On “The Good Place”, Eleanor tries both to keep and not keep her promises to Michael — and on the podcast, Jon and Dan trade stories of dog-watching gone wrong and explore why promising is such a big, Yom-Kippur-level matter in Judaism.
Texts (head over to our Jewish Lexicon for background):
Deuteronomy 23:22-24 (Click the link to see in context! Also note how hard it is to translate in a single way; this translation isn’t the same as the one Jon gave on the podcast, even though they are both his!)
When you vow a vow to Adonai your God, do not delay in completing it — for Adonai your God will seek, yes seek it from you and there would be wrong with/in you [otherwise]. And if you refrain from vowing, there would not be wrong with/in you. What comes out from your mouth protect/take care and do; just as you have vowed to Adonai your God voluntarily/a voluntary gift that you have spoken with your mouth.
Kol Nidre — traditional Yom Kippur evening prayer
All vows
and statements we have made forbidding certain things toourselves
and statements consecrating an item to the Temple instead of for our own use
and vows made with alternative language such as konam or kanos or any other substitute language
and oaths
that we have vowed or sworn or consecreated or forbidden upon ourselves
from this Yom Kippur until next Yom Kippur, may it come to us for good:
all of them -- we regret them
all of them -- may they be released
let go, made inactive, become null and nullified
may they not be valid or exist any longer.
Our vows shall no longer be vows
and our forbiddings no longer forbidden
and our oaths no longer oaths.
Genesis 1:3
God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
On the shmittah/sabbatical year once every seven, check out Leviticus 25:1-7 about letting land rest for a year, and Deuteronomy 15:1-11 about the cancellation of debts.
Deeper Dives:
John L. Austin — classic writing in philosophy on “performative utterances”
