My Life in Quotes- #126-135
126. “Justice, justice shall you pursue.” (Deuteronomy 16:20) Of all the values in Judaism- kindness, generosity, compassion. Justice is preeminent. Without a foundation of justice, society cannot endure.
I love the way Ahad HaAm expresses it- so powerful- “it was their all. . . .(it) is beauty, goodness, wisdom, truth.” Justice is everything.
127. “Only through the holidays does life experience the eternity of the river that returns to its source. Then life becomes eternal. Then there is no fatigue, no anxiety, no disappointment, for the end becomes the beginning, and the course is marked out.”
Franz Rosenzweig’s quote is especially meaningful as articulated by Franz Rosenzweig. Rosenzweig had made the decision to convert to Christianity, and attended one last service on Yom Kippur. The experience was so powerful that he dedicated the rest of his life to studying Judaism, and became one of the great philosophers of the early 20th century. It is no wonder that he writes so movingly about the holidays.
128. During a discussion about rape, a male member of the Israeli parliament suggested that there should be a curfew on women. Golda Meir, then prime minister, replied, “There should be a curfew on men. They are the ones who are doing the raping.””
A classic and important thought from the prime minister.
129. “The crucial question to be put to the modern Jew is not, “How much Hebrew do you know?” “How long do you wait between eating meat and milk?” or, “What kind of God, if any, do you believe in?” but, “Do you want the Jewish people to survive meaningfully?” “Do you want to belong?””- Alan Miller, The God of Daniel S., p. 115
Judaism is about community. Our beliefs vary widely and there is no catechism that dictates belief. Ritual practices are diverse. Yet, it is the sense of connection, of peoplehood, that makes us one, despite these differences in belief and practice.
130. “Straightforwardness without civility is like a surgeon’s knife, effective but unpleasant. Candor with courtesy is helpful and admirable.”- Sri Yukteswar, quoted in Autobiography of a Yogi p. 140
Often when I ask friends to proofread my work, I request “gentle feedback.” It’s good to be open to the perspective of others, and it’s good to provide feedback with kindness and sensitivity.
131. “In seeking knowledge, the first step is silence, the second is listening, the third remembering, the fourth practicing, and the fifth teaching others.”- ibn Gabirol
This one is a favorite. If you’re talking you are not learning. The only way to grow is to listen intently and remember what you’ve learned. How do you know when you really know? When you are able to explain and communicate to another person.
132. “Or she would ask: “Well, what have you accomplished today for the counterrevolution?””- I. B. Singer, The Family Moskat, p. 560
Singer reminds us of our responsibility for tikkun olam. Every day, he admonishes, we should think about how we’ve made the world better for our participation.
133. Gold was not sure of many things but he was definite about one: for every successful person he knew, he could name at least two others of greater ability, better character, and higher intelligence who, by comparison, had failed.”- Joseph Heller, Good as Gold, p. 73
Wow, this is so true. We may tend to think that folks who are the most successful are the most deserving, yet there is an unassailable randomness in accomplishment. So many factors play into the outcome of our efforts. Heller’s words remind us to be cautious as we rush to judgment.
134. “The meticulous observance of ritual is always a temptation to self-righteousness.”– Mordecai Kaplan, Questions Jews Ask: Reconstructionist Answers, p. 227
Kaplan grew up in the Orthodox world and knew well how an excessive focus on ritual can become all-consuming. Again, a warning against judging others by our understanding of what is/is not the “right” way to fulfill the mitzvot.
135. ” Happy is the man who knows how to distinguish the real from the unreal, the eternal from the transient and the good from the pleasant by his discrimination and wisdom.”- B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Yoga
Iyengar reminds us to focus on what is most meaningful and not less ourselves be too distracted by what is momentary.
About This Series- About This Series- I love words. I love when a word exactly captures the moment, the feeling. How it precisely describes something that you experienced but didn’t know exactly how to express. It’s like a warm bath or a deeply satisfying meal.
And beyond that- a collection of words. A deeply insightful phrase, thought-provoking and uplifting. A quote to remember.
I started collecting quotes when I was 16 years old. (1972) I’m 70 now, as I write these words, (2026), and there are 473 quotes in my collection. At this precise moment.
That’s not really that many over the course of 54 years. I guess I am fairly discriminating. Sometimes years can go by and the collection lays dormant. In other years there is a great harvest of quotes.
These are not necessarily famous quotes, things you’ll often hear referenced. For the most part, they simply represent words that I read that made me stop for a moment to meditate and bask in their impact. And quotes I enjoy reading and re-reading and quoting myself!
These quotes represent the evolution of my thinking over the course of 54 years. I look forward to pondering what it is that made me find each one meaningful enough to save.