Full Judaism Includes Zionism

… Many refer to nationhood as foreign to Judaism (anti-Zionism), when they are, in fact, presenting a choice between Zionism sans truncated Judaism vs. truncated Judaism sans Zionism, rejecting only the former of this Hobson’s choice.

  • A quote from a letter I just wrote someone

Why Mussar Doesn’t Work

Mussarites claim theirs is a lofty path of slow but steady progress over a lifetime. The experience of any beginner, however, is very different. There is a small but noticeable change between one who has learned or reflected on no Mussar at all and one who has. Immediately thereafter, there is a “Diminishing Law of Returns“, even turning output negative. The immoral Mashgiach (moralist) is a true though common platitude.

As the Chazon Ish explains in his “Emunah Ubitachon”, human beings are not infinitely malleable. And there are no other “factors” at hand. Adding hours and energy to force human change is like pushing on a string (another useful metaphor from the sciences).