Trained minds: A Jewish path to cognitive excellence

By Gloria Green

What kind of 13-year-old memorizes and chants in a foreign language, interprets ancient texts in front of a crowd, and stands poised on a bimah with confidence beyond their years? The answer: One whose brain has been trained — not just in faith, but in focus.

In Jewish life, that training often begins long before the Bar or Bat Mitzvah. It’s not just preparation for a single moment; it’s mental infrastructure that lasts a lifetime. Memory, discipline, bilingual agility, moral reasoning, public speaking — this is cognitive cross-training, Jewish-style. And it has shaped some of...