In this lecture, Rabbi Richard Jacobi will explore the heritage of kindness bequeathed to him, and set out a platform for how a restored, rigorous kindness can be a focus for all Progressive Jews and all people who wish to see a better future for the world.

In the Torah, one of the thirteen attributes of God is chesed, often translated as kindness. In his childhood, Harry Jacobi benefited from kindness that kept him alive and safe. In adulthood, he repaid that kindness many times over. However, in wider society, kindness has been relegated to an approach associated with weakness or softness, which does not chime with the market sentiments of capitalism or the social sentiments of individual autonomy.

Morally and practically, Richard will argue that it’s time we progressive Jews restored divine status to kindness, to be practised by all in a manner that respects all people as b’tzelem Elohim (in the image of God), and nurtures the planet that humanity has abused.