Machshavah Lab

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 25 minutes Synopsis: I got so much feedback on my first experimental episode of ChatGPTorah Talk that I decided to do another spontaneous one. In this talk, I discuss two topics with ChatGPT4: (1) I raise some questions that we tackled in my tefilah shiur last night and we engage in a little chavrusa learning, (2) I raise a questio...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 4 pages Length of the audio: 16 minutes 52 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 2/1/24, entitled: Yisro: Rambam – On Miracles as a Foundation of Belief . I was asked by several people to clarify the Rambam's view on the different roles...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 45 minutes Synopsis: This morning (1/31/24), in our unplanned Q&A, we took up four questions: (1) How do we reconcile a yearning for God to avenge the deaths of Jews with the fact that revenge is prohibited? (2a) What should a person do if they're encountering struggles in their relationship with God? (2b) In attempting to...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 26 minutes Synopsis: This morning (1/26/23), in our Machshavah Lab series for women, we took up a wild midrash involving Onkelos raising Titus, Bilaam, and Jesus from the grave to ask him whether he should convert to Judaism. We read through the midrash, raised a bunch of questions, then took a first step in our analysis by...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 1 minute Synopsis: This evening (1/25/24), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we learned the fourth and final clause of Ben Zoma's statement. But we didn't do JUST that. We learned the Sforno's commentary on the entire mishnah, which ties all four clauses together from the final one. We didn&ap...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 2 pages Length of audio: 6 minutes 30 seconds Synopsis: Rabbi Daniel Rosenthal passed away on Tu bi’Shvat 5784. You may not know who he was, but all the Torah I teach is thanks to him. If you've learned from me, I implore you to read or listen to this. ----- This eulogy is dedicated to the memory of Rabbi Daniel Ros...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 2 pages Length of the audio: 7 minutes 9 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 1/19/24, entitled: Bo: Eizov – The Humble Herb that Ended Egypt . Have you ever wondered why Hashem us to use eizov (hyssop) to smear the blood of the Korban Pesa...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 30 minutes Synopsis: This evening (1/18/24), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we tackled the third clause of Ben Zoma's teaching. We began with the straightforward explanation of the Meiri, then moved on to Rashi and Rabbeinu Yonah. We spent the remaining time analyzing Rabbeinu Yonah and succeeded in...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 3 pages Length of audio: 10 minutes 20 seconds Synopsis: Which classical Biblical commentator do YOU identify with? With whom do you connect on a personal or existential level, and why? In this experimental piece I explain why, for me, the answer is: Radak. ----- The Torah content for the remainder of January has been sp...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 4 pages Length of audio: 12 minutes 58 seconds Synopsis: What might the Rambam say about professional gamers? What might he say about recreational gamers? I don't know for sure, but this is what I think, guided by the wisdom of my rebbi. ----- The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Avital as a way of...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 26 minutes Synopsis: This evening (1/11/24), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we tackled the second clause of Ben Zoma's teaching, and we went about it in a different way than we usually do. Instead of learning multiple meforshim, we pretty much stuck to the Abravanel. We were rewarded with a new and n...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! I've been obsessed with ChatGPT 4 and the voice interface option on the ChatGPT phone app. I decided on a whim to do a little demonstration this morning of how sophisticated ChatGPT has become. Listen to the following discussion in which I discuss Mishlei (Proverbs) 16:32 with ChatGPT and you'll see that this technology has moved...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 35 minutes Synopsis: The YBT Sunday Shiur I gave this morning (1/7/24) is an updated version of a shiur I gave exactly two years ago (1/7/22). The focus of the shiur is the Sforno's answer to two basic questions: (1) Who carried out Makkas Bechoros (the Plague of the Firstborn)? (2) What is the purpose of the Korban Pes...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 1.5 pages Length of the audio: 3 minutes 17 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 1.5-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 1/5/24, entitled: Rabbi Moskowitz on Shalom Bayis and Toilet Paper . A chance encounter with a unique toilet paper holder reminded me of an idea from Rabbi M...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 27 minutes Synopsis: This evening (1/4/24), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we took a break from the mishnah we've been working on to do something timely. Next week is my 40th birthday, and whenever I reach a numerical milestone like that, I like to revisit the mishnah in Pirkei Avos about the differe...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 6.5 pages Length of the audio: 18 minutes 44 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 6.5-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 1/1/24, entitled: The Rabbi Schneeweiss Substack Update: Three Changes for January 2024 . This is my announcement for a major change I intend to make in my...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 4 pages Length of the audio: 15 minutes 39 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 12/29/23, entitled: Vayechi: Don’t Stop Working Or Else You’ll Die (Especially If You’re Not Jewish) . Did you know that, according to Rashi, a non-Jew is forbi...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 2 pages Length of the audio: 9 minutes 11 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 12/22/23, entitled: Vayigash: May [the Word of] God Be With You (Rough Draft) . I intended to write about a specific pasuk in this week's parashah, but ende...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 11 minutes Synopsis: This evening (12/20/23), in our Wednesday night Tefilah shiur, we decided to see if we could gain some insights into Asarah b'Teves, which is coming up this Friday. We began by going over some basic facts about the events we commemorate, as well as some NOT so basic facts, including the questions ab...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 2 pages Length of the audio: 7 minutes 53 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 12/15/23, entitled: Mikeitz: Self-Deprivation in Solidarity With Others Who Are Suffering . Chazal learn from Yosef that it is prohibited to have marital relatio...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 5 minutes Synopsis: This morning (12/15/23), in our Machshavah Lab series for women, we read and discussed Rabbeinu Bachya ben Asher's introduction to Parashas Mikeitz (which I had NOT prepared in advance) in which he expounds on Mishlei 3:5 by summarizing the eight levels of bitachon in the writings of Rabbeinu Bachya...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 26 minutes Synopsis: This evening (12/14/23), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we began Chapter 4 with Ben Zoma's well-known teaching. Tonight we focused on his treatment of "chacham." We learned the views of five Rishonim. I'd like to stick with this same topic next week, not only becau...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of FREE article: 1 page Length of FREE recording: 6 minutes 20 seconds Length of FULL article: 2 pages Length of FULL recording: 8 minutes 23 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the FREE version of the article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 12/14/23, entitled: Chanukah 5784: Maimonian Doughnuts and My Cu...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 7 pages Length of the audio: 20 minutes 36 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 7-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 12/10/23 (originally published on Kol ha'Seridim on 12/15/20), entitled: Asking for Miracles on Chanukah: Updated for 2023, in Light of the War with Hamas...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of the article: 2 pages Length of the audio: 6 minutes 30 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 12/8/23, entitled: Vayeishev: The Consequences of Tattling and Misguided Rebuke . Yosef brought "bad reports" about his brothers to his father. Was he...