Technically Religious Posts

“Teshuvah”, the goal of the month of Elul, is usually translated as “repentance” but the word more closely translates to “return”. While the implication is…

A story I once read: “A wealthy man lived a good life, and died, and was pleased to find himself at the gates to heaven.…

There is, by and large, a misunderstanding about blessings – at least as they exist within Judaism – among people who keep religion at arms-length.…

A few years ago, as I worked through the BlogElul challenge, I riffed on the theme of “fixing” vs “solving” and how it parallelled the…

(This was inspired by – and written with appreciation to – R. Mansour and his inspiration from his drasha this weekhttp://www.dailyhalacha.com/m/parasha.aspx?id=833)  How little does something…

I remember, with deep fondness, the poster that is the featured image on this post. I understand that the man who is the subject of…

For all their excitement and potential, many people find beginnings to be extremely difficult, if not downright daunting. I think for many, it’s because we…

Here on Technically Religious, we do not shy away from endings. For those truly faithful (or crazy, and let’s be honest, sometimes it’s hard to…

In IT, there are jobs, there are careers, and there are passions. Back in 2006 there was a guy in my monitoring team, a 7…

Out of curiosity, do you know anyone who has eaten a whole pot roast in one sitting? Here’s why I ask: My Mom and Dad…

The cliche “actions speak louder than words” may, without intending it, betray a bit of it’s own bias. In so stating that actions can be…

I have a problem with asking, and it turns out I’m not alone. Many members of my immediate and extended family; many of my friends;…

I find strong connections between prayer and the work I do in tech, and I don’t mean in the “Oh God please let my code…

Of all the thoughts that I’m writing about this month, “awaken” may be the most apropos. More than “return”, more than “bless”, more than “learn”.…

As I mentioned yesterday, we’re halfway through this exercise. At this point we should be formulating a plan. A plan to continue, and even deeper…

2 full weeks through the month of Elul, here at the half-way point, I think it’s fair to ask ourselves what we’ve learned. What has…

The Torah portion we read this week is named “Ki Teitzei”, and it features 3 distinct narratives that hinge on memory: Moses retells the episode…

There may be nothing as quintessentially “tech”-y as counting. The first machine computers were counting machines, and before that it was an actual job title…

“12 Smooth Stones“, by Chuck Meyer, is a book of advice, insight, and wisdom shared from father to daughter. In discussing social pressures and how…

In past years of BlogElul participation, I’ve written about the Jewish view of teshuvah/repentance. Briefly, repentance is achieved/completed when someone: 1. acknowledges and regrets what…

Rabbi Akiva Tatz relates a story he received from Rabbi Moshe Shirken, about two men trapped in a cage, one sighted and one blind. The…

Twice a day, I stop what I’m doing. If I am able, I gather with my community. Regardless, whether alone or with others, I say…

Here on day 7 we are now a full week into Elul. The entire theme of the month is honest (and sometimes brutal) reflection on…

Yesterday I considered how “commit” was a more active form of “choose”, which was the prompt from the day before. Today’s prompt – “want” –…

Yesterday’s prompt was “choose”, which is a powerful word, both in life and during this period of Elul. But today’s prompt – “commit” – is…

Much of the time during this month of Elul is spent working to analyze – honestly and clearly, without bias or excuse – who have…

Podcasts are a funny beast. On the one hand, they appear to happen spontaneously – a bunch of friends have a neat topic idea, they…

On of the great joys of the Technically Religious podcast – and by extension the community we’ve created – is discovering when these two important…

Some decisions seem inevitable. Then you realize (or re-realize, or God reminds you) that nothing exists in a vaccume. We – our lives, our experiences,…

A little over a week ago, the Hebrew month of Elul began and with it my observance of a very particular set of traditions which…