NUM182 Said he [Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai] to them: Go out and see which is the good way to which a man should cling. Rabbi Eliezer said, A good, kindly eye; Rabbi Joshua said, A good friend; Rabbi Yose said, A good neighbor; Rabbi Simeon said, One who foresees, reckons the outcome of things; Rabbi Elazar said, A good heart. Said he to them: I appreciate the words of Elazar ben Arach above all your statements, for in his words yours are included. Pirkei Avot, Perek II, mishnah 13-14. This seems to denote a spontaneous, open love for the good everywhere, and intuitive grasp of what is good in every situation, and a desire for it. This would appear to have a little to do with the reason or intelligence. As people say, "The heart has its reasons that reason does not know." (Blaise Pascal (1623- 1662), Pensées, iv, 277). If someone can cultivate within himself such an educated perception and appreciation of the good, then he has, indeed, the "master key." This is the "good way" to take in life, that includes within it all other ways. It is the "royal road" to spiritual achievement. The Five Books of Moses end with the letter lamed (Deuteronomy 34:12) and begin with the letter beth (Genesis 1:1). Put them together and you have the word lev, heart. This is indeed the most crucial organ of all. For Judaism the heart symbolizes the seat of freedom, the decision-making element in man. He who has a "good heart" has won all. He who has an "evil heart" has lost the innermost citadel. In commanding us to wear tzitzith, fringes, the Torah exhorts, "Do not go astray after your heart" [this verse]. The "heart" can be trained and educated through the mitzvoth to the point where it chooses good. "Above all diligence guard your heart, for from it flow the springs of life" (Proverbs 4:23). The heart is the ruler, sending directions to the body to be acted on. "Then will you understand the reverence of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God..." says the wise Solomon, "when wisdom will enter your heart and knowledge will be pleasant to your spirit" (Proverbs 2:5, 10).

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NUM184 Wisdom and reason will serve any master with equal loyalty. It is the person's character and will that must provide the core of values within which each reason will operate. We know from Scripture and tradition how Solomon erred in his thinking about the law of the Torah which forbids a king to possess many wives (Deuteronomy 17:17). Since the Torah gives a reason for the prohibition, Solomon was confident that for him, with his superior wisdom, the reason did not apply: he could surely withstand or overcome the consequences foretold. Yet Solomon's wisdom did not stand by him in this instance. The evil results which the Torah predicted, befell him in full. "Fear of sin" had not come first, and wisdom went astray. This is the essential purpose of the mitzvah of tzitzith (fringes on the corners of four-corner requirements): to keep us mindful of our obligation to the Almighty, and reinforce in us an awareness of His meaningful presence. In commanding us to observe this precept of tzitzith, the Torah gives as the reason, "That you may not turn astray after your hearts and after your eyes which lead you to go astray" [this verse]. The eye reports what it sees, and the heart responds with desire. Unless "fear of God" acts as a break, the entire intellect, the entire capacity for rational explanation and justification will be used to "prove" that the desired object is good for you, good for your health, in step with the rest of humanity, and so forth. It is at this point that we need tzitzith. For the Sages tell us: "The thread of blue [Hebrew, t'cheleth--no longer included in our ritual fringes today, since we are uncertain of the proper dye to use. The statement is found in T.B. Hullin 89a; T.Y. Berakoth I, 2; Midrash T'hillim XC, 18; Zohar I, 121a; III, 175a and 301a] in the tzitzith reminds us of the ocean, the ocean reminds us of the heavens, and the heavens remind us of God." If we can develop within us a reverence of the Lord, a sense of awe before His presence we will be able to control our hearts and our minds, rather than have them control us.

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NUM185 It was taught: R. Levi said: "The heart and the eye are the two agents of sin, as it is written (Proverbs 23:26): "Give, my son, your heart to Me, and your eyes shall heed My ways." The Holy One Blessed be He is saying, in effect: "If you give Me your heart and your eyes, I know that you are Mine (Yerushalmi Berachoth 1:5)

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NUM186 This teaches us that the eyes follow the heart. But may it not be that the heart follows the eyes! Can you say so? Are there not blind men who perform all the abominations in the world! (Sifrei)

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NUM187 … all religions have developed their own technique for self-expression. Their leaders have felt that the religious sense, like any other, if left to itself, runs the danger of wasting away or returning to seed and of developing along irrational and anti-social lines, examples of which abound in history. They have, therefore, sought to direct into channels that are socially as well as personally useful. They have cast it into forms that are aesthetically satisfying and morally stimulating. Out of the experience of the group, nation or community, they have selected elements that may serve as behavior patterns and have set them up as signs and symbols of the sacred. These forms and ceremonies express the spiritual strivings and the moral ideals of the religious community. They serve as effective means in the religious education of the people in holding them together as a united body. Though often practiced blindly, they tend to evoke something of the spirit which called them forth. The Midrash calls attention to the sequence of the verbs in (this verse)--"Ye shall look upon it (the fringe), and remember all the commands of the Lord, and do them" – – and remarks that "seeing leads to remembering, and remembering to doing." Tanhuma, Old, Shelah, 15.

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NUM188 Judaism clearly separates between the desire to sin and the sin itself. In every realm of life, Judaism recognizes that Jews, as normal human beings, have desires to commit sins. The premise of the concept of the inner battle between a good inclination and the bad inclination is based on man's normal desire to sin, as alluded to in the Torah (Genesis 9: (sic 8:) 21). It is only because of the great natural desire that the Torah prohibits every Jewish man from being alone with a woman (the commandment of Yichud, as cited above). Similarly, because the Torah recognizes the normal desire among men to have homosexual activity, in certain societies Jewish law prohibits two men from being alone together (as discussed above). But although it is natural to have certain sexual feelings, the Torah says clearly that it is forbidden to act upon those desires [this verse]. Thus, while many sexual desires may be normal and not prohibited, acting upon those desires violates Jewish principles and Jewish law, whether they are between man and man or man and a (forbidden) woman. For example, while it may be normal for a heterosexual married man to desire a beautiful married woman who is not his wife, acting upon this desire violates the seventh of the Ten Commandments. Similarly, while the Torah may understand homosexual desires, acting upon it is forbidden. Therefore, the Midrash specifically says concerning all prohibitions in the Torah that a Jew's attitude should not be, "I have no desire for that which is forbidden (pork or even another man)," but a Jew should rather say, "What can I do, since God has commanded me not to act upon these desires (Midrash, Yalkut Shimoni, Vayikra 20). Every society, even secular society, demands that some sexual desires be held in check, and regulates man's acting upon his sexual desires. Judaism regulates illicit sexual activity as well and this prohibits man to act on his illicit homosexual desire.

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NUM189 It was taught: The section of tzitzith includes "the yoke of mitzvoth," as it is written: "and you shall see it, and you shall remember all the mitzvoth of the Lord" (Berachoth 12b)

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NUM193 Should the Jewish community spend millions of dollars of public monies to build Holocaust memorials? Should the death camps and other reminders of Nazi Germany be left standing when their memory causes so much pain to those who experienced the Holocaust firsthand? Both questions require an emphatic yes, from a Jewish point of view. The Talmud (Menachot 43b) says that based on the verse in the last paragraph of the Shema (this verse), only when one sees something will that cause the person to remember. This remembrance will then lead to action. Although this specific concept is mentioned in the Shema regarding the wearing of tzizit (the blue-colored fringe will remind one of the sky, the sky of God, and so forth), the educational use of a visual effect is well-known in secular society and is used in Jewish ritual as well. People remember best by seeing. Although this generation may not need a visual device to remember the Holocaust because it took place so recently, future generations will certainly need Holocaust memorials, museums, or the remnants of the actual sites to help them visualize and remember. In an age where active attempts are made by many groups to forget the Holocaust or even to claim that it did not happen, these visual memorials are necessary to tell the world what really happened.... The Talmud (Megillah 28a) records that when a synagogue was in disrepair, covered with grass, the people were not allowed to repair the damage, since they should suffer when they see a synagogue in ruins. In a different way, when the Jewish people see the remnants of the camps, they are reminded not only of what transpired in those camps, but of the "disrepair" of the Jewish community in Europe, which will never be rebuilt.

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NUM190 Is this accounting a constant obligation, or is it obligatory only at certain times and not others? I would say, in response to this question, that self-accounting is obligatory for a person--in accordance with his power of intellect and excellence of mind-- at all times, it every moment, and, if possible, with every breath that he takes, so he never be without awe, fear, and shame before God, may He be exalted, Who observes him continually. One may infer [this duty] from what God commanded the king: “And he shall have a copy of this Torah written for him on a scroll before the Kohanim and Levi’im. It shall remain with him, and he shall read from it all the days of his life” (Devarim 17:18-19). Furthermore, He said: “This book of the Torah shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night” (Yehoshua 1:8); “These words which I command you this day must be on your heart” (Devarim 6:6) ; “Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a frontlet in the center of your head. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates” (ibid. 6:8-9). And He emphasized the matter by [the commandment of] tzitzis, saying: “It shall be your tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments...” (Bemidbar 15:39); “Thus you will remember and do all My commandments” (ibid. 15:40). What further kinds of encouragement toward self-accounting-- which is part of the meaning of remembering the Creator--could there be that have not already been urged upon us by God? Accordingly, my brother, you should adopt the practice of holding yourself to an accounting before God, may He be exalted, at all times and at every moment. Do not underestimate any good act that you perform for His sake, even if it is only a few words or a glance; for the smallest [act] on your part looms large in His sight. The same applies to transgressions.

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NUM191 It was taught: "and you shall see it, and you shall remember all the mitzvoth of the Lord, and you shall do them:" This teaches us that seeing leads to remembering; and remembering, to doing (Menachoth 43b)

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