How to Build a System of Blessing: Insights from Re’eh

“Success often comes from knowing what to let in — and what to keep out”

In this article we will explore how systems thinking connects to success in Parashat Re’eh. 

1. Seeing the whole System

The parashah begins:

“Re’eh, I set before you today a blessing and a curse…” (Devarim 11:26).

Moshe invites the people not only to see choices in isolation, but to understand their systemic consequences. Understand how the choices of each person ripple outward and how a single decision can affect family, community, land, future generations, and relationship with HaShem.

Systems thinking asks us to look beyond immediate cause-and-effect and see the bigger picture. Success is not random; it emerges from aligning small actions with larger patterns.

2. Feedback Loops in Blessing and Curse and Tzedakah and the Poor

Systems are guided by feedback loops. In Re’eh, following mitzvot creates blessing, an upward loop of prosperity and harmony. Turning away leads to curses, a downward spiral. Torah highlights that every action feeds back into the system, shaping future outcomes. 

Additionally, Re’eh commands us to open our hand to the poor (Devarim 15:7–11).

On a systemic level, this is brilliant: when wealth circulates, inequality lessens, resentment decreases, and the whole society thrives. Ignoring the needy creates a negative feedback loop of poverty, unrest, and moral decline. Systems thinking reminds us that success isn’t just about my gain, but about creating sustainable structures that lift the whole. Success comes when we recognize these loops and align ourselves with actions that strengthen positive cycles.

3. Structure Enables Freedom

Parashat Re’eh stresses that sacrifices must be brought only in “the place that HaShem will choose” (Devarim 12:5). The Torah insists on one central sanctuary rather than many shrines. This may feel limiting, but systems thinking reveals the wisdom: centralization prevents fragmentation, ensuring unity of purpose. Sometimes, success requires structured boundaries so the system can remain healthy. 

From a systems perspective, this prevents chaos: if each tribe built its own altar and rituals, society would fragment. By centralizing worship, the Torah builds a cohesive system that channels diverse energies into one unifying vision. Success in life, too, comes from reducing fragmentation; bringing scattered efforts into harmony around a central mission or set of values.

4. Kashrut and Boundaries – Healthy System Filters

The parashah lists permitted and forbidden animals (Devarim 14). Kashrut isn’t arbitrary, it functions like a filter in a system. By controlling what enters the body, the Torah ensures physical, spiritual, and communal health.

In systems thinking, clear boundaries are essential. Success often comes from knowing what to let in—and what to keep out.

5. Festivals – Rhythms that Sustain the System

Re’eh discusses the pilgrimage festivals (Pesach, Shavuot, Sukkot). These create structured cycles of gathering, gratitude, and renewal. Like a healthy system, Israel’s spiritual and social life thrives when there are regular rhythms that restore balance.

In our own lives, success requires not constant activity, but sustainable cycles of work, reflection, and celebration.

6. Long-Term Vision over Short-Term Impulse

Re’eh also warns against idolatry, even when it looks attractive or easy. Systems thinking demands that we look beyond short-term gains (the immediate pleasure of doing “what feels right”) to long-term sustainability (loyalty to HaShem’s covenant ensures enduring blessing).

Success comes from making choices with the whole system and future generations in mind.

7. Interconnection Between Spiritual and Material

Re’eh ties together:

Worship (centralizing in the chosen place),

Food laws (kashrut),

Social justice (tithes for the poor, Levite, stranger, orphan, widow),

Festivals (joy as a communal obligation).

Systems thinking shows that spiritual practice, ethical living, social justice, and celebration aren’t separate; they are interconnected subsystems that sustain a thriving society. Ignoring one weakens the whole system. Success comes from balance and integration.

Summary Insight:

Parashat Re’eh teaches that life is not about isolated choices but about how those choices interact in a network of relationships, between self, community, land, and HaShem. Systems thinking helps us see these interconnections, align with positive feedback loops, and create a sustainable path to success.