There are numerous mitzvot for which, according to the Talmud, a person is rewarded in both this world and the world to come. These mitzvot include honoring one’s parents, hospitality, visiting the sick, and making peace between people, to name a few. The passage in the Talmud (Shabbat 127a) concludes that the study of Torah is equal to all of these mitzvot.

In 2008, NJOP developed the idea of creating a daily email that would make the study of Jewish life accessible to any and all. Since the first Treat was posted on June 30th of that year, Jewish Treats has stayed true to its goal of offering intelligent, inspiring, appealing and positive mini-essays. These posts are written so that everyone can learn from them, no matter how much Judaism one has studied before or what particular aspect of Jewish life one finds most interesting.

In a different Tractate of the Talmud, in Nedarim (36b-37a), the sages discuss the question of whether a person can be paid for teaching Torah. Based on the idea that God commanded that the Torah needs to be taught, various sages differ on which parts of Jewish learning one can be paid for and which one cannot. This does not mean that teachers are not paid, but rather it provides a different perspective on the significance of what they are teaching.

The Jewish Treats emails are written and dispensed without charge. However, if you would like to support NJOP, the organization that brings you Jewish Treats in honor of our Sixth Anniversary, please click to donate. If you cannot support Jewish Treats financially, please consider sharing the gift of Jewish Treats by forwarding the posts to your Jewish friends and family.

Jewish Treats wishes to thank you for your dedicated readership over these last six years. As always, we are delighted to hear your thoughts, questions and comments.