What Is True Kindness?

What does it really mean to be kind? The definition of kindness, according to Jewish thought, is not be as simple as we might think.
On today’s podcast, host Yael Eckstein explores Jewish teachings from the Bible about what true kindness is… and what it isn’t. And these lessons can be gleaned from the biblical laws of eating kosher! We’ll also discover how acts of authentic kindness can impact our lives in ways we could never imagine.
Listen now!
And listen to more of Yael’s teachings from the Bible on her daily podcast, The Chosen People.
Episode Notes:
The Bible verses Yael focuses on in this episode are Leviticus 11:13-19. This part of the Bible offers various commandments, including the laws of kosher—foods that are permitted or prohibited to be eaten. While this section of Scripture might appear to be relevant only to people who eat kosher today, Yael explains that within these laws are lessons for all people of faith.
In particular, these verses discuss birds that aren’t allowed to be eaten:
“These are the birds you are to regard as unclean and not eat because they are unclean: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the red kite, any kind of black kite, any kind of raven, the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat.”
As we’ll learn, the birds mentioned in these verses are cruel birds of prey… with the exception of one bird, the chassidah, whose name is derived from the Hebrew word for kindness, chessed. And, as Yael explains, this bird and its inclusion with other birds that are not considered kosher teaches us a very important lesson about what true kindness is and what it isn’t.
In this insightful episode, we will gain a whole new understanding of the kindness that God desires, which Yael illustrates through her own personal experience. In the end, practicing true kindness results in its own reward—both for the recipient and for the giver.