it goes!
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
- Aurelius - Meditations Book I: A Stoic Emperor's Thanksgiving
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 9:6; unattributed quotation; Meditations Chapter 1- Tara Brach, Rewiring for Happiness and Freedom, Part 1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Our Yeshiva: https://www.yeshivabneitorah.org/
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I’m back, after my much-needed Sacred Pause! In this episode I discuss my attempt to make my first episode of TSJ Season 5, which was thwarted by an injury, which was then converted into an episode. I also discuss my summer plans for TSJ.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- TSJ Intercession: Putting The Stoic Jew Podcast on Sacred Pause
- The Obstacle is the Way to Knowledge of Hashem
- The One-Page Article: a Summer 2021 Experiment (written version + audio version)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1:1:1-2----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle/Chase QuickPay and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail.com*. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor an article, shiur, or podcast episode, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor, you can reach me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.com*. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.----------
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Our Yeshiva: https://www.yeshivabneitorah.org/
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In this last episode of the season, which is the last season of the first year of this podcast, I reflect on the year as a whole and on the role of this podcast in my year. If this episode is more “rambly” than usual, it’s only because I had a lot to say, and had to decide (in real time) what ought to be said, and how. Shlomo ha’Melech says: “there is a time to be silent and a time to speak” (Koheles 3:7). I conclude this podcast by stating what my plan is for the summer, as far as this podcast and the rest of my Torah content is concerned.
Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last (Aurelius – Meditations 7:69)
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism (Epictetus – Discourses 2:18)
- Playing with Torah
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 12:23- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 17- Seneca, Letter #2- Tara Brach, Radical Acceptance ----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I share an interesting experience I had this past Sunday involving a fly, an unexpected burst of compassion, and renewed insight into a couple of pesukim I say in Ashrei three times each day – all of which enhanced my appreciation of the mission of The Stoic Jew Podcast.
Related Episodes:
- Stoic Strategies for Coping with the Kosher Ice Cream Truck (Aurelius – Meditations 2:1)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 9:8- Radak on Tehilim 145:9-10
- Talmud Bavli: Bava Metzia 85a
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode focuses on a practical application of Stoic techniques to one of the banes of my existence: the kosher ice cream truck, and its daemonic song. If you, too, have been subjected to this brutal strain and have employed your own successful coping strategies, please share them with me. As you’ll hear in my words and tone, this poses a real challenge for my own peace of mind.
Pure Torture:
- click here to hear the kosher ice cream truck song (but don’t say I didn’t warn you)
Related Episodes:
- Cold Showers, Complaining, and How We Cause Our Own Suffering (Epictetus – Enchiridion 5,20; Aurelius – Meditations 4:7)
- Mishlei 18:8 - Mishlei on Complaining (Part 1: Translation and Questions)
- Mishlei 18:8 - Mishlei on Complaining (Part 2: Ideas and Answers)
Related Articles:
- The Month of Av: Unlucky or Misunderstood? (Part 2 of 2)
Sources:
- Tehilim 91:1-7
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:1- Mishlei 18:8; 26:22
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode may be thought of as a further elucidation of the concepts I’ve been speaking about in relation to my Mezuzah Experiment that’s been going on for the last two weeks. Although you can definitely listen to this one on its own, it’ll make more sense in context to listen to the “Sacred Pause”-related episodes linked below. As for the experiment itself: we’ll see if the new trick I introduced today helps! (Think of this trick as being similar to those street signs that notify you that a stop sign is coming up.)
Related Episodes:
- TSJ Interlude: Korach and My Sacred Pause Mezuzah Experiment
- The Sacred Pause as Applied to Mezuzah (Aurelius – Meditations 5:23)
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism (Epictetus – Discourses 2:18)
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:3a
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 4:3:1- Tara Brach, Radical Compassion, pp.3-4,10
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Tefilin, u’Mezuzah, v’Sefer Torah 6:13
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Introduction
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we explore what is possibly a new technique or avenue of internalizing Stoic insights. The insight was sparked by Naval Ravikant’s explanation of why he takes cold showers, which – surprise surprise! – I couldn’t help but read through the lens of Tara Brach’s Radical Acceptance and Shlomo ha’Melech’s Sefer Mishlei. I decided to share this insight in its nascent form in order to facilitate my own thinking about it. If the idea seems unpolished or unclear, that’s why.
Related Episodes:
- Aurelius – Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
- Mishlei 18:8 - Mishlei on Complaining (Part 1: Translation and Questions)
- Mishlei 18:8 - Mishlei on Complaining (Part 2: Ideas and Answers)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 5,20- Aurelius, Meditations 4:7- Eric Jorgenson, The Almanack of Naval Ravikant, pp.169-170
- Mishlei 18:8; 26:22
- quotation attributed to Viktor Frankl
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode is a follow-up on the “Sacred Pause as Applied to Mezuzah” experiment I initiated last Friday. I was asked a question about this experiment which happens to relate to Parashas Korach. My response to this question clarifies what mitzvos are, how they are intended to function, and what I endeavor to do in my application of non-Jewish ideas and techniques to Torah.
Related Episodes:
- The Sacred Pause as Applied to Mezuzah (Aurelius – Meditations 5:23)
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism (Epictetus – Discourses 2:18)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
My apologies for the late upload this morning! This will be addressed in the episode itself.
Synopsis: Ordinarily I would say what the episode is about, but the nature of the episode has inclined me not to do so. I know that people tend to listen to these recordings in a variety of situations and while doing a variety of things, but I have four recommendations for this particular episode: (1) set aside 15 minutes to listen to this entire episode, all in one sitting; (2) listen to it while sitting down; (3) don't listen to it if you think you might be interrupted; and (4) don't listen to it at high speed.
As always, let me know how it goes!
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In past episodes I’ve voiced my own critiques of Epictetus’s brand of Stoicism. Specifically, I’ve indicted him for advocating heartlessness, inhumanity, and sociopathy. I recently came across a defense of Epictetus against such charges. While it’s too early to tell whether this defense addresses all of my problems, I am certain that the distinction he makes between feeling and emotion will be useful in understanding Epictetus’s teachings, and (I hope) in implementing them in a healthy manner.
Related Episodes:
- Thinking Aloud About My Fundamental Disagreement with Epictetus (Epictetus – Enchiridion 8, Discourses 3:8)
- How the Jedi Order Gives Stoicism a Bad Name, Part 1: Yoda (Epictetus: Enchiridion 3,7)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) 16- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 2:3
- Ward Farnsworth, The Practicing Stoic: A Philosophical User’s Manual, Chapter 13, pp. 244-247
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I chose this excerpt for two reasons: (1) Marcus Aurelius’s statements about the value of honesty, integrity, and lack of pretense complement the statements of the Rambam in Hilchos Deios on the same topic, which we recently covered in my Rambam Bekius shiur; (2) I love the analogy of the smelly goat!
Related Episodes of Rambam Bekius Podcast:
- Speech of Duplicity and Integrity (Hilchos Deios 2:6)
- How Can the Rambam Permit ANY Lying? (Hilchos Gezeilah v'Aveidah 14:12-13)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 11:15- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 2:6
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode is about a two-week experiment I’m in the midst of conducting: What will happen if I utilize Tara Brach’s “sacred pause” technique in order to more fully attend to the mezuzah and its ideational content? To my mind this is a good example of how there are things to learn from non-Jewish sources and practices which can allow us to better access the good of the Torah without corrupting or distorting it – which, let’s face it, is the premise of this entire podcast.
Related Episodes:
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism (Epictetus – Discourses 2:18)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 5:23- Tara Brach, Radical Acceptance- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Hakdamah
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Tefilin, u’Mezuzah, v’Sefer Torah 6:13
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I recorded this on Thursday morning about my state of mind on Thursday morning. The main topic of the episode is what I refer to as “phantom stress” – getting stressed out about elements of the past that my psyche is convinced still exist in the present and the future – and the approach I intend to use to address it. My musings on this topic led me to think about how I intend to approach this next phase in my teaching career. Right before I recorded my thoughts, I stumbled upon this excerpt from Seneca, which made a nice set of bookends for this episode.
Related Episodes:
- “The Sacred Pause” in Light of Stoicism and Judaism (Epictetus – Discourses 2:18)
- How to Enjoy the Present Day As If It’s Your Last (Aurelius – Meditations 7:69)
Sources:
- Seneca, On the Shortness of Life 7:4
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s musings were sparked by my recommendation of the Charlie Kaufman movie Synecdoche, New York, and my decision not to rewatch it because it’s too depressing. In today’s episode we discuss four perspectives on tragedies – three from the thinkers listed in the title, and the fourth from Judaism itself.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 11:6- Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, The Birth of Hope: Bechukotai 5779
- Mark Twain, Review of Master of Palmyra
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today we compare Epictetus’s treatment of the topic of speech vs. silence with that of the Rambam. We examined the latter in-depth and at length in our Rambam Bekius podcast (see show notes for links to the relevant episodes), but in this episode, we’ll content ourselves with broad observations about how their approaches differ in light of Stoicism and Judaism in general.
Related Episodes of Rambam Bekius Podcast:
- A Discussion About Silence (Hilchos Deios 2:4)
- Refining Our Understanding of Silence AND All of Hilchos Deios (Hilchos Deios 2:4)
- The Final Word on Silence (Hilchos Deios 2:4-6)
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 33- Rambam, Commentary on Avos 1:17
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Guide to the Torah Content of Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2021/04/links-to-torah-content-of-rabbi-matt.html
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: If you’re looking for new ideas and insights on Stoicism and Judaism, then MAYBE this episode isn’t for you. I stumbled upon these words of Marcus Aurelius which resonated with me with regards to the dilemma I find myself in. Now that Lomdeha is officially over, I need to decide the best way to make up for that loss of income. I found the multifaceted analogy provided by Aurelius and Epictetus to be helpful for thinking about this crossroads at which I find myself, and I ended up using this episode to think out loud. If Aurelius used his Meditations for this purpose, then I can certainly use my podcast that way!
Related Episodes:
- TSJ Interlude - 37th Birthday Reflections: On the Allegory of the Soldier
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:7- Epictetus, Discourses 3:24
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I'm posting Friday's episode now, on Thursday afternoon, 45 minutes before the beginning of the wedding that I discuss in the episode itself, just in case any of my listeners are also planning on attending this same wedding and would like to hear my "Stoic Jew thoughts" going into it. Warning: it's a bit "Three Weeks / Tishah b'Av"-esque. But I think that's a good thing.
Sources:
- Yirmiyahu 7:32-34; 16:8-12; 25:8-14; 33:10-11
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This episode begins with a move advocated by Epictetus called “making use of impressions.” We then read a lengthy excerpt from Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach about a technique she refers to as “The Sacred Pause.” After comparing and contrast this technique with that of Epictetus, we consider the role that The Sacred Pause might play in Judaism, specifically with regards to mitzvos.
Related Episodes:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
- Seneca Letter #2 - On Doing Nothing (Part 3 of 4) Naval Ravikant's Take
- Seneca Letter #2 - On Doing Nothing (Part 4 of 4) The Experiment
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18- Brach, Radical Acceptance, pp. 49-53
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This episode was brought to you by insomnia, burnout, Iron Archer, human nature, and the human struggle. And if you were one of the 7-10 individuals across the Atlantic who woke up to discover that there was no new episode this morning, this is why.
Related Episodes:
- Thank Iron Archer (and IFS) for Today’s Non-Episode Episode
- On Deviating from Self-Imposed Routines (Epictetus: Enchiridion 50)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 8:32-33- Bruce Lee
- Mishlei 3:6, with Radak
- Rambam: Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 3:2
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: That’s right – 150 episodes! I had various ideas of what I wanted to talk about, but in the end, I decided to just hit record and think my scattered thoughts out loud, starting with one of my favorite quotations from Seneca regarding my craft.
Related Episodes:
- TSJ Milestone - Reflections on Our 100th Episode (!) and Epictetus on Becoming a Good Stoic Jew
- Thank You to My Students, Be They Many or Few (Seneca: Letter #7 - On Crowds, Conclusion)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #7
- other sources I quoted but don’t remember because I did this one off the cuff and I don’t want to go back and listen to it in order to look them up, but if you remember please tell me and I’ll add them
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s (short!) episode was brought to you by my annoying ticking clock, and my ineffective methods for dealing with the annoyance. The real-world example I talk about here illustrates one of my personal pitfalls in applying Stoicism – one which is remedied by Mishlei. As always, the devil is in the details.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 1:6
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode was inspired by a comment someone made on Facebook which derisively referred to Ryan Holiday’s books on Stoicism as “the pop version of Stoic literature.” This comment rubbed me the wrong way, but I couldn’t put my finger on why … until I thought it through by making this episode.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapters 49 and 46- Shir ha’Shirim Rabbah 1:1
- Radak on Tehilim 119:6
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In past episodes we’ve talked about how “live each day as if it might be your last” is easy to say but difficult to implement. One of the biggest obstacles to this mentality is the fact that, statistically speaking, it’s likely that this will NOT be your last day. This past (last?) Yom Tov I stumbled upon a way to overcome this obstacle. Like many ideas in Stoicism and Mishlei, this one isn’t a chidush (novel insight) – and yet, it helped me to truly be present in the simchas ha’chag (joy of the festival), and I hope I’ll be able to bring this awareness into what remains of my post-chag life.
Related Episode: TSJ Interlude - Remembering Shabbos, Remembering Death, and Appreciating Life
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 7:69
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I didn’t intend to record TWO episodes about Shavuos, but in my efforts to answer a student’s question on a passage from Aurelius’s Meditations, we ended up going there. If you’ve ever wondered what the relationship is between the agricultural theme of Shavuos (“chag ha’katzir,” the harvest festival) and the historical theme (“zman matan Toraseinu,” the time of the giving of our Torah), perhaps Marcus Aurelius has an answer.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 2:3- Albert Einstein quotation (source unknown)
- Yirmiyahu 9:22-23
- Talmud Bavli: Bava Kama 17a
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode is a candid expression of my personal thoughts and feelings about the current situation in Israel. If this upsets you, I’m sorry, but I felt that it would be beneficial to honestly express my thoughts and feelings. As Rambam said:
“[W]hen I have a difficult subject before me – when I find the road narrow, and can see no other way of teaching a well established truth except by pleasing one intelligent man and displeasing ten thousand fools – I prefer to address myself to the one man, and to take no notice whatsoever of the condemnation of the multitude. I prefer to extricate that intelligent man from his embarrassment and show him the cause of his perplexity, so that he may attain perfection and be at peace.”
I hope that someone finds value in what I have to say.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I didn’t set out to record an episode about a Stoic perspective on Shavuos, and yet, here we are! It just so happens that the letter of Seneca we’ve been reading is perfectly aligned with Judaism’s stance on this topic, and it just so happens that this topic is relevant to Shavuos.
For my shiur on the theme of Shavuos, click here for the podcast version, click here for the YouTube version, and click here for the written version.
Sources:
- Seneca, Consolation of Helvia, #11
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:12
- Mishlei 15:15 with the commentary of the Meiri
- Avos 4:1
- Talmud Bavli Nedarim 41a
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Today’s episode is l’zeicher nishmas Eliezer ben Hendel.
Synopsis: Today we continue reading from Seneca’s letter of consolation to his mother, Helvia. This excerpt touches upon a number of themes without any common thread that I perceived. Some of these ideas we’ve never discussed and others are fundamental but expressed with Seneca’s unparalleled eloquence.
For my article on the abbreviation of ת"ח as תלמיד חכמים, click here.
Sources:
- Seneca: Consolation of Helvia, #3-5
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Yesterday was Mother’s Day and I decided to see if I could find any Stoic writings on that theme. I selected an excerpt from Seneca’s letter of consolation to his own mother, which – as the title reflects – could be perceived as rather ruthless. But I do believe that if we understand the wisdom of his words, which are paralleled by Judaism’s laws of mourning, we will see that his seemingly harsh approach shows how capable and courageous of a person he believed his mother was.
P.S. "premeditatio malorum" (“the pre-meditation of evils”) is the phrase I was searching for at the end! I thought of it RIGHT when I stopped the recording.
Sources:
- Seneca: Consolation of Helvia
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 13:11-12
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today we conclude our reading of Seneca’s letter to Lucilius on the topic of friendship and sharing knowledge. All the points Seneca makes in this part of the letter resonated with me on a personal level, in light of my experience as a teacher and as someone who is blessed to live in a community of chachamim.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #6 – On Friendship and the Sharing of Knowledge
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 6:2
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today we begin reading a letter from Seneca to his friend and student, Lucilius, about the nature of a true friendship. His description of such a friendship conforms to the Rambam’s explanation of the type of friend we are commanded by the Sages to acquire for ourselves at all costs.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #6 – On Friendship and the Sharing of Knowledge
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 2:1
- Rambam: Commentary on the Mishnah, Avos 1:6
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Have you ever heard of the tragedy of Golden Boy, the shirt? In today’s episode I will recount for you my own version of that tale – but one which ends on a happy note. I’m sure I’ve read these passages from Epictetus in the past, but as I mentioned at the outset of this week, reviewing Stoic ideas is critical for internalizing them, and reviewing them in conjunction with real-world examples is the most effective way to do that.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapters 4 and 11- I Divrei ha’Yamim 29:14
- Seinfeld, “The Marine Biologist”
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s reading is from a chapter in Epictetus’s handbook which is loaded with weighty concepts. Our focus, however, will be on a single point. Stoicism and Judaism both prompt us to turn our focus inwards, and to recognize how we are complicit in our own suffering. However, Shlomo ha’Melech (King Solomon) takes a very different direction in Sefer Mishlei (The Book of Proverbs) than Epictetus does in his brand of Stoicism. In this episode we attempt to gain clarity on that difference, and we utilize a powerful question (divided into three sub-questions) formulated by coach Jerry Colonna for helping us assess our complicity in our own suffering.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 5- Tim Ferriss interview: Jerry Colonna — The Coach with the Spider Tattoo (#373)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Earlier this year I recorded an episode entitled “Stoic Compassion for Those Who Stumble.” Today I decided to review the same passages we read in that episode, adding a new layer from IFS (Internal Family Systems). I did my best to steer clear of going too much into IFS and tried to keep the ideas in as “normal sounding” terms as possible. I hope this is as clear and useful to you as it is to me!
Related Episodes:
- On Stoic Compassion for Those Who Stumble (Aurelius – Meditations 6:27; 7:22,26)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 6:27; 7:22,26
- Rambam, Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:11
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I recorded today’s episode last week a couple of hours before Shabbos. I was in a particularly contemplative mood and decided to express my thoughts verbally. I wasn’t sure whether I was going to post it, for fear of it being TOO personal or TOO open, but I listened to it again today and deemed it shareable. I had initially planned to post it on Monday (as you’ll hear me say in the recording), but I felt it would be better to post on Erev Shabbos so that it might inspire similar thoughts in other people.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode was an experiment prompted by an IFS (Internal Family Systems) self-therapy session I had in which I attempted to gain insight into why I didn’t want to record an episode today. I debated whether to record this, and even after that, I debated whether to publish it. In the end I decided that even though I don’t explain the IFS aspect in detail, and it comes across as somewhat crazy sounding, there’s enough Stoic content to likely be of use to somebody. And who knows? Perhaps my interest and practice of IFS will lead to new vistas within Stoicism, or within my own Stoic development!
Resources:
- https://ifs-institute.com/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_Family_Systems_Model
- Tim Ferris’s interview with Dr. Richard Schwartz, founder of IFS (which is how I initially stumbled upon IFS)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we examine another example of a harsh truth taught by Epictetus in (what I deem to be) too harsh of a manner. The points he makes are compelling but he frames them in a way that risks alienating his audience with his absolutism. Are matters as black-and-white as he makes them seem? Is there a middle ground? And if there isn’t, is there another way he could craft his message to increase the chances that his listeners will implement it successfully, or is this really the only way? Most interesting to me is the question of whether this type of teaching – which we’ve seen before – is a stylistic quirk of Epictetus, or whether it is inherent in his brand of Stoicism.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 4:2
- Musonius Rufus, quoting Theognis of Megara Lectures 11.53.21-22
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Deios 6:1
- I Melachim 18:21
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In yesterday’s episode we discussed Epictetus’s method of “using impressions” to change our experience of life. In today’s episode Marcus Aurelius gives us an impressions-based technique for dealing with injuries and insults from our fellow human beings – one which might help us to implement the loftier and more philosophically attuned methods mentioned elsewhere by Aurelius and by the Rambam.
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 6:20; 2:1
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Deios 7:7
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Last month I made an episode in which I objected to Marcus Aurelius’s practice of deriding food, drink, and other material enjoyments by means of hyperrealistic “objective” descriptions (e.g. describing coffee as “hot bean juice”). In today’s episode we reexamine that technique and recognize its place in our lives.
Related Episodes:
- Coffee: One of Life’s Delights or Just Hot Bean Juice? (Aurelius – Meditations 6:13)
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 6:13
- Epictetus, Discourses 2.18.24-25
- Epictetus, Enchiridion 20
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today is Friday, and you know what that means: time for The Stoic Jew Q&A! As you can tell from the title of the episode, today’s question is not so much of a question (nor was it submitted as such) but a request. This is not the first time I’ve been asked to slow down, but it is the first time I’ve examined this personal fault of style through the perspectives of Seneca and the Rambam. Will this change anything? I sure hope so! Either way, acknowledging and understanding the problem is a step in the right direction.
Related Episode: How to Deal with Blushing, Stage Fright, and Other “Uncontrollable” Reactions (Seneca Letter #11 – On the Blush of Modesty)
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #40: On the Proper Style for a Philosopher’s Discourse
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 2:5; 5:7
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Warning – if you’re expecting a clear, neatly packaged, practical insight, then I advise you to skip this episode and listen to another one. Epictetus and I have been gradually coming to a head, and I finally decided to attempt to talk about it. The key word here is “attempt.” On the one hand, I am aware that Epictetus’s view of The Good is at odds with that of the Torah. On the other hand, his view has merit and fits into the Torah’s framework. The question is: How? Wherein is he mistaken and wherein is he correct? I didn’t manage to answer these questions, but I hope that I was at least successful in raising them in my 15 minutes of rambling this morning. If you have thoughts on any of this, I’m all ears.
Related Episodes:
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
- Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!
- TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 3:8- Keith Seddon, Epictetus’ Handbook and the Tablet of Cebes (pp.10-11)
- Bereishis Rabbah on 1:31 (9:5)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode was inspired by a coffee-related mishap which led to a critique of Epictetus’s Stoicism, in contrast to Shlomo ha’Melech’s foundational Stoicism in Mishlei. Epictetus isn’t entirely at fault here, but in my opinion, the way he teaches Stoicism lends itself to these fallacious ways of thinking.
For my other episode about coffee and Stoicism, check out Coffee: One of Life’s Delights or Just Hot Bean Juice? (Aurelius – Meditations 6:13).
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 8- Epictetus, Discourses 1:6 - Mishlei (the whole book)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we discuss the different perspectives on sleep, as reflected in the teachings of Marcus Aurelius and the Rambam. I hesitate to characterize this as “the Stoic view on sleep” because this was literally the only Stoic teaching I could find on the topic, but perhaps that fact is significant in and of itself. Regardless, I do think that this is a point in which Judaism and Stoicism differ, and I think that the difference is significant in terms of how we approach our animalistic nature.
If you're interested in my shiurim on the berachah of ha'Mapil, here are the links to the shiurim YouTube (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4) and on my Tefilah podcast (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4).
Sources:
- Aurelius, Meditations 8:12
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 3:2-3
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Tefilah 7:1
- Sifre Devarim 6:5 (Piska 32)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today will be our last episode on Letter #123 (for now, at least). In this excerpt Seneca provides us with further guidance on how to resist the “counterfeit Stoicism” we read about last time. His method parallels that of the Rambam in Hilchos Deios and Shemoneh Perakim, although it’s not exactly the same. The reason I wanted to record this episode was because of a hidden gem: a Mishleic perspective Seneca gives us which can help us not to give in to the gravitational pull of pleasure.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #123: On the Conflict Between Pleasure and Virtue
- Rambam: Peirush ha’Mishnayos, Shemoneh Perakim Chapter 4
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we read an example of a particularly insidious form of rationalization – one in which your yetzer ha’ra uses a counterfeit version of the value system you’ve embraced and persuades you to engage in self-destructive behavior, thinking that you’re making progress. And when this rationalization is promoted by the people you spend time with every day, then the potential for catastrophe is even greater.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #123: On the Conflict Between Pleasure and Virtue
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 3:1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Yesterday we discussed the “disease” of the relative value system, and the pain and unhappiness that comes from comparing yourself to others. Today we discuss the “cure” for this disease, as prescribed by Seneca and the Rambam. Some may find this remedy to be difficult to implement in practice, but I argue that even if a total implementation is unrealistic, we can at least work on making an effort to move in the right direction.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #123: On the Conflict Between Pleasure and Virtue
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deios 6:1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we continue reading Seneca’s Letter #123. In this excerpt he discusses what we might view as a very “modern” problem, namely, desiring possessions simply because everyone else seems to own them. As value as this lesson is in its own right, I think it applies equally to things that really matter, such as our learning, our service of Hashem, and how we live. This lesson was first introduced to me by my 3rd grade teacher, Ms. Wilkinson, whose lesson from the 1st day of 3rd grade I recount and apply to the subject at hand. In tomorrow’s episode we’ll read Seneca’s advice about how NOT to be seduced by the compulsion to compare oneself to others.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #123: On the Conflict Between Pleasure and Virtue
- Ms. Wilkinson’s lesson from Day #1 of 3rd grade (baal peh)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I liked the letter we started yesterday so much that I decided to continue it in today’s episode. Because Rosh Chodesh and its newfound significance (thanks to Sforno’s idea, which I discussed in Season 3 Episode 17) has been on my mind, I decided to use Seneca’s words as a springboard to suggest a method for using Rosh Chodesh as a tool for measuring one’s personal progress, whether in Stoicism, Judaism, or any other area of development. I hope this hobbling together of disparate topics is coherent enough to be useful!
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #123: On the Conflict Between Pleasure and Virtue
- Sforno on Shemos 12:2
- Tehilim 90:12 (click here for the episode on this)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: We’re back for Season 4 of The Stoic Jew podcast! In today’s episode we hear Seneca’s strategy for making his bad bread taste good – a strategy which is also taught by Shlomo ha’Melech in Mishlei. Although it may look like both of them are advocating asceticism, they are really doing the opposite: showing you how to maximize pleasure in the physical world by focusing your efforts on your inner world, which is the only thing that is truly within your control.
Sources:
- Seneca, Letter #123: On the Conflict Between Pleasure and Virtue
- Mishlei 17:1
- Avos 6:4
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode I reflect on my own chipazon-ridden journey from Pesach 5780 to Pesach 5781 in light of a memento mori passage from Aurelius and a beautiful commentary of Sforno on the mitzvah of Rosh Chodesh. I hope the ideas and personal reflections I share prompt similar thoughts in you. If you’d like to share them with me, I would be happy to listen.
Aurelius – Meditations 4:47
Just as if God told you, “tomorrow you will be dead, or in any case, the day after tomorrow,” you would no longer be making that day after important any more than tomorrow, unless you are a utter coward (for the difference is a mere trifle) – in the same way count it no great matter to live to a year that is an infinite distance off rather than till tomorrow.
שמות יב:בהַחֹדֶשׁ הַזֶּה לָכֶם רֹאשׁ חֳדָשִׁים רִאשׁוֹן הוּא לָכֶם לְחׇדְשֵׁי הַשָּׁנָה:
Shemos 12:2
This month is for you the first of the months – the first for you of the months of the year.
ספורנו – שמות יב:ב
החדש הזה לכם ראש חדשים – מכאן ואילך יהיו החדשים שלכם, לעשות בהם כרצונכם, אבל בימי השעבוד לא היו ימיכם שלכם, אבל היו לעבודת אחרים ורצונם. לפיכך ראשון הוא לכם לחדשי השנה – כי בו התחיל מציאותכם הבחיריי.
Sforno – Shemos 12:2
This month is for you the first of the months – from here and onwards, the months will be yours, to do with them as you will, but during the days of slavery your days were not your own: they were for the servitude of others, and their will. Therefore, it is the first for you of the months of the year – for on it your free existence will commence.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: I decided to record at least one episode commenting on the overlap between the Stoic and Jewish views on “true freedom.” We begin with an excerpt from Epictetus’s Discourses in which he addresses the complaint of the student who is interrupted in his studies by life’s obligations. We then read the Abravanel’s commentary on Chazal’s statement, “the only one who is free is someone who is involved in Torah,” and explain how this reflects the same takeaway message as Epictetus – albeit within the Torah’s value system.
Epictetus – Discourses 4:4 – To those who are desirous of passing life in tranquilityRemember that not only the desire of power and of riches makes us mean and subject to others, but even the desire of tranquility, and of leisure, and of traveling abroad, and of learning. For, to speak plainly, whatever the external thing may be, the value which we set upon it places us in subjection to others. What, then, is the difference between desiring to be a senator or not desiring to be one; what is the difference between desiring power or being content with a private station; what is the difference between saying, "I am unhappy, I have nothing, to do, but I am bound to my books as a corpse" or saying, "I am unhappy, I have no leisure for reading"? For as salutations and power are things external and independent of the will, so is a book. For what purpose do you choose to read? Tell me. For if you only direct your purpose to being amused or learning something, you are a silly fellow and incapable of enduring labor. But if you refer reading to the proper end, what else is this than a tranquil and happy life? But if reading does not secure for you a happy and tranquil life, what is the use of it? “But it does secure this," the man replies, "and for this reason I am vexed that I am deprived of it." And what is this tranquil and happy life, which any man can impede? I do not say Caesar or Caesar's friend, but a crow, a piper, a fever, and thirty thousand other things! But a tranquil and happy life contains nothing so sure as continuity and freedom from obstacle.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 4:4- Avos 6:2
- Abravanel, Nachalas Avos 6:2
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"Th
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: This episode is about how I decided to record an episode today by deciding not to record an episode today and thinking about my decision not to record an episode today. If you’d like to hear what my own neuroses sound like when filtered through the mesh of Stoic teachings, then this episode is for you. Also, this may or may not be the last episode before I got on break for Pesach.
Sources:
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 50- Rabbi Moskowitz (anecdote)
- James Clear, Atomic Habits, pp.200-201
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we continue our exploration of the relationship between Judaism, Stoicism, and the teachings of the Jedi Order as depicted in George Lucas’s Star Wars. We focus on a single statement made by Obi-Wan Kenobi to Luke Skywalker in Return of the Jedi, which we examine in light of Seneca’s Letter #71, a famous Rashi on Devarim 6:5, and Ralbag’s intro to Gan Eden.
Sources:
- Pop Culture Detective: The Case Against the Jedi Order- George Lucas: Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi- Seneca: Letter #9; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letter
- Seneca: Letter #71; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letter
- Keith Seddon: Stoic Serenity: A Practical Course on Finding Inner Peace, pp. 140-141
- Devarim 6:5, Rashi
- Ralbag: Commentary on Sefer Bereishis, Introduction to Section 8
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we explore the relationship between Judaism, Stoicism, AND the Jedi Order. The YouTuber Pop Culture Detective produced a video essay entitled “The Case Against the Jedi Order” in which he raises a number of valid criticisms against the philosophy of the Jedi as depicted in George Lucas’s Star Wars movies and characterizes their philosophy as “Stoicism.” Over these next two episodes we will discuss which of his critiques are justified and to what extent, and compare and contrast them with Judaism’s treatment of the same topics.
Sources:
- Pop Culture Detective: The Case Against the Jedi Order- George Lucas: Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith- Epictetus: Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapters 3, 7- Seneca: Letter #9; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letter
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchos Avel 13:11-12
- George Lucas: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Our Yeshiva: https://www.yeshivabneitorah.org/
Our Women's Program: https://www.lomdeha.org/
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode focuses on an unusual letter from Seneca in which he explains his motive for studying abstract philosophical questions about the universe. I was surprised that Seneca was even interested in such questions in the first place, but I was absolutely flabbergasted by the reason he gave for his interest in thinking about such questions. As this title implies, it was a very non-Jewish reason. His phrasing reminded me of a similar phrase used by the Rambam, which we discuss towards the end of the episode, but the differences between them are equally noteworthy.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #65; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letter
- Aurelius: Meditations 9:40----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode should be regarded as a brief introduction to a much broader topic: the similarities and differences between the Stoic and Jewish approaches to tefilah (prayer). We examine sources from Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, and Epictetus – all of which are encapsulated in a single quotation attributed to Bruce Lee.
In this episode I deliberately resisted the temptation to give a full exposition of my understanding of tefilah, since this would be difficult to do within the time frame of the episode. For an elaboration on my understanding of tefilah based on Jewish sources, I recommend listening to a shiur I gave on 5/24/20 entitled Refaeinu and the Methodology of Tefilah.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #67; click here to access the full text of Seneca’s letter
- Aurelius: Meditations 9:40- Bruce Lee
- Avos 2:4
- Epictetus: Enchiridion (The Handbook) Chapter 8- Epictetus: Discourses 1:6:37----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today is Friday, and you know what that means - it's another episode of TSJ Q&A! Here is today's question:
"Based purely on listening to your podcast and listening to the teachings of the Stoic thinkers, it’s evident that they were rational thinkers who utilized analytical thinking in their philosophy. However, as you say in your podcast, they had their own thoughts on metaphysics which we as Jews believe to be false. So I guess my question is: How do such intelligent people like the Stoics come to (what we would call) such false conclusions about how the world works from a metaphysical perspective? Can we chalk it all up to 'all humans are imperfect and subject to influence of their emotions and their surroundings'? It just seems rather paradoxical that the Stoics in particular, who seem to be able to filter out their emotions so well, would allow themselves to be influenced by emotions in the area of metaphysics."
Sources:
- Saadia Gaon, Emunos v'Deos (The Book of Beliefs & Opinions), Introduction, Sections VI,II
- Seneca: Letter #64; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode was brought to you by Seneca and Starbucks. Thoughts of death amid the taste and aroma of Café Verona led me to ponder a line from “Our Town” and contrast it with a passage in the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius. As we’ll see, the point he makes has validity, but only up to a point.
Aurelius – Meditations 6:13When we have meat before us and other food, we must say to ourselves: “This is the dead body of a fish, and this is the dead body of a bird or of a pig, and again, this Falernian [wine] is only a little grape juice, and this purple robe some sheep’s wool died with the blood of a shellfish” … Surely these are excellent imaginations, going to the heart of actual facts and penetrating them so as to see the kind of things they really are. This is how we should act throughout life: where there are things that seem worthy of great estimation, we ought to lay them bare and look at their worthlessness and strip them of all the words by which they are exalted. For the outward show [of things] is a wonderful perverter of reason, and when we are certain the things we are dealing with are worth the trouble, that is when it cheats us most.
Thornton Wilder – Our Town, Act IIIGood-by, Good-by, world. Good-by, Grover's Corners … Mama and Papa. Good-by to clocks ticking … and Mama's sunflowers. And food and coffee. And new-ironed dresses and hot baths … and sleeping and waking up. Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode was inspired by a rather hostile reaction online to a #prequeltorahmeme I made which featured the word “rational.” In this episode we examine the manner in which Seneca, Epictetus, and Shlomo ha’Melech introduce their readers to the life of rationality, and discuss why it is, perhaps, the best method of making this introduction.
Sources:
- George Lucas, Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones- Seneca: Letter #66; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letter
- Epictetus: Discourses 1:1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we read a beautiful excerpt from a letter about on an old theme that Seneca is a master of eloquence: the fact that we do not know when we will die. After reading the letter I reflect on a very small example of how this came to mind recently. Be sure to stick around until after the usual outro, because I remembered one more point I wanted to make before stopping the recording.
Seneca: Letter #101
Therefore, my dear Lucilius, begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life. He who has thus prepared himself, he whose daily life has been a rounded whole, is easy in his mind; but those who live for hope alone find that the immediate future always slips from their grasp and that greed steals along in its place, and the fear of death, a curse which lays a curse upon everything else.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #101; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
- Tehilim 90:12; click here for the episode of TSJ on that pasuk, and check out my Tehilim shiur on it as well (Part 1 and Part 2)
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: HAPPY MARCUS AURELIUS DAY! Oh, what’s that? You didn’t KNOW that March 8th in the year 161 is the day that Marcus Aurelius became emperor? No worries – neither did I! In honor of this day we’ll be taking a brief break from Seneca’s letters to examine a topic through the lenses of Marcus Aurelius, Richard Mitchell, and Rabbi Moskowitz. We’ve touched upon this topic before, but I have a feeling that this is one that could use some review.
Sources:
- Marcus Aurelius: Meditations6:27; 7:22,26
- Richard Mitchell, The Gift of Fire (Introduction)
- Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:11
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today we're going to try an experiment ... The Stoic Jew Q&A! This experiment was suggested by my friend, Albert, and our first question was submitted (unknowingly) by another friend, Yoel Schaper, who asked me the question: "Are you a Stoic?" If you enjoy this episode, please send me more questions about the relationship between Stoicism and Judaism, about particular Stoic or Jewish ideas, or about real-world applications and scenarios. Maybe we can make this a monthly or a weekly thing!
Be sure to check out Yoel's podcast, The Johan Rene Podcast, if you're interested in "a wacky Dutch immigrant to the US talking about philosophy, religion, political thought, and culture."
Epictetus – Enchiridion (The Handbook) 48:1-2[1] The condition and character of the uneducated person (idiotes) is this: they never look for benefit or harm to come from themselves, but from external things. The condition and character of the philosopher (philosophos) is this: they look for every benefit and harm to come from themselves. [2] The signs that someone is making progress (prokopto) are these they blame no one, they praise no one, they find fault with no one, they accuse no one, they never say anything of themselves as though they amount to something or know anything. When they are impeded or hindered, they blame themselves. If someone praises them, they laugh inwardly at the person who praises them, and if anyone censures them, they make no defense. They go about as if they were sick, cautious not to disturb what is healing before they are fully recovered.
Epictetus – Enchiridion (The Handbook) 51:1-3
This is how Socrates attained perfection, by paying attention to nothing but reason in everything that he encountered. But even if you are not yet Socrates, you should live as someone who wishes to be Socrates.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we read Seneca’s lengthy comparison of the dingy “old school” Roman baths to the “new” luxurious style, and the habits and aversions of the newer generation to that of the old. It feels like Seneca talking about our present circumstances, albeit with different particulars. And as difficult as it would be for a modern Roman to be content with the old bathing conventions, it is just as difficult for us to give up the luxuries which masquerade as necessities.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #86; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
- Saadia Gaon: Introduction to Sefer Mishlei
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today’s episode was unplanned. I was feeling a bit emotionally raw on Tuesday night when I recorded this (for reasons I discuss on the podcast), and I decided to express what was on my mind and just let that take the episode wherever it went.
Seneca – Letter #7 (conclusion)
In order, however, that I may not today have learned exclusively for myself, I shall share with you three excellent sayings, of the same general purport, which have come to my attention. This letter will give you one of them as payment of my debt; the other two you may accept as a contribution in advance. Democritus says: “One man means as much to me as a multitude, and a multitude only as much as one man.” The following also was nobly spoken by someone or other, for it is doubtful who the author was; when asked what was the object of all the trouble he took over a piece of craftsmanship when it would never reach more than a very few people, he replied: “A few is enough for me; so is one; and so is none.” The third saying — and a noteworthy one, too — is by Epicurus, written to one of the partners of his studies: “I write this not for the many, but for you; each of us is enough of an audience for the other.”
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #7; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Talmud Torah 5:12-13
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we discuss Seneca’s surprisingly hardline assertion that there is absolutely nothing that can be done to avoid blushing and other symptoms of stage fright. As a public speaking teacher, I take issue with this, and I support my opposition by citing some core teachings of Epictetus and Mishlei. If any of you have had success conquering fear of public speaking by using methods such as this, I’d love to hear about them!
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #11; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
- Epictetus, Enchiridion (Handbook) 1:5
- Epictetus, Discourses 2:18:24-25
- Mishlei 3:21-26
For an elaboration on Epictetus's approach to dealing with "impressions," check out the episode of TSJ entitled Aurelius - Meditations 4:22: That's a Jacket, Not a Bad Cat!and the follow-up episode entitled TSJ Interlude - I Got Got By An Impression!
I referenced a study about dating on a bridge. I haven't yet had the time to look into this, but it's mentioned in the Wikipedia article on Misattribution of Arousal.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: We’re going to jump around a bit from letter to letter and topic to topic for the next couple of weeks. In today’s episode we read about Seneca’s reluctance to advise his student, Lucilius, from afar. The reasoning he provides is a core tenet of Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do, which is the foundation of my approach to teaching. Over the course of thinking about this I realized that Seneca’s words also shed light on why Pirkei Avos isn’t for everyone.
Seneca: Letter #22 – On the Futility of Halfway Measures (excerpt)You understand by this time that you must withdraw yourself from those showy and depraved pursuits; but you still wish to know how this may be accomplished. There are certain things which can be pointed out only by someone who is present. The physician cannot prescribe by letter the proper time for eating or bathing; he must feel the pulse. There is an old adage about gladiators—that they plan their fight in the ring; as they intently watch, something in the adversary’s glance, some movement of his hand, even some slight bending of his body, gives a warning.
We can formulate general rules and commit them to writing, as to what is usually done, or ought to be done; such advice may be given, not only to our absent friends, but also to succeeding generations. In regard, however, to that second question—when or how your plan is to be carried out—no one will advise at long range; we must take counsel in the presence of the actual situation.
You must be not only present in the body, but watchful in mind, if you would avail yourself of the fleeting opportunity. Accordingly, look about you for the opportunity; if you see it, grasp it, and with all your energy and with all your strength devote yourself to this task—to rid yourself of those business duties.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #22; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letters
- Bruce Lee, Tao of Jeet Kune Do- Bava Kama 30a
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: On Asarah ba’Teves, our most recent fast day, we read Seneca’s Letter #18 and examined the differences between the Stoic and Jewish views of fasting. In today’s episode we focus on the “on festivals” part of his letter, in which Seneca advises his student Lucilius on how the philosopher differentiates his own behavior from that of the drunken crowd when celebrating Saturnalia. It turns out that the approach he advocates is not too dissimilar to how talmidei chacham (Torah scholars) ought to conduct themselves when celebrating Purim, even while drinking.
Note: there will be no new episode tomorrow. If you would still like to get your daily dose of Stoicism and Torah, I recommend reviewing/listening to Part 1 of Seneca’s Letter #18 on Taanis Esther today, and then listening to this episode on Purim tomorrow.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #18; click here to access the full text of Seneca's letters
- Meiri on Megilah 7b
- many other sources I mentioned which I'm too lazy to dig up right now, but will try to supply later on
Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this 5-question survey: https://forms.gle/Vb1JbTwetwZQyzKs5
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we take a deeper dive into the letter we read yesterday, beginning with a reflection on a mistake often made by some Torah educators, including myself. We then follow up with a counterpoint (which I accidentally teased in yesterday’s episode) examining a topic in this week’s parashah – the aesthetic perfection of the Kohanim and their clothing – in light of Seneca’s comments about the attire of philosophers.
Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this 5-question survey: https://forms.gle/Vb1JbTwetwZQyzKs5
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #5; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
- Sefer ha’Chinuch: Mitzvah #275
- my article, Parashas Emor: Does Hashem Hate Unibrows?
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: In today’s episode we begin a new letter in which Seneca warns his student Lucilius about becoming supercilious in his philosophical lifestyle and its external trappings. We compare Seneca’s advice to the guidelines for how a chacham (wise man) should be behave in the framework of kidush ha’shem (sanctifying God’s name) and in the framework of hilchos deos (the laws of character traits).
Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this 5-question survey: https://forms.gle/Vb1JbTwetwZQyzKs5
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #5; click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Yesodei ha’Toah 5:11
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Deos 5:1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Today we celebrate our 100th episode! In this episode I reflect on the production of this podcast through the perspectives provided by Epictetus, Aurelius, Thoreau, and Rabbi Moskowitz. (And yes, Epictetus actually talks about what makes someone a good Stoic Jew.)
Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this 5-question survey: https://forms.gle/Vb1JbTwetwZQyzKs5
Sources:
- Epictetus: Discourses 2:18,9
- Aurelius: Meditations 5:16
- Thoreau … well, I thought this quotation was from Thoreau, but it might actually be a misattribution, and was authored by Wilfred Arlan Peterson
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
In today’s episode we wrap up this discussion of friendship with an excerpt from another letter about friendship. I reflect on some realizations I had about friendship during the pandemic in light of these ideas – realizations that ended up sounding less earth-shatteringly profound when I said them out loud than they seemed in my head when I hit record. Can’t win ‘em all!
Seneca Letter #9: On Philosophy and FriendshipThere is this difference between ourselves and the other school: our ideal wise man feels his troubles, but overcomes them; their wise man does not even feel them. But we and they alike hold this idea—that the wise man is self-sufficient. Nevertheless, he desires friends, neighbours, and associates, no matter how much he is sufficient unto himself.
Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Seneca states that the fear of opening up to others often stems from the fear of opening up to oneself. The question we explore in this episode is: What is the effect of knowing that there is a Being to whom EVERY aspect of yourself is revealed? In other words, what is the psychological impact of the metaphysical fact of God’s omniscience?
Seneca Letter #3: On True and False Friendship
There is a class of men who communicate, to anyone whom they meet, matters which should be revealed to friends alone, and unload upon the chance listener whatever irks them. Others, again, fear to confide in their closest intimates; and if it were possible, they would not trust even themselves, burying their secrets deep in their hearts. But we should do neither. It is equally faulty to trust everyone and to trust no one. Yet the former fault is, I should say, the more ingenuous, the latter the more safe.
Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter.
Yeshayahu 29:13
Woe to those who try to hide in depths to conceal counsel from Hashem, and their deeds are [done] in darkness; they say, ‘Who sees us and who knows of us?’
Zichronos
You remember the deeds done in the universe and You recall all the creatures fashioned since earliest times. Before You all hidden things are revealed and the multitude of mysteries since the beginning of Creation, for there is no forgetfulness before Your Throne of Honor and nothing is hidden from before Your eyes. You remember all things ever done and also each creature is not concealed from You. All is revealed and known before You, Hashem, our God, etc.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
In today’s episode we take a deeper dive into Seneca’s advice about differentiating between trustworthy and untrustworthy friends. The question is: How do we know which is which? We examine one answer based on Rabbeinu Yonah’s interpretation of a pasuk in Mishlei, and the idea we learn from this pasuk sheds light on a distinction made by the Rambam in yesterday’s episode.
Sources:
- Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter #3
- Mishlei 11:13, with Rabbeinu Yonah's commentary
- Pirkei Avos 1:6, with Rambam's commentary
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
In today’s episode we begin a new letter on a topic we haven’t explored before: friendship. We compare Seneca’s criteria for real friends vs. fake friends with the Rambam’s broader criteria, as stated in his commentary on Pirkei Avos. Which classification of friends do you agree with more?
Sources:
- Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter #3
- Pirkei Avos 1:6, with Rambam's commentary
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Synopsis: Since today is George Washington’s Birthday (a.k.a. Presidents Day) I thought it would be fun to take up the question: Was George Washington a Stoic? The answer is clear not only from biographical accounts but from the way he lived. Additionally, one of the two “non-platitudinous” eulogies given at the time of his death (according to biographer Joseph Ellis) sheds light on what kind of Stoic Washington was – a classification made clearer by Rabbeinu Yonah’s commentary on Mishlei.
Sources:
- Robertson, Donald J. The Stoicism of George Washington- Ellis, Joesph J. His Excellency- Avos 4:1
- Rabbeinu Yonah on Mishlei 16:32
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Seneca – Letter #1: On Using and Wasting Time (excerpt)
You may desire to know how I, who preach to you so freely, am practicing. I confess frankly: my expense account balances, as you would expect from one who is free-handed but careful. I cannot boast that I waste nothing, but I can at least tell you what I am wasting, and the cause and manner of the loss; I can give you the reasons why I am a poor man. My situation, however, is the same as that of many who are reduced to slender means through no fault of their own: every one forgives them, but no one comes to their rescue.
Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter.
Bruce Lee
“One does not accumulate, but eliminate. It is not daily increase, but daily decrease. The height of cultivation always runs to simplicity.”
Thoreau – Walden (check out the episode on Aurelius - Meditations 4:24)Our life is frittered away by detail. An honest man has hardly need to count more than his ten fingers, or in extreme cases he may add his ten toes, and lump the rest. Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumb nail. In the midst of this chopping sea of civilized life, such are the clouds and storms and quicksands and thousand-and-one items to be allowed for, that a man has to live, if he would not founder and go to the bottom and not make his port at all, by dead reckoning, and he must be a great calculator indeed who succeeds. Simplify, simplify. Instead of three meals a day, if it be necessary eat but one; instead of a hundred dishes, five; and reduce other things in proportion.
Seneca – Letter #3:“Love of bustle is not industry; it is only the restlessness of a hunted mind.”
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
In today’s episode we examine Seneca’s statements about wasting time in light of a pasuk in Tehilim 90 (a.k.a. Tefilah l’Moshe), as explained by the Ibn Ezra. The difference between these two seemingly similar messages reveals a major difference between Stoicism and Judaism.
Seneca – Letter #1: On Using and Wasting Time (excerpt)
What man can you show me who places any value on his time, who reckons the worth of each day, who understands that he is dying daily?
Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter.
Other Sources:
- Ibn Ezra – Tehilim 90:12
- Ibn Ezra – Koheles 3:11
- Thoreau: Walden----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
In today’s episode we examine Seneca’s statements about wasting time in light of Saadia Gaon’s remarks about God’s relationship to time, noting the underlying metaphysical absurdity of going about life as though you have infinite time to spend and waste. This might not be “pshat” in Seneca or in Saadia Gaon, but I hope you’ll find the thought to be as interesting as I did!
Seneca – Letter #1: On Using and Wasting Time (excerpt)
What fools these mortals be! They allow the cheapest and most useless things, which can easily be replaced, to be charged in the reckoning, after they have acquired them; but they never regard themselves as in debt when they have received some of that precious commodity—time! And yet time is the one loan which even a grateful recipient cannot repay.
Sources:
- Seneca: Letter #1 (click here to access the full text
- Saadia Gaon: Emunos v’Deos Intro, 3
- Saadia Gaon: Emunos v’Deos 2:13
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Click here to access the full text of Seneca's Letter.
The video version of my shiur entitled Elohai Neshamah Upon Waking can be accessed by clicking here, and the podcast version by clicking here.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Augustine of Hippo – TheCity of God, Book 6:11 What Seneca thought concerning the Jews
Seneca, among the other superstitions of civil theology, also found fault with the sacred things of the Jews, and especially the sabbaths, affirming that they act uselessly in keeping those seventh days, whereby they lose through idleness about the seventh part of their life, and also many things which demand immediate attention are damaged …
When he was speaking concerning those Jews, he said, “When, meanwhile, the customs of that most accursed nation have gained such strength that they have been now received in all lands, the conquered have given laws to the conquerors.” [“The Romans have adopted the Sabbath.”]
By these words he expresses his astonishment; and, not knowing what the providence of God was leading him to say, subjoins in plain words an opinion by which he showed what he thought about the meaning of those sacred institutions: "For," he says, "those (i.e. the Jews), however, know the cause of their rites, whilst the greater part of the people (i.e. the Romans) know not why they perform theirs" …
Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:43
With regard to the Sabbath, the reason for it is too well known to have need of being explained, for it is known how great a rest it procures. Because of it the seventh part of the life of every individual consists in pleasure and repose from the fatigue and weariness from which there is no escape either for the young or for the old. At the same time it perpetuates throughout the periods of time an opinion whose value is very great, namely, the assertion that the world has been produced in time.
Seneca – Letter #18: On Feasting and Fasting
Set aside a certain number of days, during which you shall be content with the scantiest and cheapest fare, with coarse and rough dress, saying to yourself the while: “Is this the condition that I feared?”
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
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Seneca – Letter #2
Judging by what you write me, and by what I hear, I am forming a good opinion regarding your future. You do not run hither and thither and distract yourself by changing your abode; for such restlessness is the sign of a disordered spirit. The primary indication, to my thinking, of a well-ordered mind is a man’s ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company.----------
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Seneca – Letter #2
Judging by what you write me, and by what I hear, I am forming a good opinion regarding your future. You do not run hither and thither and distract yourself by changing your abode; for such restlessness is the sign of a disordered spirit. The primary indication, to my thinking, of a well-ordered mind is a man’s ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company.
Naval Ravikant – Twitter thread from 5/15/2020
Rambam – Mishneh Torah: Sefer Ahavah, Hilchos Tefilah u’Birkas Kohanim 4:16
What is the practical procedure for kavanah (intention)? That a person should empty his mind of all thoughts and see himself as if he is standing before the shechinah (divine presence). Therefore, he needs to sit for a little while before tefilah in order to direct his mind, and afterwards he should daven with pleasantness and supplication. And he should not make his tefilah like one who is carrying a burden who casts it off and goes on his way. Therefore he must sit for a little while after tefilah, and only then may he depart. The early pious Sages would pause for an hour before tefilah, and an hour after tefilah, and they would extend tefilah for an hour.
Rambam – Peirush ha’Mishnayos, Berachos 5:1
The meaning of "shohin" is that they would wait; in other words, they would wait before tefilah for an hour, and in it their conversation and their thoughts would cease, and then they would begin to daven.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Seneca – Letter #2
Judging by what you write me, and by what I hear, I am forming a good opinion regarding your future. You do not run hither and thither and distract yourself by changing your abode; for such restlessness is the sign of a disordered spirit. The primary indication, to my thinking, of a well-ordered mind is a man’s ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company.----------
Rabbi Moskowitz – transcript from an unknown shiur
You shouldn't be a goal-oriented person. When I say “goal-oriented” I don't mean a practical person. By “goal-oriented” I'm talking about people who are driven to fulfill goals – people who need goals in order to function and to be happy.
These are the types of people who make goals for themselves even when they are on vacation. They make a schedule and a list of things to accomplish while on vacation and tell themselves, “I need to do all of these things.” In reality, a vacation shouldn't be about fulfilling goals. To the contrary, it should be a vacation from goals!
How can you tell if you are goal-oriented? The test is this: Are you able to just sit and do nothing? Most people can't. If they sit down and try to relax, they start to get antsy. They feel they have to be doing something; they have to accomplish something. If they're not accomplishing something, they feel bad about themselves, like there is something wrong.
Well, what if there isn't anything to accomplish right now? What if you can't do anything? Or what if nothing needs to be done? Or what if you just need a break? Let's say, for instance, that you only have a certain amount of energy you can put into learning, but then you need a break. When you take the break, is it really necessary to set up another goal for yourself? Or can you say, “I just feel like sitting down and doing nothing for a few hours”? Are you capable of doing that? Most people aren't; most people can't just relax, even if they try. Their conscience puts them in conflict and scolds them, saying, “You're not accomplishing anything! You need to accomplish something!"
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Seneca – Letter #2
Judging by what you write me, and by what I hear, I am forming a good opinion regarding your future. You do not run hither and thither and distract yourself by changing your abode; for such restlessness is the sign of a disordered spirit. The primary indication, to my thinking, of a well-ordered mind is a man’s ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company.
Aurelius – Meditations 4:3
Men look for retreats for themselves, the country, the sea-shore, the hills; and you yourself, too, are peculiarly accustomed to feel the same want. Yet all this is very unlike a philosopher, when you may at any hour you please retreat into yourself. For nowhere does a man retreat into more quiet or more privacy than into his own mind, especially one who has within such things that he has only to look into, and become at once in perfect ease; and by ease I mean nothing else but good behavior. Continually, therefore, grant yourself this retreat and repair yourself. But let them be brief and fundamental truths, which will suffice at once by their presence to wash away all sorrow, and to send you back without repugnance to the life to which you return.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Epictetus – Enchiridion (The Handbook)
1:1 – On the one hand, there are things that are in our power, whereas other things are not in our power. In our power are opinion, impulse, desire, aversion and, in a word, whatever is our own doing. Things not in our power include our body, our possessions, our reputations, our status, and, in a word, whatever is not our own doing.
1:2 – Now, things that are in our power are by nature free, unhindered, unimpeded; but things not in our power are weak, slavish, hindered, and belong to others.
1:3 – Remember, therefore, that whenever you suppose those things that are by nature slavish to be free, or those things that belong to others to be your own, you will be hindered, miserable and distressed, and you will find fault with both God and men. If, however, you suppose to be yours only what is yours, and what belongs to another to belong to another (as indeed it does), no one will ever compel you, no one will hinder you; you will find fault with no one, reproach no one, nor act against your own will, you will have no enemies and no one will harm you, for no harm can touch you.
12:2 – Therefore, begin with the little things. The olive-oil is spilled. The wine is stolen. Say to yourself, “This is the price for peace of mind, and this is the price for being free of troubles. Nothing can be had without paying the price.” And when you call your slave-boy, bear in mind that it is quite possible he won’t heed you, or even if he does heed you it is quite possible that he won’t do the things you tell him to. But he is not in so fine a position that your peace of mind depends upon him.
For an overview of my approach to Sefer Mishlei check out this shiur in video form, or in podcast form, or in article form.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Today's episode is a sneak peak of what's in store for next season, when we switch from the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius to the Letters of Seneca. Today's reading is from the first letter of Seneca I ever read. It's been on my mind because of a conversation I had with a student about what it means to be a reader - something that Seneca and I have different views on, as do Chazal.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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You will soon die and are not yet simple, untroubled, void of suspicion that anything from outside can hurt you, nor kindly disposed towards all, nor counting wisdom to consist only in just action.----------
Epictetus - Discourses 3:10 (conclusion)
Yirmiyahu 22:16
“He judged the case of the poor and the destitute, and then it was good. Is this not knowing Me?” says Hashem.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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I recorded this episode yesterday morning, in anticipation of getting the first dose of my COVID-19 vaccine. It's a few minutes longer than the usual episode, but that's because it covers three texts: one from Marcus Aurelius, one from Epictetus, and one from Seneca.
The sources cited in today's episode are too long to cite in their entirety. Here are links to each text:
- Aurelius – Meditations 5:8
- Epictetus – Discourses 2:17: How We Must Adapt Preconceptions to Particular Cases
- Seneca – Letter #50: On Our Blindness and Its Cure
- Rambam – Introduction to the Mishnah
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Contemplate continually all things coming to pass by change, and accustom yourself to think that the nature of the universe loves nothing so much as to change what is and to create new things in their likeness. For everything that exists is, in a way, the seed of what will come out of it, whereas you imagine seeds to be only those which are cast into the earth or into the womb. But that is very unscientific (or “is a very vulgar notion”).
Rambam – Moreh 3:8
All bodies subject to generation and corruption are subject to corruption only because of their matter; with regard to their form and with respect to the latter’s essence, they are not subject to corruption, but are permanent. Do you not see that all the specific forms are perpetual and permanent? Corruption occurs to the form only by accident, I mean because of its being joined to matter. The nature and true reality of matter is such that it never ceases to be joined to privation; hence no form remains constantly in it, for it perpetually casts off one form and takes on another. How extraordinary is what Shlomo said in his wisdom when likening matter to a promiscuous wife, for matter is in no way found without form and is consequently like a promiscuous wife, who is never separated from a man, and is never free. However, since she is a promiscuous wife, she never ceases to seek for another man to substitute for her husband, and she deceives and draws him on in every way until he obtains from her what her husband used to obtain. This is the state of matter. For whatever form is found in it does but prepare it to receive another form; and the selfsame state obtains after that other form has been obtained in actuality. It has then become clear that all passing-away and corruption or deficiency are due solely to matter.
Rambam – Moreh 3:10
For this reason the book that has illuminated the darkness of the world has clearly stated the following proclamation: “And God saw everything that He had made, and behold! – it was very good” (Bereishis 1:31). Even the existence of this inferior matter, whose manner of being it is to be inherently connected with privation entailing death and all evils, all this is also “good” in view of the perpetuity of generation and the permanence of being through succession. For this reason Rebbi Meir interpreted the words: “And behold! it was very good” as “and behold! – death was good” – according to the notion to which we have drawn attention.----------
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All is ephemeral, both what remembers and what is remembered.----------
Koheles 1:11
There is no memory of the earlier generations, and also the later generations that will be, there will not be a memory of them with those that will come later [yet].
Mahari Kara – Koheles 1:11
There is no memory of the earlier generations, for they have already died, and just as it seems like a new world from your own perspective because you don’t remember the years of generations that have gone by, so too, the generation of your children that will arise after you will not be remembered by the generation of your grandchildren who will arise after them.
Rashbam – Koheles 1:11
of the early generations – the human beings who were created before you in the world, there is no memory of them, for they have already died and their memory has been lost.
and also the later generations – that come after us in the world, there will be no more memory of them with those who will be at an even later generation – [that is,] at the end of days of the later generation – for everyone will die, and will no longer be remembered. For if one person dies today, there will never again be born a person like him, since people are not similar to one another. But when other creatures die, there is a memory, for if these die today, similar ones will be born into the world tomorrow. Therefore, the observers can say, “This creature is similar to that other individual creature that has passed on from the world.” Consequently, there is a memory for other species, but not for man.
Yonah 4:10-11
Then God said: “You were concerned for the kikayon, though you neither labored over it nor grew it. It appeared overnight, and perished overnight. So, should I not be concerned for the great city of Ninveh, which contains far more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who don’t know their right from their left, as well as many animals?”
Tehilim 90:4
For a thousand years in Your eyes are like yesterday gone by, like a watch in the night.
Mary Karr – 2015 Commencement Address at Syracuse University
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Epictetus – Enchiridion Chapter 17Remember that you are an actor in a play of such a kind as the playwright chooses: short, if he wants it short, long if he wants it long. If he wants you to play the part of a beggar, play even this part well; and so also for the parts of a disabled person, an administrator, or a private individual. For this is your business, to play well the part you are given; but choosing it belongs to Another.
Epictetus – Discourses 3.24
Do you not know that life is a soldier's service? One man must keep guard, another go out to reconnoiter, another take the field. It is not possible for all to stay where they are, nor is it better so. But you neglect to fulfil the orders of the general and complain, when some severe order is laid upon you; you do not understand to what a pitiful state you are bringing the army so far as in you lies; you do not see that if all follow your example there will be no one to dig a trench, or raise a palisade, no one to keep night watch or fight in the field, but everyone will seem an unserviceable soldier ... So too it is in the world; each man's life is a campaign, and a long and varied one. It is for you to play the soldier's part – do everything at the General's bidding, divining His wishes, if it be possible.
Seneca – On Tranquility… however insulated a man keeps his leisure, he must still be willing to be of service to individuals and to mankind by his intelligence, his voice, his counsel. The man who brings candidates forward, defends the accused, votes on war and peace, is not the only one who serves the state; he who exhorts the youth, who, when good preceptors are so rare, imbues their minds with virtue, who seizes them as they race for money and luxury and holds them back, slowing them down, at least, if nothing else – he, too, is working for the community, albeit in a private station. Is the judge in the aliens' or citizens' court of arbitration performing a higher service when he delivers his assistant's verdict to suitors than the man who defines justice, piety, patience, fortitude, contempt of death, knowledge of God, and shows what a safe and easy asset a good conscience is? If, then, you bestow the time you abstract from public business upon study, you will not be deserting or shirking your duty. The man on the firing line, posted on the right wing or left, is not the only soldier in the army; the guard at the gates (a less dangerous but certainly not an idle function), the picket on watch, the keeper of the armory also serve, and though their duties are bloodless they still count as soldiers.----------
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With your whole will surrender yourself to Clotho to spin your fate into whatever web of things she will.----------
Plato: The Republic, Book X
... the distaff rotates on the knees of Necessity … and seated around, at equal interval, three, each upon a throne, daughters of Necessity, in white garments, with wreaths on their heads, Lachesis, Clotho, and Atropos, the Fates, singing to the Sirens' song; Lachesis, the past: Clotho, the present: Atropos, what is to be.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
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Words familiar in olden times are now archaisms; so also the names of those whose praises were hymned in bygone days are now in a sense archaisms; Camillus, Caeso, Volesus, Dentatus; a little after, Scipio too and Cato; then also Augustus, then also Hadrian and Antoninus. For all things quickly fade and turn to fable, and quickly, too, utter oblivion covers them like sand. And this I say of those who shone like stars to wonder at; the rest, as soon as the breath was out of their bodies were “unnoticed and unwept.” And what after all is everlasting remembrance? Utter vanity. What then is that about which a man ought to spend his pains? This one thing: right understanding, neighborly behavior, speech which would never lie, and a disposition welcoming all which comes to pass as necessary, as familiar, as flowing from a source and fountain like itself.----------
The excerpt I quoted from Halakhic Man, by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, is too lengthy to cite here, but I did cite it in full in my article Yom ha'Kippurim 5778: Vidui Yom ha'Kippurim.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Call to mind by way of example the time of Vespasian: you will see everything the same: men marrying, bringing up children, falling ill, dying, fighting, feasting, trading, farming, flattering, asserting themselves, suspecting, plotting, praying for another's death, murmuring at the present, lusting, heaping up riches, setting their heart on offices and thrones. And now that life of theirs is no more and nowhere. Again pass on to the time of Trajan; again everything the same. That life, too, is dead. In like manner contemplate and behold the rest of the records of times and whole nations; and see how many after their struggles fell in a little while and were resolved into the elements. But most of all you must run over in mind those whom you yourself have known to be distracted in vain, neglecting to perform what was agreeable to their own nature, to hold fast to this and to be content with this. And here you are bound to remember that the attention paid to each action has its own worth and proportion, only so you will not be dejected if in smaller matters you are occupied no farther than was appropriate.
R’ Yosef ibn Kaspi – Bereishis 50:26 (translated by R’ Yehuda Rappoport in his blog post The End: Death and Purpose)
And Yosef died when he was 110 years old—it is a man’s end/destiny to die. And though when he was alive “Yosef gathered grain like the sand of the sea,” and “Yosef collected all the silver” nothing was left of all his toils—only his soul remained which went to Gan Eden.
And so Shlomo Hamelech said, “Everything that is in your power to do—do.” Meaning, the gaining of practical and theoretical wisdom, as he concludes his words and says, “For there is no deed, or consideration, or knowledge, or wisdom in the place that you are heading to.”
And these are the four kinds of perfection that Aristotle and Plato mention.
In summary, “The final word, after all has been heard: God—fear; His commandments—keep; for this is the whole of man.”
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Love the art which you were taught, set up your retirement in this, and pass through what is left of life as one who has committed all that is yours, with your whole heart, to God, making yourself neither despot nor servant to any man.
Aurelius – 5:9
Don't be disgusted, don't give up, don't be impatient if you do not carry out entirely conduct based in every detail upon right principles; but after a fall return again, and rejoice if most of your actions are worthier of human character. Love that to which you go back, and don't return to Philosophy as to a schoolmaster, but as a man with sore eyes to the sponge and salve, as another to a poultice, another to a fomentation. For so you will show that to obey Reason is no great matter but rather you will find rest in it. Remember, too, that philosophy wills nothing else than the will of your own nature, whereas you were willing some other thing not in accord with Nature. For what is sweeter than this accord? Does not pleasure overcome us just by sweetness? Well, see whether magnanimity, freedom, simplicity, consideration for others, holiness are not sweeter; for what is sweeter than wisdom itself when you bear in mind the unbroken current in all things of the faculty of understanding and knowledge?
Soloveitchik – Halakhic Man, Footnote 4
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Here is a philosopher without a tunic, another without a book, another here half-naked. “I have no bread,” he says, “and still I abide by reason.” And I do not get the means of living out of my learning, and I abide by my reason.----------
Epictetus – Enchiridion 23If at any time it should happen that you turn to external things with the aim of pleasing someone, understand that you have ruined your life's plan. Be content, then, in everything, with being a philosopher, and if you wish also to be regarded as such, appear so to yourself, and that will be sufficient.
See also Enchiridion 29 and 46
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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If he is a foreigner in the Universe who does not recognize the essence of the Universe, no less is he a foreigner, who does not recognize what comes to pass in it. A fugitive is he who runs away from the reasonable law of his City; a blind man, he who shuts the eye of the mind; a beggar, he who has need of another and has not all that is necessary for life in himself; an abscess on the Universe, he who rebels and separates himself from the reason of our common nature because he is displeased with what comes to pass (for the same nature that produces this has produced you as well); a fragment cut off from the City, he who cuts off his own soul from the soul of rational creatures, which is one.----------
"Fear of Hashem is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline" (Mishlei 1:7)
"Fear of Hashem is the discipline of wisdom, and before honor is humility" (Mishlei 15:33)
Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Yesodei ha'Torah 4:12
When a person contemplates all of these things and recognizes all of the creations – from angels, to celestial bodies, to man, etc. – and sees the wisdom of HaKadosh Baruch Hu in all of the forms and creations – his love for God will increase, his soul will thirst, and his flesh will yearn to love God; and he will be in fear and trepidation from his own lowliness, insignificance, and frailty when he compares himself to even one of these large, holy bodies – and certainly to one of the pure forms which are utterly separated from matter – and he will find himself to be like a vessel filled with shame and embarrassment, empty and lacking.
See also Aurelius - Meditations 4:4: The Commonwealth of Mind
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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A black character is an unmanly character, a stubborn character; bestial, childish, animalistic, foolish, crafty, ribald, fraudulent, tyrannical.
Aurelius - Meditations
4:18 – How great a rest from labour he gains who does not look to what his neighbour says or does or thinks, but only to what he himself is doing, in order that exactly this may be just and holy, or in accord with a good man's conduct. 'Do not look round at a black character,' but run toward the goal, balanced, not throwing your body about.
5:11 – 'To what purpose, then, am I now using my soul?' In every case ask yourself this question and examine yourself: 'What have I now in this part which men call the governing part, and whose soul have I at present? A child's, a boy's, a woman's, a despot's, a dumb animal's, a dangerous beast's?'
9:39 – Either all comes to pass from one fountain of mind, as in a single organic body, and the part must not find fault with what is for the good of the whole; or else there are atoms, nothing but a mechanical mixture and dispersal. Why then be troubled? Say to your governing self: 'are you dead, gone to corruption, turned into a beast, are you acting a part, running with the herd, feeding with it?'
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Either an ordered universe or a chaotic medley heaped together mechanically but still an order; but can order subsist in you and disorder in the whole? And that, too, when all things are so distinguished and yet intermingled and sympathetic.
Aurelius – Meditations 12:14-15
Either the necessity of destiny and an order none may transgress, or providence that hears intercession, or an ungoverned chaos without a purpose. If then a necessity which none may transgress, why do you resist? If a providence admitting intercession, make yourself worthy of assistance from God. If an undirected chaos, be glad that in so great a flood of waves you have yourself within you a directing mind; and, if the flood carry you away, let it carry away flesh, vital-spirit, the rest of you; for your mind it shall not carry away. Does the light of the lamp shine and not lose its radiance until it be put out, and shall truth and justice and temperance be put out in you before the end?
Seneca – On Providence 5:4
What is the duty of the good man? To offer himself to Fate. It is a great consolation that our rapid course is one with the universe's.
See Ralbag Hakdamah to Sefer Bereishis
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:26 – You have seen those things, look now at these: do not trouble yourself, make yourself simple. Does a man do wrong? He does wrong to himself. Has some chance befallen you? It is well; from Universal Nature, from the beginning, all that befalls has been apportioned for you and the thread was spun. The sum of the matter is this: life is short; the present must be turned to profit by the aid of reason and righteousness. Be sober in your relaxation.
Koheles 7:29
But see, this I did find: God has made man upright, but they have sought many schemes.
Seneca – On the Shortness of Life[11] Here is a summary indication that these men's lives are short: see how eager they are for a long life! Decrepit old men beg and pray for the addition of a few more years; they pretend they are younger than they are; they flatter themselves with a lie, and are as pleased with their deception as if they were deluding Fate at the same time. And in the end, when some sickness reminds them of their mortality, they die in a panic, not as if they were departing from life, but as if they were being dragged out of it. They cry out that they were fools not to have lived and declare they will live at leisure if only they survive their sickness. Only then do they reflect how futile was their acquisition of things they would never enjoy, how vain was all their labor. But life is ample, of course, for men who keep themselves detached from involvement. None of their time is transferred to others, none is frittered away in this direction and that, none is committed to Fortune, none perishes of neglect, none is squandered in lavishness, none is idle: all of it, so to speak, produces income. A very little is therefore amply sufficient, and hence, when his last day comes, the philosopher goes to meet his death with a steady step.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Seneca's Letter #18 (pp.92-96)
Yeshayahu 58:1-10Cry out with a powerful voice, do not restrain yourself; raise your voice like a shofar – proclaim to My people their willful sins, to the House of Jacob their transgressions. They [pretend to] seek Me every day and to desire to know My ways, like a nation that acts righteously and has not forsaken the justice of its God; they inquire of Me about the laws of justice, as if they desire the nearness of God, [asking,] "Why did we fast and You did not see? Why did we afflict our souls and You did not know?" Behold - on your fast day you seek out personal gain and you extort all your debts. Because you fast for grievance and strife, to strike with a wicked fist; you do not fast as befits this day, to make your voice heard above. Can such be the fast I choose, a day when man merely afflicts himself? Can it be merely bowing one's head like a bulrush and spreading sackcloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast and a day of favor to Hashem? Surely, this is the fast I choose: to break open the shackles of wickedness, to undo the bonds of injustice, and to let the oppressed go free, and annul all perversion [of justice]. Surely you should break your bread for the hungry, and bring the moaning poor [to your home]; when you see a naked person, clothe him; and do not hide yourself from your kin. Then your light will burst out like the dawn and your healing will speedily sprout; your righteous deed will precede you and the glory of Hashem will gather you in. Then you will call out and Hashem will respond; you will cry out and He will say, "Here I am!" If you remove from your midst perversion [of justice], finger-pointing, and evil speech, and offer your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul; then your light will shine [even] in the darkness, and your deepest gloom will be like the noon.
Aurelius – Meditations 10:16
Stop talking about what the good man is like, and just be one.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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For the full text of Seneca's Letter #18, click here and skip to pp.92-96.
For Rabbi Joshua Maroof's article, The Celebration of Hanukkah: "Rededicating" the Original Winter Festival, click here.
Rambam – Mishneh Torah: Sefer Zmanim, Hilchos Shevisas Yom Tov 6:19
Even though eating and drinking on the festivals is included within the positive commandment, a person should not eat and drink the entire day. Rather, this is the program: in the morning, the entire populace wakes up early and goes to the synagogues and study halls where they pray and read in the Torah about the themes of the day, then they return to their houses to eat, after which they go back to the study halls to read and learn until midday. After midday they pray the afternoon prayer and return to their houses to eat and drink for the remainder of the day until the night.
Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:43
As for the moral lesson, it is that man should always remember the days of bad amid the days of good, so that his gratitude to God should become great and so that he should achieve humility and submissiveness. Accordingly, matzah and maror must be eaten on Pesach to remind us of what happened to us. Similarly, we leave [our] houses and dwell in huts, as is done by those who toil in deserts and wastelands, in order to remember that this was our situation in times before: "that I made the Children of Israel dwell in huts, etc." and that we were moved from this [situation] to dwell in richly ornamented houses in the best and most fertile places on earth, due to Hashem's kindnesses and His promise to our fathers, inasmuch as they were perfected people in their philosophical outlook and in their moral character; I am referring to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov. For this, too, is one of the pivots of the Torah, I mean the belief that every benefit that will be or has been granted is due to the zechus Avos (merit of the Forefathers), since "they kept the way of Hashem to do righteousness and justice" (Bereishis 18:19).
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Make trial for yourself how the life of the good man, too, fares well, of the man who is satisfied with his portion out of the whole and contented by his own just action and kind disposition.
Avos 4:1
Who is wealthy? One who is satisfied with his portion.
Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:12
… the soul, when accustomed to superfluous things, acquires a strong habit of desiring things which are neither necessary for the preservation of the individual nor for that of the species. This desire is without a limit; whilst things which are necessary are few in number and restricted within certain limits, what is superfluous is without end. For example, you desire to have your vessels of silver, but golden vessels are still better; others have even vessels of sapphire, or perhaps they can be made of emerald or rubies, or any other substance that could be suggested. Those who are ignorant and perverse in their thought are constantly in trouble and pain because they cannot get as much of superfluous things as a certain other person possesses. They, as a rule, expose themselves to great dangers, for example, by sea voyage, or service of kings, and all this for the purpose of obtaining that which is superfluous and not necessary. When they thus meet with the consequences of the course which they adopt, they complain of the decrees and judgments of God; they begin to blame the time, and wonder at the lack of justice in its changes; that it has not enabled them to acquire great riches, with which they could buy large quantities of wine for the purpose of making themselves drunk, and numerous concubines adorned with various kind of ornaments of gold, embroidery, and jewels, for the purpose of driving themselves to sexual indulgence beyond their capacities – as if the whole universe existed exclusively for the purpose of giving pleasure to these low people.
Other Sources:
- Thoreau – Walden, Economy
- R’ Avraham ben ha’Rambam – Ha’Maspik l’Ovdei Hashem, Chapter 9
- Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha'Mada, Hilchos Deos 3:1
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Democritus has said: “Do few things, if you would enjoy tranquility.” May it not be better to do the necessary things and what the reason of a creature intended by Nature to be social prescribes, and as that reason prescribes? For this brings not only the tranquility from doing right but also from doing few things. For if one removes most of what we say and do as unnecessary, he will have more leisure and less interruption. Wherefore on each occasion he should remind himself: “Is this not one of the necessary things?” And he should remove not actions merely that are unnecessary, but imaginations also, for in this way superfluous actions too will not follow in their train.--------------------
Thoreau – Walden, Where I Lived, and What I Lived For
Our life is frittered away by detail. An honest man has hardly need to count more than his ten fingers, or in extreme cases he may add his ten toes, and lump the rest. Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumb nail. In the midst of this chopping sea of civilized life, such are the clouds and storms and quicksands and thousand-and-one items to be allowed for, that a man has to live, if he would not founder and go to the bottom and not make his port at all, by dead reckoning, and he must be a great calculator indeed who succeeds. Simplify, simplify. Instead of three meals a day, if it be necessary eat but one; instead of a hundred dishes, five; and reduce other things in proportion.
Avos 6:4
Such is the path of Torah: you will eat your bread with salt, you will drink your water in measure, you will sleep on the ground, and you will live a life of pain, but you will toil in Torah.
Jimmy Zukimura
"It's better to learn how to do one magic trick very well than ten tricks poorly."
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Everything is fitting for me, my Universe, which fits thy purpose. Nothing in thy good time is too early or too late for me; everything is fruit for me which thy seasons, Nature, bear; from thee, in thee, to thee are all things. The poet sings: 'Dear city of Cecrops', and will you not say: 'Dear city of God'?
Avos 2:4
[Rabban Gamliel, son of R' Yehuda ha'Nassi,] used to say: make His will like your will so that He will do your will like His will; nullify your will before His will so that He will nullify the will of others before your will.
Epictetus – Enchiridion, Chapter 8
Do not demand that things should happen just as you wish, but wish them to happen just as they do, and all will be well.
Other references too long to cite here:
Gibbon – The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire 4:1
Talmud Bavli Taanis 21a
Kuzari 3:11:22-25
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Epictetus – Discourses 2.18 (excerpt)
In the first place, do not allow yourself to be carried away by [the] intensity [of your impression]: but say, “Impression, wait for me a little. Let me see what you are, and what you represent. Let me test you.” Then, afterwards, do not allow it to draw you on by picturing what may come next, for if you do, it will lead you wherever it pleases. But rather, you should introduce some fair and noble impression to replace it, and banish this base and sordid one.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Do not wander without a purpose, but in all your impulses render what is just, and in all your imaginations maintain your faculty of comprehension and understanding.--------------------
Epictetus – Discourses 2.18.24-25 (trans. Hard)
In the first place, do not allow yourself to be carried away by [the] intensity [of your impression]: but say, “Impression, wait for me a little. Let me see what you are, and what you represent. Let me test you.” Then, afterwards, do not allow it to draw you on by picturing what may come next, for if you do, it will lead you wherever it pleases. But rather, you should introduce some fair and noble impression to replace it, and banish this base and sordid one.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:21 – You ask how, if souls continue to exist, the atmosphere has room for them from time eternal. But how does the ground have room for the bodies of those who for so long an age are buried in it? The answer is that, as on earth change and dissolution after a continuance for so long make room for other dead bodies, so in the atmosphere souls pass on and continue for so long, and then change and are poured out and are kindled being assumed into the generative principle of Universal Nature, and so provide room for those which succeed to their place. This would be the answer presuming that souls do continue. But we must consider not only the multitude of bodies that are thus buried, but also the number of animals eaten every day by ourselves and the rest of the animal creation. How large a number are devoured and, in a manner of speaking, “buried” in the bodies of those who feed upon them; and yet there is room to contain them because they are turned into blood, because they are changed into forms of air and heat. How shall we investigate the truth of this? By division into that which is material and that which is the cause of form, the formal.--------------------
Mishlei 30:15
“The leech has two daughters that say, ‘Give me!’ ‘Give me!’”Metzudas David – Mishlei 30:15
the leech has – He likened the pit of the grave to a leech because it greedily sucks all people into it, just like the leech sucks blood.
two daughters – they are Gan Eden and Gehinnom. Gan Eden says, “Give me tzadikim!” and Gehinnom says, “Give me reshaim!” This is an allegory, as if to say: the Tzadik shouldn’t think that there isn’t enough room in Gan Eden, nor should the rasha think that Gehinom is already filled to the brim and there is no room for him. This is not so, for each one of them desires more people, and has ample space, and each one will end up in his place.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Today's reading is from Seneca's Letter #13: On Groundless Fears. The letter in its entirety, or even in its excerpted form, is too long to include here, but you can access the entire thing in PDF form here, clicking on The Tao of Seneca Volume 1, and locating Letter #13 on page 66 in the document (page 68 in the PDF file).
Have a happy Chanukah!
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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**Epictetus – Enchiridion (Handbook) 3-4
With respect to any of those things you find attractive or useful or have a fondness for, recall to mind what kind of thing it is, beginning with the most trifling. So if you are fond of an earthenware pot, say, “I am fond of an earthenware pot.” Then you will not be upset if it gets broken …**
When you are about to undertake some task, remind yourself what sort of business it is. If you are going out to bathe, bring to mind what happens at the baths: there will be those who splash you, those who will jostle you, some will be abusive to you, and others will steal from you. And thus you will undertake the affair more securely if you say to yourself from the start, “I wish to take a bath, but also to keep my moral character in accordance with nature.” Do likewise with every undertaking. For thus, if anything should happen that interferes with your bathing, be ready to say, “Oh well, it was not only this that I wanted, but also to keep my moral character in accordance with nature, and I cannot do that if I am irritated by things that happen.”
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Stoic texts:
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4:20 – Everything in any way lovely is lovely of itself and terminates in itself, holding praise to be no part of itself. At all events, in no way does what is praised become better or worse. I say this also of what is commonly called lovely, for instance materials and works of art; and indeed what is there lacking at all to that which is truly lovely? No more than law, no more than truth, no more than kindness or reverence of self. Which of these is lovely because it is praised or corrupted because it is blamed? Does an emerald become worse than it was if it be not praised? And what of gold, ivory, purple, a lute, a sword-blade, a flower-bud, or a little plant?--------------------
Aurelius - Meditations 4:8
What does not make a man worse than he was, neither makes his life worse than it was, nor hurts him without or within.
Plato – The CritoThen, my friend, we must not regard what the many say of us: but what he, the one man who has understanding of the just and unjust, will say, and what the truth will say. And therefore you begin in error when you suggest that we should regard the opinion of the many about the just and unjust, good and evil, honorable and dishonorable.
Seneca – Letter #7
Lay these words to heart, Lucilius, that you may scorn the pleasure which comes from the applause of the majority. Many men praise you; but have you any reason for being pleased with yourself, if you are a person whom the many can understand? Your good qualities should face inwards.
Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim (Introduction)
[W]hen I have a difficult subject before me – when I find the road narrow, and can see no other way of teaching a well-established truth except by pleasing one intelligent man and displeasing ten thousand fools – I prefer to address myself to the one man, and to take no notice whatsoever of the condemnation of the multitude.
Yirmiyahu 9:22-23
Mishlei 27:14
One who blesses his friend in a loud voice early in the morning – it will be considered a curse for him.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:19 - The man in a flutter for after-fame fails to picture to himself that each of those who remember him will himself also very shortly die, then again the man who succeeded him, until the whole remembrance is extinguished as it runs along a line of men who are kindled and then put out. And if you should assume that those who remember are immortal, and that remembrance is therefore immortal, what is that to you? And I do not say that it is nothing to the dead; what is praise to the living, except perhaps for some practical purpose? For now you are putting off unseasonably the gift of Nature, clinging to something else ... [the manuscript is corrupt]
“One day someone will mention you for the last time, then no one will ever mention you again, [and] no one will remember you.” – answer given by Reddit user “StabStabMan” to the question, “What is a deeply unsettling fact?”
Pesachim 50b, Nazir 23b, Sotah 22b and 47a, Sanhedrin 105b, Horiyos 10b, Erachin 16b
A person should always be involved in Torah even she’lo lishmah, for from she’lo lishmah he will come to lishmah.
Rambam – Intro to Chelek
We say to him, “Learn in order to become a rabbi and a judge. People will honor you; they will stand up in your presence; your words will be established and your reputation will grow during your lifetime and after your death, like so-and-so.”
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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How great a rest from labor he gains who does not look to what his neighbor says or does or thinks, but only to what he himself is doing, in order that exactly this may be just and pure, or in accord with a good man's conduct. 'Do not look round at the depraved morals of others,' but run straight along the line without deviating from it.
Meditations 2:8
Men are not easily seen as to be brought into evil case by failure to consider what passes in another’s soul; but they who do not read aright the motions of their own soul are bound to be in evil case.
Micha 6:8
He has told you, O man, what is good! What does Hashem seek from you? Only the doing of justice, loving kindness, and walking with tznius with your God.
Mivchar ha’Penimim – Gate of Tznius
They asked the wise man: “What is tznius?” He replied: “That a person experience shame from himself.”
They said to the wise man: “What is tznius?” He replied: “Wisdom.”
They said to the wise man: “What is tznius?” He relied: “That you don’t do in secret what you are ashamed of in public.”
Rambam: Mishneh Torah, Sefer ha’Mada, Hilchos Teshuvah 4:4
There are five things which the doer is unlikely to do teshuvah from, since they are light matters in the eyes of the majority of people; consequently, the sinner will imagine that this is not a sin. These are they … (4) One who takes pride in the disgrace of his fellow; he says in his heart that this is not a sin, since his fellow isn’t present and didn’t suffer shame and he didn’t shame him [directly], but only compared his good actions and wisdom to the actions and wisdom of his friend so that from that general [comparison] to him he would appear esteemed and his friend degraded.
Charles Ives, Thoreau Journal, vol.1, 156
A man's life should be a stately march to a sweet but unheard music, and when to his fellows it shall seem irregular and inharmonious, he will only be stepping to a livelier measure, or his nicer ear hurry him into a thousand symphonies and concordant variations.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Don't live as though you were going to live ten thousand years. Fate is hanging over your head; while you have life, while you may, become good.
Talmud Bavli – Shabbos 153a
Rabbi Eliezer says: Do teshuvah one day before your death. Rabbi Eliezer’s students asked him: But does a person know the day he will die? He said to them: All the more so, one should do teshuvah today lest he die tomorrow, and thus, one will spend his entire life in teshuvah. And Shlomo also said in his wisdom: “At all times your clothes should be white, and oil shall not be absent from upon your head” (Koheles 9:8).
R’ Moshe Chaim Luzzatto – Introduction to Mesilas Yesharim
Basore translation of On the Shortness of Life (Seneca)Gummere translation of Seneca's Letters #101 (pp. 91-95) and #49 (pp. 215-219)---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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4:16 – Within ten days you will appear a god even to those to whom today you seem a beast or a baboon, if you return to your principles and your reverence of reason.
Farquharson - Commentary on Meditations 4:16
This is the only passage in the Meditations where the writer speaks as if a man might become a god, a mode of speech often employed both by Stoics and Epicureans. He clearly means you may become really good, and so appear godlike where you now seem like a beast or an ape, as not governed by reason.
Pesachim 50b, Nazir 23b, Sotah 22b and 47a, Sanhedrin 105b, Horiyos 10b, Erachin 16b
A person should always be involved in Torah even she’lo lishmah, for from she’lo lishmah he will come to lishmah.
Rambam – Intro to Chelek
We say to him, “Learn in order to become a rabbi and a judge. People will honor you; they will stand up in your presence; your words will be established and your reputation will grow during your lifetime and after your death, like so-and-so.” Then he will learn and strive in order to achieve that level of distinction, and the ultimate objective – to him – will be that people should honor him, exalt him, and praise him.
Here's my translation of the excerpt in its entirety.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:14 – You came into the world as a part. You will vanish into that which gave you birth, or rather you will be taken up into its generative reason by the process of change.
4:15 – Many grains of incense upon the same altar; one falls first, another later, but difference there is none.
Rambam – Moreh ha’Nevuchim 3:12
We have already shown that, in accordance with the divine wisdom, genesis can only take place through destruction, and without the destruction of the individual members of the species the species themselves would not exist permanently … He who thinks that he can have flesh and bones without being subject to any external influence, or any of the accidents of matter, unconsciously wishes to reconcile two opposites, namely, to be at the same time subject and not subject to change.
Ibn Ezra – Intro to Koheles
Every act done by a created being is impermanent, for all created beings exhaust [themselves trying] to create a completely new existence or to completely negate its existence. Rather, all of their actions are but an imitation, an image, and an accident – separating that which is combined, and combining that which is separate; moving that which is at rest, and bringing to rest that which is moving. Therefore, the actions of human beings are nothingness and emptiness – except for fear of Hashem.
Albert Einstein
A human being is part of a whole, called by us the Universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest – a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:13 - “You have reason?” “Yes, I have!” “Then why don’t you use it? If this is doing its part, what else do you want?”
Link to "Stop it!" Mad TV Sketch
Link to my shiur, Chazal's Method of Vanquishing the Yetzer ha'Ra
Talmud Bavli - Berachos 5a
R' Levi bar Chama said in the name of R' Shimon ben Lakish: A person should always yargiz his yetzer ha'tov (good inclination) against his yetzer ha'ra (bad inclination).
Rashi (ibid.)
yargiz - that he should wage war with his yetzer ha'ra.
R' Avraham ben ha'Rambam - Essay on Drashos of Chazal
It says “yargiz” which means “to cause to rule over” or “to cause to dominate” [in reference to] the yetzer ha’tov, which is the mind, and the yetzer ha’ra is the bodily desires and things like that. The intent of the matter is that a person should cause his mind to rule over and dominate his [desire for] bodily enjoyment, and should think about this continually.
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Stoic texts:
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4:12 – In these two ways you must always be prepared: the one, to do only whatever the reason of the ruling and legislating faculty may suggest for the benefit of mankind; the second, to change your opinion if someone is there to correct and to guide you away from some opinion of yours. But this change of opinion must proceed only from a certain persuasion, as of what is just or of common advantage and the like – not because it appears pleasant or brings reputation.
Aurelius – Meditations 2:16
The soul of a man does violence to itself … when, failing to direct any act or impulse of its own upon a mark, it behaves in any matter without a plan or conscious purpose, whereas even the smallest act ought to have a reference to an end.
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Avos 4:1Ben Zoma says: Which person is wise? One who learns from every person, as it is stated: “From all my teachers I became intelligent, for Your testimonies were a conversation to me” (Tehilim 119:99).---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eichah Rabbah 2:9her kings and her officers are among the nations, there is no Torah – if a person says to you, “there is wisdom in the nations” believe him, as it is written: “I will eradicate wise men from Edom and understanding from the Mountain of Eisav” (Ovadiah 1:8), [but if a person tells you,] “there is Torah among the nations,” do not believe him, as it is written: “her kings and officers are among the nations, there is no Torah” (Eichah 2:9).
Berachah upon seeing a wise gentile
Blessed are You, Hashem, our God, King of the universe, Who gave of His wisdom to flesh and blood.
Plato - The Republic: Book VIIHe will require to grow accustomed to the sight of the upper world. And first he will see the shadows best, next the reflections of men and other objects in the water, and then the objects themselves; then he will gaze upon the light of the moon and the stars and the spangled sky; and he will see the sky and the stars by night better than the sun or the light of the sun by day?
Talmud Bavli – Avodah Zarah 19aRav said: a person should only learn Torah from the place his heart desires, as it is stated: “but only in the Torah of Hashem is his desire” (Tehilim 1:2).---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Link to my article, Reflections of Truth, on my response to that parent's objection: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2016/07/reflections-of-truth.html
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Epictetus – Enchiridion 1
On the one hand, there are things that are in our power, whereas other things are not in our power. In our power are opinion, impulse, desire, aversion and, in a word, whatever is our own doing. Things not in our power include our body, our possessions, our reputations, our status, and, in a word, whatever is not our own doing.
Ran - Drashah #10
[Moshe Rabbeinu] warned Yisrael about two things: (1) that they should not ascribe their success to their own ability and to the might of their hand, and (2) that they should not ascribe their conquest of the land to their own merit. He began by saying: “Lest you eat and be satisfied, and you build good houses and settle, and your cattle and sheep and goats increase … And you will say in your heart, ‘My ability and the might of my own hand made me all this wealth!’ Then you shall remember Hashem, your God: that it is He Who gives you the ability to make wealth.”The meaning of this is as follows: The truth is that people have different talents in different areas. For example, certain people are predisposed to receive wisdom, whereas others are predisposed to devise strategies to gather and amass [wealth]. On account of this, the wealthy man can truthfully say, from a certain angle, “My ability and the might of my hand made me this wealth.” Nevertheless, insofar as that ability was implanted within you, be sure to remember Who gives you the ability to make wealth.Moshe did not say, “Then you shall remember that Hashem is the One Who gives you wealth,” for if he had said that, he would be minimizing [the fact] that the ability implanted within the person is an intermediate cause in the accumulation of that wealth – but this is not the case. Therefore he said: “Although your ability is what made you this wealth, you should remember Who gives you that ability (blessed is He).”
For an elaboration on these ideas, see my article Parashas Eikev: On Attributing Our Success to Hashem.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Rough sketch of the meme (which, btw, is "expanding brain" not "exploding mind"): https://imgflip.com/i/4nsl8w
Links to other episodes relevant to this one:
Aurelius - Meditations 4:7: The Secret to Not Getting Hurt
Aurelius - Meditations 4:8: The Stoic Definition of Harm
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:9 – It was a law of necessity that what is naturally beneficial should bring this about.
4:10 – “All that comes to pass comes to pass with justice.” You will find this to be so if you watch carefully. I do not mean only in accordance with the ordered series of events, but in accordance with justice and as it were by someone who assigns what has respect to worth. Watch, therefore, as you have begun, and whatever you do, do it with this, with goodness in the specific sense in which the notion of the good man is conceived. Preserve this goodness in everything you do.
Other Sources:
- Kuzari 3:11:22-25
- Link to my shiur on Tehilim 92: https://youtu.be/tyc2c9geoMw
- Link to my article on Tehilim 92: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/2018/06/tehilim-92-mizmor-shir-lyom-hashabbos.html
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Epictetus – Enchiridion 25
Has someone been honored above you at a banquet, or in a greeting, or in being called in to give advice? If these things are good, you should be pleased for the person who has received them. If, on the other hand, they are bad, do not be upset that you did not receive them yourself. Remember, with respect to acquiring things that are not in our power, you cannot expect an equal share if you do not behave in the same way as other people.
How is it possible, if you do not hang around someone's door, accompany them or praise them, to have an equal share with people who do these things? You will be unjust, therefore, and insatiable, if you refuse to pay the price for which these things are sold, but wish instead to obtain them for nothing.
For what price are lettuces sold? A dollar let's say. When someone else, then, pays a dollar and takes the lettuce, whilst you, not paying it, go without, do not imagine that this person has gained an advantage over you. Whereas they have the lettuce, you still have the dollar that you did not pay.
So, in the present case, if you have not been invited to someone's banquet that is because you have not paid them the price for which a banquet is sold. They sell it for praise; they sell it for flattery. Pay the price, then, for which it is sold, if you think this will be to your advantage. But if at the same time you do not want to pay the one, yet wish to receive the other, you are insatiable and foolish.
Do you have nothing, then, in place of the banquet? You have this - you have not had to praise the person you did not want to praise, and you have not had to bear the insolence of their doorkeepers.
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What does not make a man worse than he was, neither makes his life worse than it was, nor hurts him without or within.
Aurelius - Meditations 2:1
I cannot be harmed by any of them, for no man can involve me in any wrong …
Epictetus – Enchiridion 1
On the one hand, there are things that are in our power, whereas other things are not in our power. In our power are opinion, impulse, desire, aversion and, in a word, whatever is our own doing. Things not in our power include our body, our possessions, our reputations, our status, and, in a word, whatever is not our own doing. Now, things that are in our power are by nature free, unhindered, unimpeded; but things not in our power are weak, slavish, hindered, and belong to others. Remember, therefore, that whenever you suppose those things that are by nature slavish to be free, or those things that belong to others to be your own, you will be hindered, miserable and distressed, and you will find fault with both God and men. If, however, you suppose to be yours only what is yours, and what belongs to another to belong to another (as indeed it does), no one will ever compel you, no one will hinder you; you will find fault with no one, reproach no one, nor act against your own will, you will have no enemies and no one will harm you, for no harm can touch you
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Get rid of the judgment, and you are rid of the “I am hurt.” Get rid of the “I am hurt” and you are rid of the hurt itself.
Epictetus – Enchiridion 5
It is not circumstances themselves that trouble people, but their judgments about those circumstances ... Therefore, whenever we are hindered or troubled or distressed, let us never blame others, but ourselves, that is, our own judgments. The uneducated person blames others for their failures; those who have just begun to be instructed blame themselves; those whose learning is complete blame neither others nor themselves.
Epictetus – Enchiridion 20
Remember that the insult does not come from the person who abuses you or hits you, but from your judgement that such people are insulting you. Therefore whenever someone provokes you, be aware that it is your own opinion that provokes you. Try, therefore, in the first place, not to be carried away by your impressions, for if you can gain time and delay, you will more easily control yourself.
Alisa Rosenbaum
I saw that evil was impotent—that evil was the irrational, the blind, the anti-real—and that the only weapon of its triumph was the willingness of the good to serve it.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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These are natural and necessary results from creatures of this kind, and one who wants this to be otherwise wants the fig-tree not to yield its acrid juice. And in general remember this, that within a very little while both he and you will be dead, and a little after not even your name nor his will be left.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Death is like birth, a mystery of nature, a composition out of identical elements and a decomposition into the same. Looked at generally this is not a thing of which man should be ashamed, for it is not contrary to the nature of a rational animal nor to the principle of his constitution.
Epictetus - Enchiridion 5
It is not circumstances themselves that trouble people, but their judgements about those circumstances. For example, death is nothing terrible, for if it were, it would have appeared so to Socrates; but having the opinion that death is terrible, this is what is terrible. Therefore, whenever we are hindered or troubled or distressed, us never blame others, but ourselves, that is, our own judgements. The uneducated person blames others for their failures; those who have just begun to be instructed blame themselves; those whose learning is complete blame neither others nor themselves.
Epictetus - Enchiridion 7
Just as on a voyage, when the ship has anchored, if you go ashore to get water you may also pick up a shell-fish or a vegetable from the path, but you should keep your thoughts fixed on the ship, and you should look back frequently in case the captain calls, and, if he should call you must give up all these other things to avoid being bound and thrown on board like a sheep; so in life also, if instead of a vegetable and a shell-fish you are given a wife and a child, nothing will prevent you from taking them - but if the captain calls, give up all these things and run to the ship without even turning to look back. And if you are old, do not even go far from the ship, lest you are missing when the call comes.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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If mind is common to us all, then also the reason, whereby we are rational beings, is common. If this be so, then also the reason which commands us what to do, and what not to do. If this be so, there is a common law also; if this be so, we are fellow citizens; if this be so, we are members of one political community; if this be so, the world is a kind of commonwealth. For in what other common government can we say that the whole human race partakes? And thence, from this common political community, is derived our mind itself, our reasoning faculty, and our sense of law, or whence do they come? For as my earthly part is a portion from some earth, and the watery from a second element, and the vital spirit from some source, and the hot and fiery from yet another source of its own (for nothing comes from nothing, just as nothing returns to nothing), so therefore the mind also has come from some source.
Rambam: Guide for the Perplexed 3:11
These great evils that come about between the human individuals who inflict them upon one another because of purposes, desires, opinions, and beliefs, are all of them likewise consequent upon privation. For all of them derive from ignorance, I mean from a privation of knowledge. Just as a blind man, because of absence of sight, does not cease stumbling, being wounded, and also wounding others, because he has nobody to guide him on his way, so too, the various sects of men – every individual according to the extent of his ignorance – does to himself and to others great evils from which individuals of the species suffer. If there were knowledge, whose relation to the human form is like that of the faculty of sight to the eye, they would refrain from doing any harm to themselves and to others. For the knowledge of truth removes hatred and quarrels, and prevents mutual harms. This state of society is promised to us by the prophet in the words: “The wolf will live with the sheep [and the leopard will lie down with the kid; and a calf, a lion whelp, and a fatling together, and a young child will lead them.] A bear will graze and their young will lie down together; [and a lion, like cattle, will eat hay.] A suckling child will play by a viper’s mouth; [and a newly weaned child will stretch his hand toward an adder’s lair” (Yeshayahu 11:6-8). The prophet also points out what will be the cause of this change, for he says that hatred, quarrel, and fighting will come to an end, because men will then have a true knowledge of God. “They will neither injure nor destroy in all of My holy mountain; for the earth will be as filled with knowledge of Hashem as water covering the sea bed” (ibid. 11:9). Note it.
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Finally, therefore, remember your retreat into this little domain which is yourself, and above all do not distract or strain yourself, but be free and look at things as a man, as a human being, as a citizen, as a creature that must die. And among what is most ready at hand into which you will look have these two: the one, that things do not touch the soul, for they are external and remain immovable, and that disturbances come only from the judgment within; the second, that all that your eyes behold will change in a moment and be no more; and of how many things you have already witnessed the changes, think continually of that.
The universe is change, life is judgment.
Epictetus - Enchiridion (Handbook) Chapter 5
It is not circumstances themselves that trouble people, but their judgements about those circumstances ... Therefore, whenever we are hindered or troubled or distressed, let us never blame others, but ourselves, that is, our own judgements. The uneducated person blames others for their failures; those who have just begun to be instructed blame themselves; those whose learning is complete blame neither others nor themselves.
Koheles 3:1-8
(1) Everything has its season, and there is a time for every desire under the heavens: (2) A time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot the planted. (3) A time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break through and a time to build. (4) A time to cry and a time to laugh; a time to eulogize and a time to dance. (5) A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; a time to hug and a time to distance [oneself] from hugging. (6) A time to seek and a time to lose; a time to keep and a time to discard. (7) A time to tear and a time to mend; a time to be silent and a time to speak. (8) A time to love and a time to hate; a time for war and a time for peace.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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Well, then, shall mere glory distract you? Look at the swiftness of the oblivion of all men; the gulf of endless time, behind and before; the hollowness of applause, the fickleness and folly of those who seem to speak well of you, and the narrow room in which it is confined. This should make you pause. For the entire earth is a point in space, and how small a corner thereof is this your dwelling place, and how few and how paltry those who will sing your praises here![1]
[1] Long’s Translation: “and what kind of people are they who will praise thee.”
Excerpt from Carl Sagan's "A Pale Blue Dot"
Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there--on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.
The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot.
Link to Carl Sagan reading the whole thing: https://youtu.be/wupToqz1e2g
ירמיהו פרק ט
(כב) כֹּה אָמַר י״י אַל יִתְהַלֵּל חָכָם בְּחׇכְמָתוֹ וְאַל יִתְהַלֵּל הַגִּבּוֹר בִּגְבוּרָתוֹ אַל יִתְהַלֵּל עָשִׁיר בְּעׇשְׁרוֹ. (כג) כִּי אִם בְּזֹאת יִתְהַלֵּל הַמִּתְהַלֵּל הַשְׂכֵּל וְיָדֹעַ אוֹתִי כִּי אֲנִי י״י עֹשֶׂה חֶסֶד מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה בָּאָרֶץ כִּי בְאֵלֶּה חָפַצְתִּי נְאֻם י״י.
Yirmiyahu 9:22-23
Thus said Hashem: “Let not the wise man glorify himself with his wisdom, let not the strong man glorify himself with his strength, let not the wealthy man glorify himself with his wealth. Only in this may one who glorifies himself take glory: knowing and comprehending Me, that I am Hashem Who does kindness, justice, and righteousness on earth, for in these is My desire” – the word of Hashem.
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For what is it that shall move your repugnance? The wickedness of men? Recall the judgement that reasonable creatures have come into the world for the sake of one another; that patience is a part of justice; that men do wrong involuntarily; and how many at last, after enmity, suspicion, hatred, warfare, have been laid out on their death-beds and come to dust. This should make you pause. But shall what is assigned from Universal Nature be repugnant to you? Revive the alternative: 'either Providence or blind atoms', and the many proofs that the Universe is a kind of Commonwealth. Shall then the things of the flesh still have hold upon you? Reflect that the understanding, when once it takes control of itself and recognizes its own power, does not mingle with the vital spirit, be its current smooth or broken, and finally reflect upon all that you have heard and consented to about pain and pleasure.
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4:3 – Men look for retreats for themselves, the country, the sea-shore, the hills; and you yourself, too, are peculiarly accustomed to feel the same want. Yet all this is very unlike a philosopher, when you may at any hour you please retreat into yourself. For nowhere does a man retreat into more quiet or more privacy than into his own mind, especially one who has within such things that he has only to look into, and become at once in perfect ease; and by ease I mean nothing else but good behavior. Continually, therefore, grant yourself this retreat and repair yourself. But let them be brief and fundamental truths, which will suffice at once by their presence to wash away all sorrow, and to send you back without repugnance to the life to which you return.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:1 – Begin the morning by saying to yourself: “Today I shall meet with the busy-body, the ungrateful, the arrogant, the deceitful, the envious, and the unsocial. All these things happen to them by reason of their ignorance of what is good and bad. But I, who have seen the nature of the good that it is right, and of the bad that it is wrong, and that the nature of the man who does wrong is akin to my own – not of the same blood and seed, but sharing the same intelligence, that is, a portion of divinity – I can neither be harmed by any of them, for no man can involve me in any wrong, nor can I be angry with my kinsman, nor hate him; for we have come into the world to work together, like feet, like hands, like eyelids, like the rows of upper and lower teeth. To act against one another, then, is contrary to nature, and it is acting against one another to be vexed and to turn away.”
"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:2 – Nothing that is undertaken is to be undertaken without a purpose, nor otherwise than according to a principle which makes the art of living perfect. [1]
[1] Long: “nor otherwise than according to the perfect principles of art.”
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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4:1 – The ruling power within, when it is in accordance with nature, so confronts what comes to pass as always to adapt itself readily to that which is and that which is presented to it. This is because it requires no definite material; rather it moves towards its purpose with a reservation, and then makes the opposition which encounters it into material for itself. It is like a fire, when it masters what falls into it: whereby a little flame would have been put out, but a bright fire very quickly appropriates to itself the matter which is heaped on it, and consumes it, and rises higher by means of this very material.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:16 – Body, vital spirit, mind: to the body belong sense perceptions; to the vital spirit, impulses; to the mind, principles. To be impressed by images belongs also to the beasts of the field; to be pulled by the strings of desire belongs to wild beasts, and to men who sin against nature, to a Phalaris or a Nero. To have the mind as guide to what appear to be duties belongs also to men who do not believe in God, who betray their own country, who do anything and everything once they have locked their doors. If then all else is common to you with those whom I have mentioned, it remains the peculiar mark of the good man to love and welcome what befalls him and what the thread fate spins for him, and not to soil the divine element seated within his breast nor to disquiet it with a mob of imaginations, but to preserve and to obey it, following God in orderly manner, uttering no word contrary to truth, doing no act contrary to justice. And if all men disbelieve that he lives simply, modestly, and contentedly, he is not angry with any one of them nor diverted from the road that leads to the goal of his life, at which he must arrive, pure, peaceful, ready to depart, without any compulsion, perfectly reconciled to his lot.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:15 – They have not learned to know how many things are signified by the words theft, sowing, buying, keeping quiet, seeing what ought to be done. This depends not on the bodily eye but on another kind of vision.[1]
[1] Farquharson Commentary: One of those intrusive fragments, disturbing the natural sequence. The meaning is enigmatic, though the general purport is that the foolish neither understand the world they live in, nor the real meaning of the words they use. Marcus seems to have been meditating in the satirical vein of a favourite author, Heraclitus, who contrasts the outward senses with the inward vision: 'the many do not understand the things they meet with, nor when they are told of them do they know what they mean, though they appear to themselves to understand.'
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:14 – Do not wander from your path any longer, for you are not likely to read your note-books or your deeds of ancient Rome and Greece or your extracts from their writings, which you laid up against old age. Hasten then to the goal, lay idle hopes aside, and come to your own help, if you care at all for yourself, while still you may.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:12 – If you complete the present work, following the rule of reason, earnestly, with all your might, with kindness, and allow nothing to distract you, but preserve your own divine element pure and upright, as if you have this moment to restore it; if you make this secure, expecting nothing and avoiding nothing, but content with present action in accord with Nature and with heroic truth in what you mean and say, you will live the blessed life, there is no one who is able to prevent this.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:13 – As doctors have their instruments and scalpels always at hand to meet sudden demands for treatment, so do you have your principles ready for the understanding of things divine and human, and for doing everything, even the very smallest, with mindfulness of the bond which unites the divine and human; for you will not do any act well which concerns man without referring it to the divine; and the same is true of your conduct to God.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:11 – To the above supports let one more be added. Always make a figure or outline of the imagined object as it occurs, in order to see distinctly what it is in its essence, naked, as a whole and parts; and say to yourself its individual name and the names of the things of which it was compounded and into which it will be broken up. For nothing is so able to create greatness of mind as the power methodically and truthfully to test each thing that meets one in life, and always to look upon it so as to attend at the same time to the use which this particular thing contributes to a Universe of a certain definite kind, what value it has in reference to the Whole, and what to man, who is a citizen of the highest City, whereof all other cities are like households. What is this which now creates an image in me, what is its composition? how long will it naturally continue, what virtue is of use to meet it; for example, gentleness, fortitude, truth, good faith, simplicity, self-reliance, and the rest? Therefore, in each case, we must say: this has come from God; this by the actual co-ordination of events, the complicated web and similar coincidence or chance; this again from my fellow man, my kinsman, my comrade, yet one who does not know what is natural for himself. But I do know; wherefore I use him kindly and justly, according to the natural law of fellowship, aiming, however, at the same time at his desert, where the question is morally indifferent.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:11 – To the above supports let one more be added. Always make a figure or outline of the imagined object as it occurs, in order to see distinctly what it is in its essence, naked, as a whole and parts; and say to yourself its individual name and the names of the things of which it was compounded and into which it will be broken up. For nothing is so able to create greatness of mind as the power methodically and truthfully to test each thing that meets one in life, and always to look upon it so as to attend at the same time to the use which this particular thing contributes to a Universe of a certain definite kind, what value it has in reference to the Whole, and what to man, who is a citizen of the highest City, whereof all other cities are like households. What is this which now creates an image in me, what is its composition? how long will it naturally continue, what virtue is of use to meet it; for example, gentleness, fortitude, truth, good faith, simplicity, self-reliance, and the rest? Therefore, in each case, we must say: this has come from God; this by the actual co-ordination of events, the complicated web and similar coincidence or chance; this again from my fellow man, my kinsman, my comrade, yet one who does not know what is natural for himself. But I do know; wherefore I use him kindly and justly, according to the natural law of fellowship, aiming, however, at the same time at his desert, where the question is morally indifferent.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:10 – Therefore throw all else aside, and hold fast only these few things; further calling to mind at the same time that each of us lives only in the present, this brief moment; the rest is either a life that is past, or is in an uncertain future. Short then is the time which every man lives, and small the nook of the earth where he lives; and short too the longest posthumous fame, and even this only continued by a succession of poor human beings, who will very soon die, and who know not even themselves, much less him who died long ago.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:9 – Reverence your faculty of judgment. On this it entirely rests that your governing self no longer has a judgment disobedient to Nature and to the estate of a rational being. This judgment promises deliberateness (or: freedom from hasty judgment), familiar friendship with men, and obedience to God.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:8 – In the mind of a man of chastened and purified spirit you will find no trace of festering wound, no ulceration, no abscess beneath the skin. The hour of fate does not surprise his life before its fulfillment, so that one would say that the actor is leaving the stage before he has fulfilled his role, before the play is over. You will find nothing servile or artificial, no dependence on others nor detachment from them; nothing worthy of blame, nothing that needs a hiding-place.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:7 – Never value as an advantage to yourself what will force you one day to break your word, to abandon self-respect, to hate, to suspect, to curse another, to act the hypocrite, to covet anything that calls for walls or coverings to conceal it. A man who puts first his own mind and divine element, and the holy rites of its excellence, makes no scene, utters no groans, will need neither the refuge of solitude nor much company. What is most worthwhile, he will pass his days neither in pursuit nor in avoidance, and it is no concern at all of his whether the time be longer or shorter for which he shall have the use of the soul in its bodily envelope; for even if he must be released at once, he will depart as easily as he would perform any other act that can be done with reverence and sobriety, being careful all his life of this one thing alone that his understanding be not found in any state which is foreign to a rational social being.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:6 – If you discover in the life of man something higher than justice, truth, temperance, fortitude, and generally speaking than your understanding contented with itself, where it presents you behaving by the rule of right, and satisfied with destiny, in what is assigned to you and is not yours to choose; if, I say, you see something higher than this, turn to it with all your heart and enjoy the supreme good now that it is found. But if nothing higher is revealed than the very divine element seated within you, subordinating your private impulses to itself, examining your thoughts, having withdrawn itself, as Socrates used to say, from the sense-affections, and subordinated itself to God and making men its first care; if you find all else to be smaller and cheaper than this, give no room to anything else, to which when once you incline and turn, you will no longer have the power without a struggle to prefer in honor that which is your own, your peculiar good. For it is not right to set up a rival of another kind to the good of Reason and of the Commonwealth; the praise of the multitude, for example, or place or wealth or pleasurable indulgence. All these, though they appear for a little while to be in accord, suddenly gain the mastery and carry a man away. Do you then, I say, simply and of your own free will, choose the higher and hold fast to that. “But the higher is what is to our advantage”; if to the advantage of a reasonable being, keep hold of that, but if to the advantage of a mere animate creature, say so and preserve your decision without parade; only see to it that you make a choice that will not betray you.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:5 – Do not act unwillingly nor selfishly nor without self-examination, nor with divergent motives. Let no affectation veneer your thinking. Be neither a busy talker, nor a busybody. Moreover let the divine element within be the guardian of a real man, a man of ripe years, a statesman, a Roman, a magistrate, who has taken his post like one waiting for the Retreat to sound, ready to depart, needing no oath nor any man as witness. And see that you have gladness of face, no need of service from without nor the peace that other men bestow. You should stand upright, not be held upright.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:4 – Do not waste the balance of life left to you in thoughts about other persons, when you are not referring to some advantage of your fellows—for why do you rob yourself of something else which you might do— I mean if you imagine to yourself what so and so is doing, and why; what he is saying or thinking or planning, and every thought of the kind which leads you astray from close watch over your governing self?
Rather you must, in the train of your thoughts, avoid what is merely casual and without purpose, and above all curiosity and malice; you must habituate yourself only to thoughts about which if someone were suddenly to ask: 'What is in your mind now?', you would at once reply, quite frankly, this or that; and so from the answer it would immediately be plain that all was simplicity and kindness, the thoughts of a social being, who disregards pleasurable, or to speak more generally, luxurious imaginings or rivalry of any kind, or envy and suspicion, or anything else about which you would blush to put into words that you had it in your head.
A man so minded, putting off no longer to be one of the elect, is surely a priest and minister of God, employing aright that which is seated within him, which makes the mere mortal to be unstained by pleasures, unscathed by any pain, untouched by any wrong, unconscious of any wickedness; a wrestler in the greatest contest of all, not to be overthrown by any passion; dyed with justice to the core, welcoming with his whole heart all that comes to pass and is assigned to him; seldom and only under some great necessity and for the common good imagining what another person is saying or doing or thinking. For he has only his own work to realize and he keeps in mind continually what is assigned to him from the Whole;—his work he makes perfect, his lot he is convinced is good; for the birth-spirit assigned to every man goes with him and carries him along with it.
Moreover, he remembers that all reasonable beings are akin to himself, and that although to care for all men is in accord with man's nature, he is to cling not to the opinion of all men, but only of men who live in accord with Nature. Indeed, he remembers continually what those who do not so live are like, in their homes and abroad, by night and by day; what manner of men they are, and those with whom they defile themselves. Therefore he takes no account even of the praise of such men,—men who are not even acceptable to themselves.
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3:3 – Hippocrates, after curing many sicknesses, himself fell sick and died. The Chaldean astrologers foretold the death of many persons, then the hour of fate overtook them also. Alexander, Pompeius, and Julius Caesar, after so often utterly destroying whole towns and slaying in the field many myriads of horse and foot, themselves also one day departed from life. Heraclitus, after many speculations about the fire which should consume the Universe, was waterlogged by dropsy, poulticed himself with cow-dung and died. Vermin killed Democritus; another kind of vermin Socrates. What is the moral? You went on board, you set sail, you have made the port. Step ashore: if to a second life, nothing is void of God, not even in that other world; but if to unconsciousness, you will cease to suffer pains and pleasures and to be the servant of an earthly vessel as far inferior as that which does it service is superior; for the one is mind and deity, the other clay and gore.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:2 – We must also observe closely points of this kind, that even the secondary effects of Nature's processes possess a sort of grace and attraction. To take one instance, bread when it is being baked breaks open at some places; now even these cracks, which in one way contradict the promise of the baker's art, somehow catch the eye and stimulate in a special way our appetite for the food. And again figs, when fully mature, gape, and in ripe olives their very approach to decay adds a certain beauty of its own to the fruit. Ears of corn too when they bend downwards, the lion's wrinkled brow, the foam flowing from the boar's mouth, and many other characteristics that are far from beautiful if we look at them in isolation, do nevertheless because they follow from Nature's processes lend those a further ornament and a fascination. And so, if a man has a feeling for, and a deeper insight into the processes of the Universe, there is hardly one but will somehow appear to present itself pleasantly to him, even among mere attendant circumstances. Such a man also will feel no less pleasure in looking at the actual jaws of wild beasts than at the imitations which painters and sculptors exhibit, and he will be enabled to see in an old woman or an old man a kind of freshness and bloom, and to look upon the charms of his own boy slaves with sober eyes. And many such experiences there will be, not convincing to everyone but occurring to him and to him alone who has become genuinely familiar with Nature and her works.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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3:1 – We ought to take into account not only the fact that day by day life is being spent and a smaller balance remaining, but this further point also that, should we live longer, it is at least doubtful whether the intellect will hereafter be the same, still sufficient to comprehend events and the speculation which contributes to the understanding alike of things divine and human. For, if the mind begin to decay, there will be no failure of functions like transpiration, nutrition, sense-impression, and desire; but the right employment of ourselves, precision in regard to the related elements of duty, analysis of the indications of sense, to know just whether the time is come to take leave of life, and all questions of the kind which specially require a trained judgement — these are extinguished before the rest. Accordingly we must press forward, not only because every day we are drawing nearer to death, but also because the apprehension of events and the ability to adapt ourselves to them begin to wane before the end.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:17 – Of man's life, his time is a point, his existence a flux, his sensation clouded, his body's entire composition corruptible, his vital spirit an eddy of breath, his fortune hard to predict, his fame uncertain. Briefly, all the things of the body, a river; all the things of the spirit, dream and delirium; his life a warfare and a sojourn in a strange land, his after-fame oblivion. What then can be his escort through life? One thing and one thing only: Philosophy. And this is to keep the spirit within him unwronged and unscathed, master of pains and pleasures, doing nothing at random, nothing falsely and with pretence; needing no other to do aught or to leave aught undone; and moreover accepting what befalls it, that is, what is assigned to it, as coming from that other world from which it came itself. And in all things awaiting death, with a mind that is satisfied, counting it nothing else than a release of the elements from which each living creature is composed. Now if there is no hurt to the elements themselves in their ceaseless changing each into other, why should a man apprehend anxiously the change and dissolution of them all? For this is according to Nature; and no evil is according to Nature.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:16 – The soul of a man does violence to itself, first and foremost when it becomes an abscess and, as it were, a tumor on the universe, so far as it can. For to be vexed at anything which happens is a separation of ourselves from nature, in some part of which the natures of all other things are contained. Secondly, the soul does violence to itself when it turns away from any man, or even moves towards him with the intention of injuring, such as are the souls of those who are angry. In the third place, the soul does violence to itself when it is overpowered by pleasure or by pain. Fourthly, when it plays a part, and does or says anything insincerely and untruly. Fifthly, when, failing to direct any act or impulse of its own upon a mark, it behaves in any matter without a plan or conscious purpose, whereas even the smallest act ought to have a reference to an end; and the end of rational animals is to follow the reason and the law of the most ancient city and polity.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:15 – “Everything is what you judge it to be.[1]” While the retort made to the Cynic philosopher Monimus is obvious enough, obvious too is the use of the saying, if one only take the gist of it, so far as it is true.
[1] Alternative translations: “opinion,” “assumption”; hupolepsis, hypolepsis, u(po/lhyis; Seddon writes “opinion covers our beliefs and judgments, how we regard things, and especially how we evaluate things, generally” (commentary on Epictetus’s Handbook 1:1).
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:14 – Even were you about to live three thousand years or thrice ten thousand, nevertheless remember this, that no one loses any other life than this which he is living, nor lives any other than this which he is losing. Thus the longest and shortest come to the same thing. For the present is equal to all, and what is passing is therefore equal: thus what is being lost is proved to be barely a moment. For a man could lose neither past nor future; how can one rob him of what he has not got? Always remember then these two things: one, that all things from everlasting are of the same kind, and are in rotation; and it matters nothing whether it be for a hundred years or for two hundred or for an infinite time that a man shall behold the same spectacle; the other, that the longest-lived and the soonest to die have an equal loss; for it is the present alone of which either will be deprived, since (as we saw) this is all he has and a man does not lose what he has not got.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:13 – Nothing is more wretched than the man who goes round and round everything, and, as Pindar says, “pries into the things beneath the earth,” and seeks by conjecture what is in the minds of his neighbors, but fails to perceive that it is enough to attend to the divinity that is within himself and to do it genuine service. Now that service is to keep it unsullied by passion, thoughtlessness, and discontent with what comes from God or men. What comes from God is to be revered because of excellence; what comes from men is dear because they are of one kindred with himself; deserving of our pity too sometimes, humanly speaking, by reason of their ignorance of good and ill. This disablement is more grievous than that which robs the eyes of the power to distinguish light from darkness.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:12 – How all things are vanishing swiftly, bodies themselves in the universe and the memorials of them in time; what is the character of all the things of sense, and most of all those which attract by the bait of pleasure or terrify by the threat of pain or are shouted abroad by vanity, how cheap, contemptible, soiled, corruptible, and moral: - these are for the faculty of mind to consider. To consider too what kind of men those are whose judgment and voices confer honor and dishonor; what it is to die, and that if a man looks at it by itself and by the separating activity of thought strips off all the images associated with death, he will come to judge it to be nothing else but Nature’s handiwork. But if a man fears Nature’s handiwork he is a mere child; and yet death is not merely Nature’s handiwork, but also her well-being. To consider also how mortal man touches God and through what organ of himself, and when that part of him is in what sort of condition.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:11 – In the conviction that it is possible you may depart from life at once, act and speak and think in every case accordingly. But to leave the company of men is nothing to fear, if God exists; for He would not involve you in ill. If, however, He does not exist or if He takes no care for man’s affairs, why should I go on living in a world void of God, or void of providence? But He does exist, and He does care for men’s lives, and He has put it entirely in a man’s power not to fall into real ills; for the rest, if anything were an ill, He would have provided also for this, that it may be in every man’s power not to fall into it (and how could what does not make a man worse make his life worse?). But God, by nature, would not have winked at these things either out of ignorance or because (though He knew of them) He had not the power to guard against them or to put them right; neither would He have made so vast an error, from want of power or skill, as to permit good and ill to befall indifferently, both good and bad men equally. Now death, and life, good report and evil report, pain and pleasure, wealth and poverty, these all befall men, good and bad alike, equally, and are themselves neither right nor wrong; they are therefore neither good nor ill.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:10 – Like a true philosopher Theophrastus says, when comparing, as men commonly do compare, various faults, that errors committed through desire are graver than errors committed through anger. For clearly one who loses his temper is turning away from reason with a kind of pain and inward spasm, whereas he who offends through desire is the victim of pleasure and is clearly more vicious in a way and more effeminate in his wrongdoing. Rightly then and in a truly philosophic spirit Theophrastus said that an offense attended with pleasure is more deserving of condemnation than one attended with pain. And, generally, the latter resembles more a man who was originally wronged and so forced by pain to lose his temper; the other has begun it himself and has been impelled to do wrong, carried away by appetite to do what he does.
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:9 – Always remember the following: what the nature of the whole is, what is my own nature, the relation of this nature to that, what kind of part it is of what kind of whole, and that no man can hinder your saying and doing at all times what is in accordance with that nature whereof you are a part.----------
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The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:8 – Men are not easily seen as to be brought into evil case by failure to consider what passes in another’s soul; but they who do not read aright the motions of their own soul are bound to be in evil case.
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2:7 – Do things from outside break in to distract you? Give yourself a time of quiet to learn some new good thing and cease to wander out of your course. But, when you have done that, be on guard against a second kind of wandering. For those who are sick to death in life, with no mark on which they direct every impulse or in general every imagination, are triflers, not in words only but also in their deeds.
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Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
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2:6 – You are doing yourself violence, violence, my soul; and you will have no second occasion to do yourself honor. Brief is the life of each of us, and this of yours is nearly ended, and yet you do not honor yourself, but commit your well-being to the charge of other men’s souls.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
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Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
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"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
2:5 – Each moment think valiantly, as becomes a Roman and a man, to do what is to your hand, with precise … and unaffected dignity, natural love, freedom, and justice; and to give yourself repose from every other imagination. And so you will, if only you do each act as though it were your last, freed from every random aim, from willful turning away from the directing Reason, from pretence, self-love and displeasure with what is allotted to you. You see how few things a man need master in order to live a smooth and God-fearing life; for God himself will require nothing more of him who keeps these precepts.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
2:4 – Remember how long you have been putting off these things, and how many times God has given you days of opportunity, and yet you do not use them. Now it is high time to perceive the kind of universe of which you are a part and the nature of the Governor of the universe from whom you subsist as an effluence, and that the term of your time is circumscribed, and that unless you use it to attain calm of mind, time will be gone and you will be gone and the opportunity to use it will not be yours again.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
2:3 – The work of God is full of providence: the work of fortune is not divorced from nature or the spinning and winding of the threads ordained by providence. All flows from that other world; and there is, besides, necessity and the wellbeing of the whole universe, of which you are a part. Now to every part of nature – that is good which the nature of the whole brings, and which preserves that nature; and the universe is preserved as much by the changes of the compound bodies as by the changes of the elements which compose those bodies. Let this be sufficient for you, these continually be your doctrines. But put away your thirst for books, so that you may not die murmuring, but truly reconciled and grateful from your heart to God.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
2:2 – This whatever it is that I am is flesh and vital spirit and the governing self. Disdain the flesh: blood and bones and network, a twisted skein of nerves, veins, and arteries. Consider also what the vital spirit is: a current of air, not even continuously the same, but every hour being expelled and sucked in again. There is then a third part: the governing self. Put away your books and be distracted no longer; they are not your portion. Rather, as if on the point of death, reflect like this: “You are an old man. Do not let this governing part of you continue to be a slave, no longer to be a puppet pulled to unsocial movements,[1] no longer to be dissatisfied with what is allotted in the present or to suspect what is allotted in the future.”
[1] This reflects Long’s translation. Farquharson has “no longer to be a puppet pulled by selfish impulse.”
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
2:1 – Begin the morning by saying to yourself: “Today I shall meet with the busy-body, the ungrateful, the arrogant, the deceitful, the envious, and the unsocial. All these things happen to them by reason of their ignorance of what is good and bad. But I, who have seen the nature of the good that it is right, and of the bad that it is wrong, and that the nature of the man who does wrong is akin to my own – not of the same blood and seed, but sharing the same intelligence, that is, a portion of divinity – I can neither be harmed by any of them, for no man can involve me in any wrong, nor can I be angry with my kinsman, nor hate him; for we have come into the world to work together, like feet, like hands, like eyelids, like the rows of upper and lower teeth. To act against one another, then, is contrary to nature, and it is acting against one another to be vexed and to turn away.”
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)
Welcome to The Stoic Jew podcast! If you're new to the podcast, here's my advice: do NOT start listening from Episode 1. Instead, either start with the most recent episode and work your way backwards OR skip around and choose which episodes to listen to based on the titles and/or synopses. There's no need to go in order, and although I stand by the ideas in the first set of episodes (i.e. the ones without titles), they were recorded informally and were not intended for public consumption.
If you have questions, comments, or feedback, I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to contact me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail.
Stoic texts:
The Meditations of Marcus AureliusLetters from a Stoic Master (Seneca)The Discourses of EpictetusThe Enchiridion (Handbook) of Epictetus----------
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rabbischneeweiss
Blog: https://kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rmschneeweiss
"The Mishlei Podcast": https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: https://thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: https://rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: https://machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": https://tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss)