Abraham Joshua Heschel, Moral Grandeur and Spiritual Audacity. (New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1996), p. 150.

Original Text:

What is involved in being a Jew? Duties of the heart, not only external performance; the ability to experience the suffering of others, compassion and acts of kindess; sanctification of time, not the mere observance of customs and ceremonies; the joy of discipline, not the pleasures of conceit; sacrifice, not casual celebrations; contrition rather than national pride.

Translation:

Suggested Discussion Questions:

1. What does being a Jew mean to you?
2. How do we 'sanctify time?' What does Heschel mean by this?
3. Why is the ability to experience the suffering of others one of the central facets of being a Jew? Is this a critical to being human or simply Jewish?

Time Period:	Contemporary (The Yom Kippur War until the present-day)
Type:	Philosophy
Categories:	Tikkun Olam, Poverty, Civil/Human Rights
Keywords:	duty, Civic responsibility
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