Osek Bemitzvah Patur Min Hamitzvah, Multitasking Mitzvot – Should you ever stop doing one mitzvah to go do another? (Sukkah 25a)

 

Our generation has been branded “Generation M” – M stands for Multitasking.

People seemingly manage to check their email and Facebook, follow a movie, eat dinner, and hold a conversation – all at the same time.

What about mitzvot? What does the Torah say about multitasking mitzvot?

What are we to do if we simultaneously encounter more than one mitzvah opportunity? Can we drop one commandment to do another? Must we stay on task? Should we try to multitask?

This Thinking Gemara shiur deals with these and other questions through exploring some of the Talmudic principles connected to making choices between different positive mitzvot.

Here are some of the key questions this class will deal with:

  • If I am doing one good deed – a mitzvah – and another opportunity or obligation presents itself, how should I act?
  • What are the principles and concepts underlying the prioritization of mitzvot?
  • Does it make a difference which mitzvah I am doing and what other mitzvah comes up?
  • What if I am learning Torah and the opportunity to do a mitzvah arises – do the same rules apply?

 

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