This month's conversation:
Yetzer Ha'ra | יֵצֶר הָרָע
evil inclinations
Acknowledging, accepting, and channeling our inclinations
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Channeling our Good and Evil Impulses
The eighteenth-century scholar Moshe Chaim Luzzatto explains the classical Jewish notion of yetzer hatov (the inclination toward goodness) and the yetzer ha’ra (the inclination toward evil) succinctly in his book Derech Hashem (The Way of God). He affirms several key Jewish understandings of human beings. First, we are neither inherently good nor inherently evil (despite what other religious traditions or ideologies might posit); second, we operate by our own free will; and, finally, our very purpose — the reason for our existence — is to move closer toward perfection, that is, God (which, I would argue, can be taken literally or metaphorically, depending on the theology of the reader).
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The Pull of our Inclinations: Steering away from the binary view of good and evil
How nice to write about a subject I know so well — and from experience, not just from books.
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Sex and the Spirit: Communicating against sexual misconduct
A young man in his early twenties raised his hand. “The thing is,” he said, “I want to have sex pretty much all the time.” The comment came at the end of a workshop organized by Seven Wells — a space for participants, particularly emerging adults, to use Jewish texts and values as the framework for an open discussion about sexuality. We try to make a connection between who we are as sexual and spiritual beings in order to empower participants to approach intimate relationships with a sense of sacredness.
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The Dangers of Little Lies
The 2016 Trump campaign plunged our civil discourse to an all-time low with a candidate who made lying a form of entertainment — a tactic that gave him widespread coverage in the media and tragically awarded him the honor of becoming president. In the immediate aftermath of the election, the cries for mediation of untruthful information have grown more forceful. As Nicholas Kristof warned in The New York Times, “…fake news is gaining ground, empowering nuts and undermining our democracy.” The upswing of dishonest speech and behavior is deeply concerning, and we will want to hold the Trump administration accountable to the truth. At the same time, we should take the opportunity to examine the dishonesty that percolates in our more quotidian lives because lying — in ways small and large — are ultimately connected. Dishonesty erodes our faith in our leaders, our institutions, and in each other.
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NiSh’ma: Yetzer Ha’ra
On this page, we offer three takes on the verse from Pirkei Avot that examines the nature of strength and wealth. Our commentators consider the relationship between our impulses and our satisfaction with what we have.
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Consider and Converse: Yetzer Ha’ra
Sh’ma Now curates conversations on a single theme rooted in Jewish tradition and the contemporary moment. At the heart of this issue of Sh’ma Now is the theme of Yetzer Ha’ra—the Evil Inclination. The perspectives shared in these pages are meant to be expansive — to inspire reflections on Judaism and possibility in ways you may not have considered before. They aim to hold discord. We hope that the richness and diversity of these essays will show you new perspectives that are personally meaningful and edifying.
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Channeling our Impulses
The eighteenth-century scholar Moshe Chaim Luzzatto explains the classical Jewish notion of yetzer hatov (the inclination toward goodness) and the yetzer ha’ra (the inclination toward evil) succinctly in his book Derech Hashem (The Way of God). He affirms several key Jewish understandings of human beings. First, we are neither inherently good nor inherently evil (despite what other religious traditions or ideologies might posit); second, we operate by our own free will; and, finally, our very purpose — the reason for our existence — is to move closer toward perfection, that is, God (which, I would argue, can be taken literally or metaphorically, depending on the theology of the reader).
Read More
NiSh’ma: Yetzer Ha’ra
Sh’ma Now offers several takes—Robert J. Saferstein, Sheila Peltz Weinberg, and Raysh Weiss & Jonah Rank—on the verse from Pirkei Avot,”Ben Zoma said: ‘Who is valiant? One who masters his yetzer (inclination) … Who is rich? One who rejoices in what he has.’” Our commentators consider the relationship between our impulses and our satisfaction with what we have.
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