Mussar and Middot: Changing the World from the Inside Out 

With society changing so fast and the deluge of news hitting us at such a constant, unnerving pace, one of the primary ways by which we address the messiness of the outer world is to address the messiness of our inner worlds. We yearn to step out of the cycles of cynicism that pervade our culture and engender positive change in our communities and in ourselves. To achieve this goal, we have to develop and refine our characters—our souls—so that we may realize our potential in this life. That is where the Jewish principles of mussar (ethical traits) and middot (character traits) come into play. For indeed, if we are to be the change we seek in the world, we must first actualize ourselves to be the change. And we can only change the world by challenging ourselves to be our best.

There will be a light dessert reception before the talk.

Beth Am's scholar-in-residence weekend is made possible by the Saxe Family Scholar-in-Residence Endowment Fund.

Please note: the schedule for the scholar-in-residence weekend has been adjusted. This is the talk that would have taken place during the dinner that had been scheduled for Friday evening.