Lively exploration of a Jewish spiritual and ethical tradition.

Often simplistically referred to as simply Jewish ethics, Mussar is better understood in Boettiger’s hands as an orbiting around the great questions of what it means to be a human being—especially in regard to how we understand our obligations to one another. Weaving in traditional rabbinic commentary, modern poetry, and compelling stories from his own life, Boettiger takes us on a historical journey from the origins of the early Mussar Movement all the way to a contemporary relational practice that is countercultural in its focus on breaking the spell of self-absorption and helping us arrive more deeply into this life.