Zvika Krieger

I think part of it was like it was just what was done in my community. It is very intellectually stimulating.

We all have those friends that graduated college and were so excited to go to law school because they wanted to study torts. I don't even know what they're called, but those weird leather-bound books that have all the legal theories in them. That's probably the closest parallel where you basically, the Talmud is basically a transcription of esoteric debates and arguments between rabbis.

We all have those friends that graduated college and were so excited to go to law school because they wanted to study torts. I don't even know what they're called, but those weird leather-bound books that have all the legal theories in them. That's probably the closest parallel where you basically, the Talmud is basically a transcription of esoteric debates and arguments between rabbis.

We all have those friends that graduated college and were so excited to go to law school because they wanted to study torts. I don't even know what they're called, but those weird leather-bound books that have all the legal theories in them. That's probably the closest parallel where you basically, the Talmud is basically a transcription of esoteric debates and arguments between rabbis.

And one rabbi will put forward a position, another will argue it, and they're basically using the Torah as like a proof test. Like, well, I think the Torah says this. It's like, no, I'd interpret the Torah this way. And so there's something kind of intellectually satisfying about like deconstructing an argument, following a debate.

And one rabbi will put forward a position, another will argue it, and they're basically using the Torah as like a proof test. Like, well, I think the Torah says this. It's like, no, I'd interpret the Torah this way. And so there's something kind of intellectually satisfying about like deconstructing an argument, following a debate.

And one rabbi will put forward a position, another will argue it, and they're basically using the Torah as like a proof test. Like, well, I think the Torah says this. It's like, no, I'd interpret the Torah this way. And so there's something kind of intellectually satisfying about like deconstructing an argument, following a debate.

and also doing it in ancient Aramaic in a book that has no punctuation. And so, like, there's something cool almost about, like, decoding these texts.

and also doing it in ancient Aramaic in a book that has no punctuation. And so, like, there's something cool almost about, like, decoding these texts.

and also doing it in ancient Aramaic in a book that has no punctuation. And so, like, there's something cool almost about, like, decoding these texts.

Absolutely. Yeah, totally. Yes, that's exactly right. But I will say that, for me, and I don't want to judge other people, but, like, for me, there was exactly zero spiritual fulfillment in that task. But, like... This idea of spiritual fulfillment, that wasn't really part of my vocabulary growing up.

Absolutely. Yeah, totally. Yes, that's exactly right. But I will say that, for me, and I don't want to judge other people, but, like, for me, there was exactly zero spiritual fulfillment in that task. But, like... This idea of spiritual fulfillment, that wasn't really part of my vocabulary growing up.

Absolutely. Yeah, totally. Yes, that's exactly right. But I will say that, for me, and I don't want to judge other people, but, like, for me, there was exactly zero spiritual fulfillment in that task. But, like... This idea of spiritual fulfillment, that wasn't really part of my vocabulary growing up.

I mean, it's probably not part of most teenagers' vocabularies, but this idea that religion would be nourishing in some way, that wasn't why we did it. And so going to college, leaving my world, all of a sudden being surrounded by other kinds of Judaism, more mystical versions of Judaism, more embodied forms of Judaism, I was just kind of like... huh, okay, like that is interesting to me.

I mean, it's probably not part of most teenagers' vocabularies, but this idea that religion would be nourishing in some way, that wasn't why we did it. And so going to college, leaving my world, all of a sudden being surrounded by other kinds of Judaism, more mystical versions of Judaism, more embodied forms of Judaism, I was just kind of like... huh, okay, like that is interesting to me.

I mean, it's probably not part of most teenagers' vocabularies, but this idea that religion would be nourishing in some way, that wasn't why we did it. And so going to college, leaving my world, all of a sudden being surrounded by other kinds of Judaism, more mystical versions of Judaism, more embodied forms of Judaism, I was just kind of like... huh, okay, like that is interesting to me.

And like being able to pause and ask questions of like, why are we doing this? And who are we doing this for? And like, definitely the questioning started then and continued well into my twenties. what does that period of questioning look like? Yeah, I mean, college again was like this interesting time.

And like being able to pause and ask questions of like, why are we doing this? And who are we doing this for? And like, definitely the questioning started then and continued well into my twenties. what does that period of questioning look like? Yeah, I mean, college again was like this interesting time.

And like being able to pause and ask questions of like, why are we doing this? And who are we doing this for? And like, definitely the questioning started then and continued well into my twenties. what does that period of questioning look like? Yeah, I mean, college again was like this interesting time.

I went to Yale, which was like a total mindfuck for me, being this cloistered Orthodox Jewish boy who went to only Orthodox Jewish schools, basically only knew Orthodox Jewish people, all of a sudden to a college campus where I was like, You know, and in my community, highbrow secular reading was People magazine. People didn't have like the New Yorker. Oh, hell no.