The Great Sources with Rabbi Shnayor Burton

How come nobody has been talking about knowing Hashem?0:00 Why is the ideal of knowing Hashem so revolutionary? And doesn't any person who serves Hashem already know Him?3:30 Hashem as the solution to political problems5:15 Is knowledge of Hashem the totality of all knowledge or a specific knowledge?12:30 Is the blessed state of the world a result of knowing Hashem or the reverse?20:00 Why the Redemption is a principle of faith22:45 What would motivate a person to talk about Hashem and seek knowledge of Him?34:30 The mitzvah to love Hashem is to study reality and thus come to desire knowledge of Him42:00 Either we all have been doing this already, or else it is not a legitimate pursuit 46:30 An idea that can't be put into practice tends to wither and die58:30 The tension between honoring the tradition and exploring new ideas1:00:00 Knowing Hashem and politics; why national independence is necessary for knowing Hashem1:00:05 Is the highest human goal action or contemplation?1:08:00 Contradictions in the Rambam; contradictions between Plato and Aristotle; Al-Farabi's resolutions

What does it mean to truly know Hashem? A conversation with Zev Lowy about the prophetic ideal — and why it’s still the greatest mission of all.

0:00 Knowledge of Hashem is supposed to be the most fundamental subject for humanity but is seldom discussed

5:30 Knowledge of Hashem is not well defined. How can it perfect humanity? What should we do to promote it?

9:00 Should we articulate how knowledge of Hashem will solve all the world's problems?

15:00 Why people don't think about how knowledge of Hashem works

24:45 Should we seek knowledge of Hashem for any reason other than its own sake?

29:30 Is knowledge of Hashem effective if pursued for any reason other than its own sake?

33:30 The experience of relentlessly seeking knowledge of Hashem and how it changes a person fundamentally

36:45 What is lacking in Exodus, Exile and Redemption (here: https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor/p/introduction-to-exodus-exile-and?r=111271&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false)? Where Rambam and Kabbalah part ways

41:00 Even Popperians talk about love and other intense experiences

44:00 Phenomenology and knowing Hashem

48:00 The theory of da'as Hashem

51:00 The notion of Pure Being and its power to inspire right action

57:00 Why it's important for people capable of it to understand da'as Hashem

1:01:00 Chasing beauty, wisdom, and knowledge of Hashem

1:04:00 Torah and practical wisdom

Why does the Haggadah begin by reminding us that our ancestors were idolaters?What is the secret sin of Avraham Avinu, and why did he ask for it to remain hidden?This shiur explores the tension between freedom and servitude, the esoteric struggle with idolatry in every generation, and how the Torah guides us through an annual Exodus that is far from over.Uncover true liberation develops from avodah itself.

us #slavery #sacrifice #death #avrahamavinu #AbrahamWhy does the Haggadah begin by reminding us that our ancestors were idolaters?What is the secret sin of Avraham Avinu, and why did he ask for it to remain hidden?This shiur explores the tension between freedom and servitude, the esoteric struggle with idolatry in every generation, and how the Torah guides us through an annual Exodus that is far from over.Uncover how true liberation develops from avodah itself.

0:00 The overall structure of the Haggadah: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7p74lusVF8&t=1s

1:00 The question the Haggadah is answering: Why is the past relevant to today?

2:45 The two narratives the Haggadah tells: We were once slaves, and Hashem freed us; we once served idols, and now we serve Hashem

6:00 The first narrative explains freedom from slavery; the second narrative explains the purpose of slavery itself

8:00 The exile in Egypt as a result of Avraham's doubt; Jewish history as recurring opportunities to recognize Hashem through redemption from suffering

16:30 The wicked son doesn't understand that there are moments in history that are crucial for long-term destiny

25:45 Both narratives involve escape from servitude, but the second narrative involves escape from one form of servitude to another: from serving idols to serving Hashem

30:00 Rambam and Avodas HaKodesh argue whether Avraham himself worshipped idolatry32:45 Avraham Avinu was worried about the idol worship he engaged in as a youth, and Hashem promised him that his sin will disappear like the evaporating dew35:00 The verse written awkwardly to conceal the fact that Avraham worshipped idolatry

40:30 The influence of idolatry on the Torah and on how we worship Hashem; the Guide of the Perplexed on sacrificial worship

43:00 The purpose of the Torah is to make worship easy

45:20 The psychological need that people have for servitude

48:00 The link between freedom and being familiar with Hashem

53:15 Because we struggle with serving idols, we require servitude directed to Hashem

57:30 Why monotheism is the key to achieving world peace

59:40 Will the Torah forever contain an element of servitude?

1:01:30 The meaning of Avraham Avinu's concern about the idol worship he engaged in as a youth

1:08:00 The Torah will never change, but sacrifices will eventually not involve the element of servitude

1:08:45 The Rambam's reason for mitzvahs are dynamic and can change over time: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0XAcZW9hUZHAEoteTjjmQL

1:13:40 When the Messiah comes, we will find new reasons for the mitzvah of sacrifices, such that they won't involve the element of servitude

1:16:15 Every year, we undo somewhat the inclination to idolatry and servitude within ourselves

1:20:00 Chad Gadia as explaining why we didn't bring the korban pesach

1:22:00 Why the suffering in exile makes us opposed to bringing sacrifices

1:23:30 Hashem killing indicates that death is not an evil

1:25:00 Sacrifices will not involve an element of servitude when death is viewed as a good that Hashem himself effects

This lecture is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation

This lecture series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation

This lecture series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation

This lecture series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation

0:00 The importance of the Revelation at Mount Sinai

3:00 Chapter 2:32 of the Guide and the requirements for attaining prophecy

6:00 The prediction in Joel of the return of widespread prophecy

8:45 Anyone who can divine hidden things is called a "navi"

10:30 Three problems with interpreting the prediction in the Book of Joel as referring to anything less than the return of pure prophecy

21:45 The miraculous ocular and auditory experiences at the Revelation at Mount Sinai

24:45 It took a miracle to see fire on the mountain and hear thunder and shofar blasts

31:30 Hearing things from Moshe was akin to prophecy, since Moshe spoke directly with God

39:30 Sources that the Revelation at Mount Sinai was in fact a prophecy

45:30 Miraculous ocular and auditory experiences can be called "nevuah" but they aren't true nevuah

50:15 How the Shechinah appears and becomes visible

53:45 Only those people worthy of it can see the Shechinah

56:45 Virtual reality Ma'aseh Merkavah

1:03:30 The great prediction in the Book of Joel about the return of prophecy: All people will be influenced by the true prophet(s) since they are all experiencing dreams and visions, which are not true prophecy

1:07:15 The Book of Joel predicts an event similar to the Revelation at Mount Sinai

This guest shiur was delivered at Kollel and Congregation Shaarei Tefillah, under the leadership of Rabbi Margalios, located in Ramat Beit Shemesh (RBS).

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

This lecture is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

This lecture series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation.

This lecture is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

Highlights: 4:00 Knowing Hashem and seeing Hashem

7:15 Moshe sought moral knowledge of God's ways, not metaphysical knowledge of God's nature

10:30 Moshe sought to understand why some righteous people suffer, and other righteous people prosper; why some evildoers suffer, and other evildoers prosper

16:30 Moshe couldn't understand the goodness of God as it is manifest in the universe; the prophets could understand it

18:15 Completely righteous people don't suffer, whereas incompletely righteous people do suffer

22:00 What completely righteous people believe to be right will occur to them

26:00 The answer to the question about the suffering of the righteous was acceptable for the prophets but not for Moshe

29:30 Is God good if He is good only to the extent that people are completely righteous?

32:30 Seeing Hashem's back means seeing the end of His actions, in the future; seeing His face means seeing Him in the present

36:00 A person should emulate Hashem if and only if His actions are known This lecture series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation.

Highlights: 0:00 The position of our Rebbe, the wicked King Manasseh, that idolatry is appropriate

5:00 Manasseh's case against the Isaiah in which he charged the prophet with heresy and executed him for that crime

8:45 Can Hashem be seen or not? Moshe's stance and the prophets' stance

12:00 Can Hashem be known or not? Moshe's stance and the prophets' stance

20:30 Moshe uses words differently than all the prophets do, and is therefore termed "not a man of words"

24:15 The contradiction between the Torah and the Prophets regarding the importance of sacrificial worship (https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor/p/ee-and-r-3_4-between-the-torah-and?r=111271&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web)

29:45 The prophets do something fundamentally different from Moshe and the Torah

34:30 Moshe's request to see God indicates that Moshe is supposed to see God

36:30 The last of the books of the Torah implies that Hashem can be known

38:15 Idolatry is wrong only for those who are familiar with Hashem and know Him

43:00 Manasseh's argument why idolatry is appropriate according to the Torah itself

46:00 Manasseh considered the Torah to be aspirational until such time that its great potential is unlocked

48:00 Manasseh considered avoiding idolatry to be akin to rushing the end of times before we're ready for it

51:15 The unrequited overture to the Nation of Israel at the time of the Exodus offering them knowledge of Hashem

54:30 The Torah has always been aspirational

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger

Highlights:

2:15 What is achieved by humans thinking in non-human terms? 4:15 Humans are the most important aspect of reality; viewing the world from God's perspective involves viewing humanity accurately 8:30 The actions are God can be understood only by understanding humans 12:00 God is good only if humans are good 16:00 By bringing things back to God's perspective, we simultaneously value the way things are and remain open to progress 18:00 The tension between progressivism and conservativism 22:00 God's will as the ultimate constant that allows for infinite progress 30:45 The Golden Mean as the way of God 33:10 Finding law within human behavior brings human behavior back to God 35:45 A person cannot know the ways of God without knowing himself 37:25 The prophets call God righteous and thereby make Him righteous, since humans, His ultimate creation, will be inspired to be righteous, making Him righteous 40:00 The difference between the philosophers and the prophets about whether human perfection involves intellectual perfection or moral perfection 47:20 What makes the Torah divine: the connection between ordering society and thinking about God

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger 00:20 How to achieve the ideal society is the most burning practical question of humanity and is also the fundamental subject of the Torah 3:00 One who cannot reason political questions from first principles cannot understand the Torah 4:15 To agree with the Torah is to understand the Torah 7:00 Judaism begins with the divine command to Abraham to establish the good society along with instructions how to do so 9:30 The notion of the land's holiness is universal and isn't limited to the Land of Israel 12:00 The Torah's approach to achieving the ideal society https://www.ebay.com/itm/374477700772 https://shnayor.substack.com/p/7_4 14:30 Viewing the world from God's perspective 17:30 The Torah model for humanity is that humanity should become as a race of angels 18:30 Philosophy's approach to establishing the ideal society 20:00 The Guide of the Perplexed 2:40 on the natural need for law 24:00 Maimonides implies that law is not necessary because people naturally do things that are wrong, but only because people need to function within society 27:45 If it's human nature to be cruel, then we can't assert that it's wrong to be cruel 31:25 The meaning of divine command is that there is a right way to do things beyond following your nature 33:30 Maimonidean ethics and the Golden Mean 35:30 The function of the Golden Mean in expanding a person's identity to include his society; this is a sensitivity that we can recover 41:30 What is the point of thinking for God? What does it add to human success and flourishing? 43:00 What is the relationship between the Torah's approach to achieving the ideal society and Philosophy's approach? 44:00 Various possibilities about the nature of the relationship

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

בעניין קשים גרים כספחת; לא הגלה הקב"ה את ישראל לבין האומות אלא כדי שיתוספו עליהם גרים; גרים מעכבים את המשיח; האם יש גרים שיש לקבלם ולא לדחות אותם.

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger.

0:00 Man is both a composite of body and soul, and pure soul

2:30 The question of the eternity or createdness of the world underpins the two different ways of viewing human beings

7:00 Seth was similar to Adam, who was the only man created ex nihilo and therefore uniquely spiritual

11:00 Why bodily affairs matter

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger.

00:30 Moses perceived the whole of the universe, which is "all of God's goodness"

2:15 In order to understand the true nature of reality, one has to transcend the body

10:00 Was Moses' great perception the whole of the created universe or God's transcendence?

14:00 One cannot understand God's transcendence without understanding the whole of the created universe; and one cannot understand the whole of the created universe without understanding God's transcendence

21:00 What is actually meant by "God saw that it was good"?

24:00 The world is right but by no metric

29:30 To see the goodness of the world is to be blinded

33:30 Everyone perceives evil since they perceive reality through the lens of the body

35:00 The perception through the lens of the body is also important and a part of nature

42:00 The hamoni in the Guide is not the other guy – everyone has some hamonism within themselves

44:00 The tension between whether man is defined by his intellect or by his body as well

45:00 How to prevent evil actions – through knowledge or character training?

48:00 Does human perfection involve intellectual perception or doing good?

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger.

Highlights: 00:00 The meaning of "good" according to Crescas; Plato and Aristotle on the meaning of "good"; Maimonides' strange silence on the issue

18:30 Maimonides shifts theodicy from ethics to metaphysics

20:00 Privation as a principle of reality

31:00 The dynamic interplay between being and non-being

37:00 Understanding the nature of being is how beings learn to appreciate being

50:30 Why do all humans think there is evil if there really isn't any?

54:00 Knowledge and the forms are eternal

57:00 Privation and its association with matter

59:30 Humans can't help but see evil since they are embodied

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger. Highlights:

1:00 Goodness is what is real, and evil is privation

3:20 The goodness of the universe is the foundational notion of the whole Torah

9:00 Are the masses of today similar to the masses in the past?

11:30 Existence is good as judged by all existents

14:45 Creation ex Nihilo and evil as privation

16:45 Non-existence is evil only relative to existence

28:30 Confronting evil is confronting the nothingness that preceded Creation, and induces fear of God due to its absurdity

33:00 Confronting evil is confronting the notion that perhaps nothing at all should exist; fear of God is the antidote to evil

38:00 When a person judges existence to be good, existence is judging itself; God does not "exist," and therefore He doesn't judge things to be good

46:00 The Torah talks about God as if he is part of the same system of existence as everything else

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

This lecture series is a project of כרם בין תורה לחכמה, generously sponsored by R' Yoel Werzberger.

Highlights: 2:30 The problem of evil 5:30 The foundation of the Torah is that the universe is good 8:30 All evils are privations, made by God only indirectly 17:20 What does it contribute to a theodicy to say that God makes evils only indirectly? 21:00 What determines that existence is good? 23:00 What does "good" mean? 26:00 "Good" is a value-judgment of approval 31:30 A person can't take a position of disapproval on existence 39:00 Judging reality is participating in reality and thus involves taking a position on the value of reality 44:30 God's viewing of the universes is a significant aspect of Creation itself 47:00 Taking a stance on existence is not equivalent to taking a stance on evil, which is merely a lack of existence 49:00 Judging is a big part of being human 57:00 "And God saw that it was good" is said only from the limited human perspective 101:45 Is the universe "good" because it meets God's purpose in creation, or did He create it because it is good? 103:45 God doesn't give the value-judgement of approval on existence, since His existence is something other than existence 107:15 Summary

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history. Written essays are published bi-weekly here: https://shnayor.substack.com/s/from-e... Please subscribe! This series is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing projects of the foundation, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a donation via Zelle to jacoblightsfoundation@gmail.com.

What is the nature of the relationship between Yisrael and the nations?

What does the Torah expect from the other nations?

Is conversion a positive or a negative?

What is the function of conversion to Judaism in the Torah's plan and in the destiny of Yisrael?

Guest Shiur in Kodesh, North Woodmere

0:00 Q: Is the Messiah something we generate or something that happens to us?

4:00 What the Messiah will do and how he will do it

7:15 Why do we study Torah these days if we don't truly have the Torah in exile?

8:30 What is the Torah about?

11:00 Why the Torah doesn't work outside of Eretz Yisrael

13:15 The most burning question is: "What is the Torah about?," i.e. "What is da'as Hashem?"

18:00 How can the Torah assert that man is in the image of God if people kill each other?

20:00 Are there fundamentally unbridgeable differences between human beings?

22:45 The Torah doesn't reveal truths as much as it gives a vision of what can be

24:45 Torah as a radical document suggesting what can be

26:45 In order to understand the Torah, we have to view it within a historical lens as well 28:45 We can't tell people they don't have Torah

31:45 Not everyone could be Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi who lived in the past and the future

36:00 Why there developed a concept of the Redemption as something that will happen to us miraculously

40:30 In the past, there was no way to talk about Redemption without using miraculous terminology

43:00 Why people believe in being passive; the great danger of hastening the End before its time45:15 Whether the world is ready for something depends on whether we are ready for it

47:00 Those who have no understanding of Redemption should indeed do nothing about it

50:30 Summary

This lecture is a project of the Jacob Lights Foundation