We all desire good things in life. Good food, a comfortable home, a vacation, a promotion at work, and a glass of wine. It would seem that indulging in these physical wants would conflict with and perhaps compromise our spiritual growth. Yet we see that Judaism doesn't ask us to stop wanting any of that; it’s part of being human. The Jerusalem Talmud (did you know there are two Talmuds?) actually says that in the world to come, every person will have to give an accounting for every permitted pleasure they did not enjoy. You will need to explain why you didn't allow yourself to experience those pleasures that you denied yourself.
We live in a reality where "just one more" really isn’t just ONE more. A world where a business trip can quietly turn into a moral crisis. Where the buffet, the phone, the social media, the drink, etc., have a pull that is hard to ignore. In this reality, limiting our access is not a restriction on our freedom; it is the infrastructure to gain freedom.
Don't ignore your physical desires, and don't feel guilty for wanting things. When you engage with the world the correct way, with structure and intention, you're not just “not sinning”, you're revealing G-dliness and elevating that food, that moment, that experience.
Putting aside the phone to enjoy a steak dinner with your family transforms the dinner into intentional family time. A Shabbos meal isn't just “not doing work”, it's actively celebrating Shabbos. Disconnecting for a focused Torah study session, because otherwise that time will evaporate. Deciding in advance what you'll order so you can choose deliberately. These restrictions and limitations are like the scaffolding at a construction site that allows us to build something holy in the first place.
Let’s keep the traditions our grandparents upheld, not only because we're nostalgic, but because they have kept our people elevated for thousands of years. Add in your kosher adherence, put up another mezuzah, light Shabbos candles, make kiddush, and come to shul in the morning.
Enjoy the steak, the Shabbos meal, the vacation, the success, the good life, just put up the fence first! It's not there to keep you small, it's there to keep you you.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Kushi Schusterman