In this conversation, Zev and I discuss the 1000-year era of prophecy, how the perfectly righteous man bends the world to the perfect good, and the challenges of the new prophecy.1:45 Summary of the lecture "How to Reclaim Prophecy":    • The New Knowledge of Hashem: How to Reclai...  

6:00 Prophecy 1.0 is the guide to prophecy 2.08:20 Why we consider the era of prophecy to begin with the Exodus despite the great prophets who preceded it10:00 The one thousand years of Jewish history recorded in Tanach stand as the paradigm of Divine Providence, when nothing occurred that lay outside its order12:30 On public and private prophecy; why widespread public prophecy requires the Ark of the Covenant and the Mikdash20:00 How the perfectly righteous man bends God's will to what is good in his eyes26:15 Tefillah is the absolute commitment to what is right32:30 The perfectly righteous man is the one who cannot abide any evil38:30 Those who forgive some evil in themselves will forgive some imagined evil in God42:30 Are we living in prophetic times?44:15 Between the Rambam and R' Yehudah HaLevi48:00 How come the great books don't discuss the new prophecy?52:45 Would someone be able to do the original kind of prophecy today?1:01:45 Today, even the greatest righteous person will accept the impersonal laws of nature as being righteous1:07:00 The challenges of the new prophecy

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history.

Written essays are published bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Please subscribe!

This series is made possible by the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing foundation initiatives, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a tax-deductible donation via Zelle to [email protected].

When the yetzer for idolatry was abolished, prophecy vanished with it. The world, once speaking, went silent. In that silence, was born science: the study of a universe that follows law but no longer reveals purpose.We follow the transformation from the enchanted world of the prophets, through the impersonal age of universals, to the modern possibility of a renewed da’as Hashem. It asks whether we can once again see the world as personal — without falling back into idolatry — and what kind of self would make that possible.
00:45 The abolition of the inclination to idolatry2:00 With the abolition of the inclination to idolatry, prophecy came to an end4:30 What conditions would favor the reawakening of the inclination to idolatry and prophecy?6:20 Why are sources and texts necessary for learning about ideas or reality? 3 models15:15 The connection between the abolition of the inclination to idolatry and prophecy — the world, once enchanted, lost its enchantmentOn the enchanted world: https://shnayor.substack.com/p/how-to...18:00 Is the world personal?20:00 The question of whether the world is personal hinges on the problem of evil23:45 To converse with God through His creation is completely natural for one who conceives of His good character manifest in His creation25:00 If the good divine character is manifest in only a part of reality, polytheism results28:30 What "good" means30:00 The problem of evil for the unified personal God32:00 Moshe's request to know Hashem was a quest to understand evil: https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor...33:30 The denial of Moshe's request is the reason the Torah teaches Hashem's unknowability: https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor...Between the Torah and the Prophets: https://www.ebay.com/itm/364132946794...35:00 The perfectly righteous man bends Hashem's action to the good he knows in his human soul: https://www.ebay.com/itm/364134646725...38:00 The prophets see God as good in their own image; why Moshe rejected that anthropocentric goodness43:30 Free will is central to the question of whether Hashem is good on the basis of human goodness44:15 The thousand-year era of prophecy when Hashem was known in His goodness: https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor...48:00 Why the prophetic relationship with Hashem leads imperfect people into idolatry51:45 The end of prophecy and the beginning of science53:00 Science and the depersonalization of nature54:45 In the post-prophetic era, Israel didn't need to be independent, since Hashem's impersonal unity is universal and not particular to His revelation among Israel59:25 Can we yet make the world personal again?1:00:00 The shift in the sense of self from what is temporal to that which is eternal1:02:00 The eternal moral laws are purely good, without contradiction1:08:45 Are we ready for the shift to the new prophecy?1:10:00 Why do we require a particular nation in the era of universal knowledge of Hashem? https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor...https://www.ebay.com/itm/3744777007721:11:30 The reality of Jewish sovereignty suggests it is time for the new da'as Hashem1:13:30 Q & AWhy would the new da'as Hashem be any safer?What would idolatry look like under the new paradigm?Would religion that requires such a shift in the sense of self be meaningful to people?1:18:00 Why the prophets took the easier path at first1:21:00 Where the notion of a self came from1:23:00 On the centrality of respecting parents and how that shifts our sense of self: https://open.substack.com/pub/shnayor...Why would a soul not care about the destruction of the body?Would the new prophecy be different?

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history.

Written essays are published bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Please subscribe!

This series is made possible by the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing foundation initiatives, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a tax-deductible donation via Zelle to [email protected].

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history.

Written essays are published bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Please subscribe!

This series is made possible by the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing foundation initiatives, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a tax-deductible donation via Zelle to [email protected].

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history.

Written essays are published bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Please subscribe!

This series is made possible by the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing foundation initiatives, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a tax-deductible donation via Zelle to [email protected].

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history.

Written essays are published bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Please subscribe!

This series is made possible by the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing foundation initiatives, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a tax-deductible donation via Zelle to [email protected].

conversation # 5 of the seriesIn this conversation, Zev and I discuss how Da’as Hashem collides with politics, and what steps must follow.

0:00 How would we design a political system supportive of Da'as Hashem?

5:00 People who appreciate what is good and right about the current order delay the Moshiach

8:00 For individuals, the most important question is Da'as Hashem; for the nation, the most important question is what systems would support Da'as Hashem

11:15 Is it possible to think about Moshiach while also appreciating and supporting the current order?

13:30 The division of labor between those who dream up new worlds and those who support the current world

17:20 What goes wrong when politicians do Torah; Abarbanel's problematic approach to monarchy

24:45 Should the political theory of Da'as Hashem utilize existing political theory?

29:15 The nation of Israel is where political theory breaks down

36:00 What's the next move for the Da'as Hashem movement?

44:00 Can we make Hashemists?

47:45 The last time Da’as Hashem went political, it became a Golden Calf

52:30 Why we can't sell Da'as Hashem

55:00 Prophet school

1:03:00 The secret society that will meddle in world affairs to advance Da'as Hashem

1:15:15 Why there is no Sanhedrin, Beis Hamikdash, or Korbanos

1:19:00 The need for working out the political theory of Da'as Hashem

1:23:00 The newsletter required for developing the political theory of Da'as Hashem

1:26:00 To change the world, explain to them what you're capable of explaining

"Exodus, Exile and Redemption" is a study of the profound significance of Judaism's history.

Written essays are published bi-weekly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Please subscribe!

This series is made possible by the Jacob Lights Foundation. To support this and other ongoing foundation initiatives, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to the Substack newsletter or making a tax-deductible donation via Zelle to [email protected].

00:25 The essence of Rabbi Akiva's wisdom is that the Torah speaks in parables3:40 The sin that led to the death of Bar Kochba is the sin of taking the Torah literally 11:15 Balaam and the parables about the Messiah; the prophets themselves didn't know the meaning of their parables about the Messiah18:00 Balaam blessed Israel with kingship, which turned into a curse21:00 Inverting the meaning of the Torah and Balaam's endeavor24:00 The inversion of the Torah is its external, superficial meaning; Balaam as the anti-Moshe28:45 The function of a king is to craft a unified message; the connection between kings and parables33:45 The problem with kings, who occlude the kingship of Hashem43:00 How can there be a righteous king?44:15 The function of halacha and how it applies to establishing kings who stand as parables for Hashem55:00 The contradiction in Shemoneh Esreh whether Hashem alone will rule us or David will56:00 Solomon's failure revolved around thinking we know the reasons of mitzvahs fully59:30 The more progress we make in recognizing the limits of our reason, the more we can safely explore the reasons for the mitzvahs 1:05:30 The Guide is Gan Eden; the Tree of Life is the middle question in the middle chapter of the middle section of the Guide: "Why did he give these mitzvahs and these prohibitions?"1:11:30 Rabbi Akiva knew the reason of the Red Heifer, which is that paradoxes are appropriate1:13:00 Balaam as the anti-Moshe and his influence, together with Moshe, on all the prophets that come after Moshe1:15:00 Rabbi Meir, student of Rabbi Akiva, and his approach to parables