Rabbi Josh Yuter Profile picture
Sep 18, 2020 7 tweets 2 min read Read on X
1. A very quick message before I sign off for #RoshHashanah

According to rabbinic tradition, the High Holidays are an auspicious time for introspection and repentance. One of the major themes of Rosh Hashana is the recognition of God as King and the ultimate judge.
2. I think a reason why this is emphasized at the beginning of the High Holidays is that it instills a sense of moral humility
3. If we think of ourselves as the arbiters of morality, we can justify virtually any action and frame any sin as being righteous such that we don't even feel we *need* to repent for any action.
4. Furthermore, we give ourselves the authority to judge others for their moral transgressions with whatever harshness we deem appropriate (usually while preaching tolerance and compassion when it suits us)
5. Social media is built on enraging people's moral indignations. Rosh Hashana is an opportunity to take a step back and recognize that we are not the real judges and that maybe we ought to extend to others the compassion which we would like for ourselves.
6. You'll find a range of various traditions emphasizing the process, but virtually all agree the ultimate goal of the season is a genuine commitment to do better, with this commitment demonstrated w/actions.
7. For whatever stage or situation in which you find yourself, my wish for everyone this #RoshHashanah is to try to minimize our judgmental voices in favor of emphasizing what we *can* do to be better.

#ShanaTovah

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More from @JYuter

Jul 7
1. I'm skimming these articles and I'm convinced writers for @newrepublic have no sense of irony or self-awareness.

I'm not going to defend Trump. At the same time, these arguments are absurd.
2. First, here's Jason Stanley on "The End of Civic Compassion." Setting aside the laughability of the Before Time being an era of hand-holding, we've got a kicker of a paragraph in the next tweet
newrepublic.com/article/181274…
Image
3. Painting all of your political opponents as communists is fascist. Painting all your political opponents as fascists is not (and let's not even start with white-supremacy) Image
Read 9 tweets
Oct 19, 2023
1. Time for a Twitter class / shiur!

Today's topic: "A Jew is a Jew"

Special focus: Does a Jew's beliefs or actions make someone not Jewish?
2. The following is a modified version of my Sacred Slogans version entry on "A Jew is a Jew."

Usual disclaimers apply that this is neither comprehensive nor definitive.
joshyuter.com/2018/09/16/spe…
3. Periodically, one will find people making statements along the lines of, "People who believe/do X" aren't really Jewish.

For one recent example, former Ambassador @DavidM_Friedman Tweeted the following

Image
Read 24 tweets
Oct 12, 2023
For those insisting on differentiating between Hamas and the Palestinian people as a whole, as recently as March 2023, 58% of those polled by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research supported armed confrontations.
pcpsr.org/en/node/938
Image
And from June 2022, "59% view armed attacks against Israelis inside Israel as serving the national interest in ending the occupation and 56% support these attacks"
pcpsr.org/en/node/912
Image
The pertinent question is not if Palestinians support the specific parties of Hamas or Fatah, but if they support murdering Jews.
Read 6 tweets
Aug 21, 2023
1. Time for a Twitter Shiur!

Today's topic: Religious Coercion in Torah
2. This is an updated version of my earlier shiur from 2012:

I'm revisiting in light of a recent podcast ft @JewishCoffeeH and @RStomel re the current situation in Israel.
joshyuter.com/2012/01/15/pod…
3. The usual disclaimers apply: This isn't intended to be either comprehensive or authoritative and shouldn't be taken as either psak or policy.
Read 30 tweets
Jul 11, 2023
1. I've made several comments about the debate over judicial reform in Israel. Due to Twitter being Twitter, criticizing one argument from one side is taken as an endorsement of the other.

For anyone who cares, here's my actual opinion 🧵
2. Checks and balances are not just a slogan, but in theory, ought to curb the potential excesses of any branch of government. The main problem is that any institution of power is susceptible to corruption.

This includes the checks and balances.
3. Rhetorical appeals to things like "will of the people", "democracy", "justice", and the like are typically empty references/appeals to vague concepts that just so coincidentally happen to correlate with one's preferences.

As such, I'll try avoiding such terms.
Read 12 tweets
Feb 26, 2023
1. Time for a Twitter shiur / class!

Today's topic: Blaming Tragedies and Suffering on Sin
2. When bad things happen in the world, e.g. natural disasters, it's not uncommon to find religious figures attributing these disasters and associated suffering to God rendering punishment for sin.
3. For one recent example, Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, Chief Rabbi of Tzefat Israel, compared the devastating earthquakes in Turkey to God punishing the Egyptians in the Red Sea immediately after the exodus.
timesofisrael.com/top-national-r…
Read 23 tweets

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