The Ethics Podcast - With Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe

Our glorious tradition was perpetuated from generation to generation, from teacher to student, from parent to child, for thousands of years. One of the ways to acquire wisdom is by studying under the tutelage of a great Sage. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Jan 8, 2023 – – – […]

Our sages tell us that one of the ways to acquire wisdom is with purity. What exactly is purity and why would it be a means through which we can acquire wisdom? In this Ethics Podcast we explore the subject of purity with profound depth. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast […]

Joy is an underappreciated aspect of the life of a Jew. One can imagine that you can fulfill all of your religious and spiritual obligations without living joyously. Upon examination of the sources we discover that Jewish life is inextricably linked with joy. It is critical and indispensable. In our Mishnah we also learned that […]

Humility is one of the attributes most associated with acquisition of wisdom. Moses was the humblest of men. Sinai was an unassuming, lowly mountain. But what exactly is humility and why does it correlate with wisdom? In this Ethics podcast we plumb the depths of humility and its association with wisdom. This Ethics Podcast was […]

Fear of Heaven is – together with Love of God – one of the two pillars of our spiritual life. Fear of God is one of the central themes of our spiritual and religious life. We are also told that it is a necessary precondition for Torah mastery. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on […]

The next way to acquire Torah is with awe. Specifically, awe for a great Torah sage. Why would a Sage inspire awe? Why would this be a method to acquire Torah? In this fascinating episode we explore the wonderful world of awe-inspiring Torah Sages. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on […]

What happens when you absorb information? How do you process it? The fourth way to develop wisdom talks about the intuition of the heart. The heart is the venue in which we take what we learn, absorb, and encounter and add it to our understanding of the world. Information must not be relegated to the […]

The mouth is our superpower. Through it we convey ideas and articulate thoughts. The third way to wisdom is to arrange our lips. This entails using our mouth in a powerful and strategic fashion. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Jun 13, 2022 – – – – – – – […]

The second way to wisdom is to listen with your ears. In this podcast you will learn about the power of learning via listening. Audio learning is more impactful than visual learning. The Almighty gave us two ears and only one mouth; we have to listen twice as much as we talk. This Ethics Podcast […]

Torah is unlike other intellectual pursuits. Torah is the word of God and it is intended to fundamentally transform a person. It is not just another academic, philosophical, or intellectual discipline, it is a way to upgrade man from beast to angel. This very special Mishnah tells us that Torah needs to be acquired, and […]

The Torah scholar plays a significant role in the world. We believe that the reason why the Almighty created the world was for Torah study. We also believe that absent Torah study, the world would cease to exist. The Torah scholar is truly indispensable for the world’s continuity. What ought to be the Torah scholar’s […]

Food is delicious and we desire it from the first day that we are alive. How does our pursuit of food – and physical and material indulgences in general – impact our pursuit of our spiritual agenda and Torah? In this Mishnah we discover several approaches to understanding the interrelationship between physical indulgences and pursuit […]

Torah study is the greatest of pursuits. Consequently, you are eternally indebted to anyone who bestows upon you Torah. In this fascinating Mishnah, we learned about the supreme holiness of Torah and how is forever alters the one who studies it. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Feb 28, 2022 […]

Studying Torah is the greatest Mitzvah. That is well-known. In this Mishnah, we learn about the perils of neglecting Torah study. Along the way we discover the polarity Jews since Sinai, we discover the secret of Jewish continuity, and we learn all about what Torah is supposed to do to us. This Ethics Podcast was […]

What does Torah study do for a person? As an outsider, it looks like a waste of time. What benefit do you gain from studying ancient Jewish wisdom and law? We know, however, the Torah is Godly wisdom. Absorbing Torah upgrades your intellect from human intellect to divine intellect. In this very special Mishnah we […]

We believe in reward and punishment. We believe that the Almighty will dispense reward for those who do good and punishment for those whose actions thus warrant. How does the dispensement of reward and punishment work? That, of course, is something that only God knows precisely, and only God can make those evaluations. That said, […]

The Torah is the Almighty’s wisdom. Just as the Almighty is infinite, His Torah is likewise infinite. In this remarkable Mishnah, we are trained to view Torah in its proper light. We learn about the multidimensional nature of Torah, how to find answers to all of our questions in the Torah, the secrets and the […]

What does it take to live a great life? How would such a life be structured? This Mishnah is a masterclass in unpacking the subject. What you are about to enjoy is an exquisite array of insights and ideas on human development, pedagogy and education, how to utilize your brain, and how to design an […]

What forces must we use to try to bring about our life mission? Our mandate is to fulfill the will of the Almighty. He expects great things of us and created us for that purpose. In this thrilling Mishnah, we learned about the various different forces and powers that we must marshal to accomplish our […]

The founder of our nation was Abraham our patriarch. He was a paragon of faith and kindness, and also exhibited every positive character trait. By contrast, Bilaam the sorcerer was the anti-Abraham. He harbored every negative trait. In this mission we are told that both of these people are teachers. We must choose if we […]

Every mitzvah that we do benefits us for all eternity. Our Sages reveal to us that each Mitzvah creates an advocate who vigorously fights on our behalf and defends us in front of the Heavenly court. Mitzvos are great assets to have. In this podcast, we discover that there is a way to game the […]

Argumentation has become a lost art. Our society promotes uniformity and consensus, a monochromatic society where divergent ideas are shunned. This approach is antithetical to Torah. Our religion does not believe that your thinking should be outsourced to others. We do not believe that everyone ought to follow others like a flock of sheep. At […]

Love is a fickle emotion. It is something that changes seemingly randomly. Why is love not fixed in place? What is the secret to enduring love? In this exquisite Mishnah we discover the inner workings of how love works and what determines its stability. We also read a terrifying account of how people’s spiritual standing […]

There are different types of people in the world. Just as our faces are not identical, our perspectives and abilities and innate qualities differ. Regarding a host of things, our Sages tell us that there are four distinct character types. In this wide-ranging Ethics Podcast we discuss memory tips, how to boost your intelligence, the […]

Anger is a sentiment that we all feel sometimes. What triggers our rage? What does our anger say about us? What is the connection between anger and faith? Why does the Talmud declare that getting angry is tantamount to idolatry? Why does the Talmud foretell that those who get angry are destined for all manner […]

In the question of generosity and miserliness, our Mishnah tells us that there are four kinds of people. Interestingly, a group that we would view quite innocuously is labeled as Sodom-like. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on Aug 11, 2021 – – – – – – – – – – […]

In ancient times, our nation benefitted from the service of prophets. The primary responsibility of a prophet was to rebuke and admonish the people when they veered off course from the proper path that the Almighty has planned for them. But what now? Prophecy has been extinct for more than 2300 years. How do we […]

What separates a wise person from someone who has to potential to be a wise person but has not actualized it? In the words of our Sages, such a person who has not cultivated their wisdom is a “Golem”, and there are seven key differences between a Golem and a wise person. In this very […]

In the final installment of the series of Tens, our Mishnah reveals to us the ten things that were created at twilight of Friday during the week of Genesis. What is the deeper meaning of twilight? What is unique about these seemingly random mix of things that were created then? In this very interesting Mishnah […]

For 800+ years our nation had a Temple in Jerusalem. The Temple was a special place. It contained the vessels described in Scripture, it was the site of annual, national pilgrimages, it is where the high priest did the Yom Kippur service each year, it was the epicenter of the nation and it’s rebuilding has […]

Fear of God and Faith in God are both laudable qualities worthy of great people. Both, of course, are mitzvos as well. Which one is loftier? At first glance, fear of God can only be built upon an edifice of faith and thus it would be a loftier level. But when we examine the issue […]

Ten is a very significant number in Jewish numerology and philosophy. The previous teachings in this chapter revolve around tens and the present Mishnah teaches that the Exodus was marked by a series of ten miracles for the Jews and ten plagues for the Egyptians whilst in Egypt and ten additional miracles for the Jews […]

The story of our forefather Abraham is told in great detail in the Torah. We read about his challenges and triumphs, travails, and travels. The Mishnah calculates that Abraham underwent ten distinct divine tests and succeeded in all of them. What are the nature of these ten tests and what do they portend to us? […]

Ten generations elapsed both from Adam to Noah and from Noah to Abraham. The trend over those generations was away from God and into idolatry. At the end of each of these groups of ten generations came a great Tzadik. But Noah and Abraham were different classes of a Tzadik and the results are decidedly […]

How important are we? Do we even matter? What difference does it make if I live of die? What difference can one person make in the grand scope of existence? These are tough existential questions that thinking people grapple with. In this thought provoking podcast, we follow the Mishnah in exploring some these advanced questions. […]

What happens after we die? That is a question that fascinates and terrifies us. The future is unknown. It is a mystery, shrouded in uncertainty and dread. Naturally, the human tendency is to try to avoid thinking about those questions too much. In this Mishnah, the subject is ripped open and we learn some very […]

This Mishnah is perhaps the most famous one in the entire Book of Pirkei Avos. We are told that there are three characteristics that remove a person from the world: Envy, Lust, and Honor. What is not specified is which world is being referenced, or why, exactly, these characteristics are so destructive. In this transformational […]

How do children learn? How does intelligence and wisdom develop? How do people undergo intellectual and spiritual maturation? In this very powerful set of Mishnayos, we learn why young people why young people are not always ready for prime time, and how ruminating over wisdom transforms a person. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on […]

Elisha Ben Avuyah was one of the greatest Sages with the potential to being a historic legend of Jewish history on par with Rabbi Akiva and his colleagues. But he went awry. He became a heretic and a sinner and abandoned Torah. Why did he go awry? That question is hotly debated among the Sages. […]

Shmuel HaKattan was one of the legends of Jewish history. The Talmud testifies on him that had his generation been worthy, he would have been a full-fledged prophet. Notwithstanding his generation, Shmuel Hakattan did merit lower grade prophecies in his life. He was commissioned by Rabban Gamliel to compose the blessing against the heretics, a […]

Who controls a person? That is arguably the most important question there is. As Jews we are trained to adopt the Almighty God as our Master. With the Creator governing our life via His Torah, we are on the correct path to fulfill our life’s duty. But the Talmud reveals that there is an impostor […]

We all recognize that we will eventually die. Each of us know that there will come a point in time where our body and Soul separate and go their own way. The body will return to its origin, the dust, and the Soul will return to its Heavenly roots. What happens to our Soul in […]

The author of this Mishnah served as the rabbi of Rome. While all his colleagues were coalesced together in the great Torah centers of Israel, Rabbi Masya Ben Charash led the small community and academy in the epicenter of impurity. How he got there is certainly a tantalizing question. In this teaching he guides us […]

Rabbi Elazar Ben Aruch was the most promising student of Rabban Yochanan Ben Zakkai. Unfortunately, his potential was not actualized, and in fact he forgot his Torah. In this autobiographical Mishnah, he shares with us the reason why his greatness did not pan out. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on […]

The blissful existence of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous raise difficult questions for the believer: If God is in total control of all that transpires, why would He cause pain to those who obey His words and reward those who neglect them? In this pithy mishnah we learn that the classical reconciliation […]

In our most ideal state, the Jewish Nation is described as “A Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation.” We are all Kings! The Talmud teaches that in Olam Haba, all the righteous who merit an invitation will be adorned with a resplendent crown atop their heads, and be basking in the pleasure of God. […]

Accidents happen. Generally speaking, the Torah overlooks things that happen unintentionally. If someone accidentally sins, the Almighty forgives him. Yet the Mishnah teaches that an accident in Torah study is tantamount to a willful, negligent blunder. Why are matters of Torah treated so harshly? This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on […]

How ought we treat subordinates, peers, and superiors? In this intriguing Mishnah we learn that we tend to undervalue others and consequently accord them insufficient honor, and must correct that by always upgrading the honor and respect for all of our relationships. This Ethics Podcast was originally released on the Ethics Podcast on May 25, […]

The Sages of yore were absolute Torah giants, of course, but many also balanced their scholastic responsibilities with earning a livelihood. Our particular Mishnah is the brainchild of Rabbi Yochanan HaSandler, Rabbi Yochanan the Shoemaker. In this pithy teaching, he differentiates between assemblies convened for the sake of Heaven and those bound for failure. This […]

What are the consequences of our behavior? What difference does it make if someone does a mitzvah or a sin? In this landmark teaching in Pirkei Avos we learn that our actions truly matter. We have the opportunity to make breaking news in Heaven. What Heavenly Headline will we write? This Ethics Podcast was originally […]