In common usage, a mitzvah often means “a good deed”—as in “Do a mitzvah and help Mrs. Goldstein with her packages.” This usage is quite old—the Jerusalem Talmud commonly refers to any charitable act as “the mitzvah.” The rabbis of the Talmud tell us that there are 613 mitzvot in the Torah. But are these 613 mitzvot, all charitable acts or “good deeds?”  As we celebrate Shavuot and the gift of Torah, join us for a discussion of mitzvot and what they mean to us as Jews living in 2023.