A year in the life。。。One sees in this journal of a year （1999-2000） in the life of a religious Jew in Israel the timeless struggle of a man to know the good， and to do it。 For Shalom Freedman the essential moral question is how does one act in accordance with true "derech eretz"？ That is， how does one go about treating others with respect， consideration and compassion in accordance with "the will of God"？It would seem that the Golden Rule of doing unto others as one would wish be done unto onese A year in the life。。。One sees in this journal of a year （1999-2000） in the life of a religious Jew in Israel the timeless struggle of a man to know the good， and to do it。 For Shalom Freedman the essential moral question is how does one act in accordance with true "derech eretz"？ That is， how does one go about treating others with respect， consideration and compassion in accordance with "the will of God"？It would seem that the Golden Rule of doing unto others as one would wish be done unto oneself would be a necessary and sufficient guide。 Indeed in the Talmud it is written: "What is hateful to you do not do to your neighbor。 That is the whole Torah。 The rest is commentary。" Freedman goes a bit beyond this; indeed his year-long "experiment" in derech eretz is that of a man seeking some kind of perfection of behavior toward his fellow human beings。 Of course it can be said--and Freedman is well aware of this--that such an endeavor is itself a sign of something other than derech eretz。 On the one hand， some people might find this an exercise in moral one-upmanship， while others might view it as delusive or even egocentric。Yet the experiment， because it is published rather than private， takes on greater significance。 To do good just for the sake of being good is perhaps just a gesture。 But to do good with the intent of showing others what the struggle is all about， and to do this with real self-examination and then to share it with the world--such an intent lifts the entire enterprise to another level and justifies it。The reader can ask （and I found it hard not to） "to what extent did Freedman succeed and to what extent does this publication itself further the cause of derech eretz？" Indeed， this is the question that I believe Shalom Freedman himself is asking。 He writes， "I know that despite all my efforts in the past year， I have not helped people in any significant way。" （p。 273）This is perhaps too modest; and perhaps it is born of the terrible uncertainty that is the burden of Israelis， who live everyday knowing that the end of their struggle is nowhere in sight。 While Freedman writes of his "intense concentration on the minor encounters of everyday life" （p。 273） all about him are momentous and violent events。Again Freedman is well aware of this seeming disconnectedness。 While he worries over whether he missed saying a kind word to a friend， or whether he gave enough to a beggar in the street， the state of Israel is in a life and death struggle for its survival。 Yet--and this is the whole point of this venture--such things go hand in hand because the Jewish people cannot win the larger war and lose their soul （and neither can Americans， by the way）， and derech eretz is at the very soul of any civilized society。I must say however that I would not describe derech eretz as "doing the will of God" as Freedman does （p。 164）。 I am uneasy at being told what is the will of God， and I don't believe that other persons， regardless of how pious they may seem， can say what pleases or does not please God。 But this is a complaint that I would register against any religion that imagines that God is personally involved in their daily lives。 This is simply my belief。 I wish Freedman and all the priests and preachers and other clerics would say instead that what is pleased is themselves and their view of life as taught in their traditions。 To presume to speak for God grates on the ears and rankles the soul。That point aside， I am in deep sympathy and in substantial accord with Freedman's beliefs。 I believe， as many do， that charity not only begins at home， but that it is incumbent on us as human beings to treat those people around us with courtesy， consideration and compassion; and to fail in this is to fail in the most fundamental way as human beings。 Indeed， if Freedman's example were universally followed， the world would overnight turn into something close to a heaven on earth。 Alas， how far we are from such a world！ And yet how little it would take from each and every human being to bring it about。Freedman's moral struggle and self-examination make this a most interesting read， but I also gained from the insights into the daily lives of the religious Jews of Israel that Freedman provides。 He steers a middle road between the ultra-Orthodox， who are largely out of tune with the modern world （in somewhat the same way that fundamentalist Christians and Muslims are）， and the secular society that sometimes seems but an extension of the American mass culture。 Here are some examples of Freedman's fine spiritual insight:"I know how it is when you are alone， and suddenly someone listens to you and makes you feel that you are a human being again。" （p。 201）"。。。[M]odesty， humility and walking humbly before God are the foundations of my faith。" （p。206）"Perhaps what I primarily mean by derech eretz is simple decency and kindness。 In this sense， it is not something of which to make a big deal， but rather something that one does naturally and comes to expect of others， as basic civilized human behavior。" （p。 51）"。。。[T]here are those who， upon receiving offers of help， might come to hate those who are extending it， for they see in those people a freedom and power that they themselves do not possess。" （p。 51）And finally here's something that relates to post 9/11 United States: "The dilemma of how to maintain our strength while preserving our humanity is one that we are faced with all the time。。。" （p。 194） --Dennis Littrell， author of the mystery novel， “Teddy and Teri” 。。。more