Parashat Mishpatim
includes 53 laws including 20 positive and 33 negative. Isaac Balshevis
Singer’s short story, Shrewd Todie and
Lyzer the Miser provided a humorous opportunity to look at laws relating to
borrowing and stealing.
Gesher students developed a job description for a Jewish
13 year-old:
Attend minyan and
Shabbat services
Practice/Study for
Bar/Bat Mitzvah
Learn to put on a
tallit and tefillin
Wear a tallit and
tefillin during the daily minyan
Be a role model for
younger children
Attend religious
school
Get an education
Take responsibility
for yourself
Find your place in
Jewish life and the Jewish world
Give Tzedakah
Help your community
Behave
Be a mensch
Then we looked at Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s job
description for a Prophet. After discussing
the various responsibilities, students selected three to which they would
aspire. The following is a composite of
their selections:
- Prophets are sensitive to
evil: They notice people being hurt
when others can walk by and not notice.
- Prophets know that small
things are important: They notice
details and worry about “unimportant people—not just the great and
powerful.”
- Prophets seek the highest
good: They will settle for nothing less.
- Prophets are “one octave
too high”: They often say things that are beyond our full understanding
and comfort.
- Prophets smash idols: They literally smash idols—and they
shatter many things that give us comfort—but that are less than God wants
from us.
- The Prophets often say,
“Few are guilty but all are responsible.” For them, “Not my fault” doesn’t
work.
- Prophets are often lonely
and unhappy: They are often not liked. They are often unpleasant people
because they to not give in to compromise.
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