DEUT1377 The fact that Jewish law requires the exercise of great caution before admitting the stranger to our faith, together with the tolerant and respectful attitude manifested towards devotees of other monotheistic faiths, militates against the theory that Jews are intolerant of other beliefs. The reluctance before admitting the proselyte was only because he was to share Jewish responsibilities as outlined in the Torah. It never meant a hesitancy to help him when he was in need. Once admitted, the laws of the Torah spread their protecting wings over him [this verse, 19-22, xiv. 29, xvi. II, xxvi. II.)

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DEUT1457 Our ethical literature of bounds in stories describing the meticulous honesty of great men who shunned every form of deception, especially when the victim was a non-Jew. (Hull. 94a; B. Bath 90b; Deuteronomy R. iii. 3). The most famous being that of R. Shimeon b. Shetah who returned the gem found in the saddle of an ass he had bought from an Arab. This honesty caused the owner of the gem to praise the God of the Jew.

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DEUT1484 The Mishnah (Bikkurim iii) which glowingly records the joyous procession of those bringing the first-fruits between Shavuot and Sukkot into the Temple where they recited the prayer of gratitude (Deuteronomy xxvi. 1-11), stipulates that if the first-fruits were tardily brought after the termination of Sukkot, no such recitation was allowed. Why? One should not wait for the last moment before discharging dues. Man must give according to his means, not according to his meanness. The classic Biblical example of such meanness in giving is to be found in the story of Cain and Abel (Genesis iv. 1-15). There we are told that Cain brought some "fruit of the ground as an offering unto the Lord", but Abel "brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof". (Genesis iv. 3-4). "The Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: but unto Cain and his offering, He had not respect". (Genesis iv. 4-5). Had mankind learned the moral of this story from the beginning, it would have been spared much suffering. It would seem, however, that though man is gradually making the earth yield its secret weapons of destruction, such as the atomic and hydrogen bomb, he has not yet learned the elementary truths of the sanctity of life and the need for kindliness. Mankind has climbed the mountains of scientific discoveries but its soul it has left in the valley below. For it spends most of its energies in acquiring goods but not the good. When will mankind learn that there are no pockets in the shrouds in which we are clothed when our eyes are closed?

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DEUT1485 To speak of a realistic and practical approach to God may seem to the uninitiated to use wrong terms when applied to the eternal verities of life. Yet realism and tangibility are not associated only with those things which can be touched or handled. Judaism has one grand purpose: to extract from life the beauty inherent in all things created by God. (Hence the blessings to be recited on all occasions.) To do so, it has pictured the world not as a torture chamber, in which our food is mixed with tears and our blessings with delusion; but as a field made glorious by opportunities ever before us, or by misery and pain which prove often the gateways to a better life. "That thou mayest live and rejoice with all the good things that God has given thee" [this verse] is the incentive behind many a command made by the Torah.

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DEUT1495 The ethics of the halachah denounce a sin committed in secret as they do one which is perpetrated in public. According to Rabbi Isaac (Kidd. 31A): "He who commits a sin in secrecy, it is as if he had thrust aside the feet (the Presence) of the Shechinah. For it is said: 'Thus sayeth the Lord, the heaven is My Throne, and the earth is My footstool; where is the house that ye may build unto Me? And where is the place that may be My resting-place?'" (Isa. lxvi. 6). Helpful, as usual, is the comment of Rashi ad locum: "For him who sins in private God is not omnipresent, otherwise he would not have transgressed. Accordingly, it is as if he thrusts aside the Presence of God from his immediate circle, leaving part of the world devoid of His existence." The well-known statement of Rav (Bezah 9a) that: "Wherever the Rabbis prohibited an action for the sake of appearances, such an action is also forbidden in the intimate secrecy of one's innermost chamber" may have been inspired from a Biblical passage. From a study of the eleven sins, cursed in Deuteronomy xxvii. 15-25, it would appear that although the words "in secret" are mentioned in reference to the first (Cursed be the man that maketh a graven or molten image, an abomination unto the Lord, the work of the hands of the craftsmen, and setteth it up in secret), and in one other instance (v. 24) they are to be implied likewise in the case of the remaining ten sins. Since God fills the whole world with His glory, there can be no distinction between wrongs done publicly or privately.

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DEUT1516 See [[LEV1107]] Leviticus 26:3 If LEHRMAN 160

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DEUT1598 (Continued from [[GEN132]] Genesis 1:28 blessed LEHRMAN 3) The purpose of this book is to show that, provided the effort is conscientious and unflagging, man can accomplish this perfection. No miracle, no sacrament, no vicarious saviour can achieve for him only what his own efforts in this direction can. It all depends on the manner of his translation of his affirmation into action, a power of which he usually is the master [this verse]. What singles out the Jewish way of life as unique is its sane, balanced approach and outlook on life. Both the Bible and the Talmud – – not to mention our medieval and modern writers and Judaism--lay greater stress on purity of motive and ethical conduct than upon ceremonial practice and ritual observance, essential as these are as aids to and reminders of the higher life upon which they flash a beacon of light.

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DEUT1618 Before the impact of Greek-Arabic thought in the Middle Ages, Jewish philosophers concerned themselves little with the problem how to reconcile Freedom of Will with the conflicting idea of divine Providence and Omniscience. When this difficulty began to stir the conscience of Jewish thinkers, they were forced to come to the conclusion that one does not exclude the other. Corroboration for this they found in Sacred Writ [this verse, Jer. xviii. 7-11; Prov. v. 22; Ezek. xviii. 30] and in the cardinal belief of Reward and Punishment. What sense is there in rewarding an act which must be done, or in punishing an act performed by an automaton when constrained to do so at the pulling of strings by a hidden Power? It should be noted that Biblical reward is not material and personal but the survival of the nation under ideal conditions. These conditions were undisturbed peace, public welfare and social harmony in which all could freely participate and through which alone man could attain moral perfection. The best reward is the feeling of satisfaction experienced when something noble is done; the worst punishment is the feeling of guilt accompanying an offence against the better nature of man. (Continued at [[LEV1109]] Leviticus 26:3 If LEHRMAN 173)

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DEUT1631 To be sure, "The imagination (inclination) of man's heart is evil from his youth" (Genesis iii. 21); but when canalized towards righteous paths, this propensity to evil can be curbed by good example and constant reminder of the true moral standard. Our evaluation of the divine soul within us saves us from the belief in the depravity of human nature, a state of mind responsible for much that is harmful around us. Why should one strive towards perfection when tainted by "original sin"? Why practise restraint when one is credited with descent from an anthropoid ape? Robbed of the ethical incentive of noblesse oblige, man will behave as befits one springing from lowly origins. Judaism warns us that human nature is susceptible to sin and emphasizes that the soul was given to us in a pure condition and it is our bounden duty to keep it pure. "Behold", says the wisest of all men (Eccl. vii. 29), "this only have I found, that God made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions." Once we admit moral freedom, we must automatically admit moral responsibility. One is a corollary of the other. Freedom of will is not negatived by a staunch belief in divine Providence. Both are correlative and complementary. (For further reference on this subject see: [this verse], Jer. xviii.7-11; Prov. v. 22; Abot iii. 19: iv.I.) Not all who mock their chains are free. To possess freedom without moral responsibility is to be forced often to place manacles on our hands to keep them from trembling.

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