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Speech

October 24, 1985

Models in Tanach for Family Life

Parenting Jewish Education

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Education as a Mitzvah (2000)

Ed=cemntd to foundtn of Judaism: ות״ת כנגד כולם... RHV; Mitzvot=branches of Tor. Even Hasdim: ST אבני נזר—I’d rather die fr Irnng than fr nt IrnngTrad—many evaluatns of Tor vs other values: TuM... But tod: focus on: לימוד או ידיעה?If choice: BIU Responsa chip in brain/work... which?Philos'c underpinngs־^ Judaism vs Hellenism Jewish struggl vs Greeks—nt only bttl-fld (we won), But also realm ideas/values, many consqncsScholars: Plato: Being>Becomg.Judaism: Becomg> BeingSo: Greeks: Knowldg>studying/learnng;Jsm: actv procss/exprnc LRNNG>passv knwldg. Or: Becomg> Being, Passion f Lrnng trumps knowingSo: ת" ח, not חכם...THUS: ידיעה<לימוד... SO: לפום צערא אגרא..ST RAV: "cn sell y Bklyn Brdge .. wht d YOU thnk?רמב"ם־ח' פרקים: החסיד המעולה/הכובש את יצרו=|| :I>500 yrs ago, Rlsr Isserlin (תרומת הדשן)—rich stdts invntd revolvg table.books... Isserlin objected:אותם הבחורים העשירים המפונקים...לא טוב הם עושים. אדרבה, כשמבקשים אחר הספר ובא לו בטורח גדול זכור באותו מעשה מה שרוצה ללמודSo: ST: גר"א, גר"ח, ר' זעלמעלע...not accpt anglic helpשאם כ• נכונים דבריהם . . .לא יתרצה לקבל תורה אפי היא אמת אם לא עמל בה בעצמו עד שהגיע להבנה נכונהSurprsng Result: Greeks—favord adult ed>childrn... Thus: ch’s ed left t slaves—פדגוג. ..Jsm: process starts early. .nt slave bt רב=Master!Rambam I - 3 Halakhot הלי ת"ת dedcatd ed of ch, only thn. כשם שמצוה עליו ללמד את בנו כך הוא מצוה...ללמוד עצמוI hope this day=spur to both LRNNG +BECOMING--bth f our ch & ourselves--all year long
Jewish Education

Article

The American Jewish Family (1975)

Eleven years ago, in this very hall, it was my privilege to participate in the ceremonies at which the first award for Jewish Family of the Year was presented to the late and much lamented Samuel W. and Rose Hurowitz. Since then, and until this day when I happily participate in similar ceremonies conferring this same award upon my very dear friends Larry and Ruth Kobrin, the health and stability of the American Jewish family has not at all improved. If anything, it has considerably worsened, reflecting the general deterioration of family life in this country, both as a result of the accumulated corrosion afflicting all our social institutions, and the frontal attacks upon the family by spokesmen for certain avant-garde pressure groups. This is not the occasion for a probing analysis of what is wrong with the American Jewish family. Moreover, not being a social scientist, my credentials for such an analysis are considerably less than impeccable. Speaking only as a rabbi who has some passing acquaintance with the Jewish tradition, and on the basis of my limited experience in counseling Jewish families, permit me to dispense with diagnosis and prognosis, and concentrate on prescription. Here too, I cannot and will not presume to be comprehensive, but rather suggest a number of essential ingredients in the effort to restore family life amongst American Jews to what it once was, or to what we would like it to be. The first requirement for a stable family is, of course, love. I am almost embarrassed to speak the word, because it has been overused, abused, and misused to the point where it has been semantically debased and emotionally voided of all content. Furthermore, there is a danger of over-romanticization and over-idealization of the traditional Jewish family as bound by mutual love. We do no good in holding up for young couples an unrealizable ideal–two people who agree on everything, who love their children without resentment, and who receive, in return, unquestio…
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Shul Bulletin

The Shabbaton

An exciting "first“ for The Jewish Center Family was the widely acclaimed Shabbaton, held on the weekend of October 31-November 2 in Ellenville, New York, and which successfully combined thought-provoking study, stimulating discussions, comradeship, and lively entertainment. Centering our concern on “The Family in Crisis," our scholars in residence – Rabbi Norman Lamm and the noted sociologist Dr. Jerry Hochbaum – highlighted the major problem areas, both historic and contemporary, and guided our search to solutions in dealing with the new pressures on family life.A spirit of warmth permeated the entire weekend, attended by three generations of The Center Family. Whether swimming, studying, or dining -- we all enjoyed ourselves immensely. And now, we look forward to the next Shabbaton!
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