I have long thought that Rav Lopiansky’s appreciation of his father, Rabbi Bentzion Lopiansky, which appears in his collection Time Pieces, is the most powerful hesped of a father by a son that I have ever read. The lessons Reb Bentzion taught his son about how to put oneself in the shoes of another are literally unforgettable.
Reb Bentzion once saw Aaron, then nine or ten years old, tagging along after a group of boys in the Bialystoker Shul on the Lower East Side, where he served as the shamash. The boys were teasing a homeless vagrant who slept in the shul’s furnace room, until he chased after them. Reb Bentzion called his son over, and spoke calmly and warmly as always.
“You see that man?” he asked. “He was born a cute little baby whose mother stroked him and nursed him. She cooed to him and delighted when he cooed back and smiled at her. His father fantasized about his infant son achieving all those things he had failed to attain.
“Now look at what has become of him. Is it not a tragedy? Should we not be moved to tears? And you are compounding that tragedy by taking a tzelem Elokim and treating him like dirt.”
Aaron’s tears flowed freely with both compassion for the vagrant and shame at his cruelty, as his father finished speaking even more softly than he had begun.
Suggested inspirational message from this book review
1 Jews are inherently like goyim
2. Even with Torah - basic decency is lacking
3. Without lessons from a sensitive parent it is is impossible to be a mensch
In America with the high rate of assimilation and intermarriage that is becoming the case Jews are living like and with non-jews.
ReplyDelete*With Torah " - hard to measure what that means and if it's equally spread amongst everyone. There's a Jewish school in London which is not strictly religious but one of the girls committed suicide because of bullying.
You can look at things in psychological terms or you can look at everything in religious terms.
Rav soloveitchik chided rackman, saying you can't psychologize halacha (in context of agunot). Modern rabbis think like secular people and approach problems like a secular thinker _ so they have adherence such as myself and they have many opponents. The opposite of applies for non modern rabbis.
I wrote about this years ago. We confuse dedication to learning and Torah knowledge with righteousness and when terrible and mean people know a lot of Torah we still think they're tzadikim.
ReplyDeleteI give down-ticks to Garnel and to KA. Mishnah 6 in Eduyyot allows a later court to make a ruling following the rejected opinion in an earlier court
ReplyDeleteDedication to learning and Torah knowledge is paramount. We say every morning the study of the Torah surpasses them all
Shabbath 127a
“R. Judah b. Shila said in R. Assi's name in R. Johanan's name: There are six things, the fruit of which man eats in this world, while the principal remains for him for the world to come, viz.: Hospitality to wayfarers, visiting the sick, meditation in prayer, early attendance at the Beth Hamidrash, rearing one's sons to the study of the Torah, and judging one's neighbor in the scale of merit. But that is not so? For we learnt: These are the things which man performs and enjoys their fruits in this world, while the principal remains for him for the world to come, viz.: honoring one's parents, the practice of loving deeds, and making peace between man and his fellow, while the study of the Torah surpasses them all.”
Garnel: true terrible and mean people are not tzadikim. KA: true modern rabbis approach problems like a secular thinker. I quote Eduyyot Mishnah 6:
R. Judah said, If so, why למה do they put on record the view of the individual against [that of] the majority to no purpose [Seeing that it was a foregone conclusion that it would be rejected] [It is recorded so] that if a man shall say, I hold such a tradition, another may reply to him, Thou hast [but] heard [it] as the view of so-and-so [viz., as he was the only one that persisted in that view against that of others the ruling accepted is that of the majority].
I just heard 1.5 hours podcast so brilliant with Dr. Dan Schueftan on Arutz Sheva. He says we in Israel have high level of consensus on important points, notwithstanding the political fights, and this is why we are so happy and having babies here and why our Arab neighbors want to be our allies to stand up to Biden/Harris and to Iran.
Torah thought on parsha שלח. The 10 bad spies were good men that became bad when they felt they might lose power.
I don't know if I agree with you about point # 1).
ReplyDeleteNor #2.
Perhaps cruelty and "othering" like that is not nature, but nurture, not inherent, but a byproduct of all-too-common elitism and racism.
So you reject that Jews have a Nefesh Elokis which in the least potentiates more than a Nochri?
ReplyDeletethe question was what are we to learn from the story not do you or I believe
ReplyDeleteJews also have bechira, to be good or to be like behemos. What a terrible thing to do with one's nefesh.
ReplyDeleteGerald, i think my analysis is correct and I stand by it.
ReplyDeleteI have spoken to many Rabbis and frum people. I have also spoken to or read books of modern O thinkers - and there is a clear difference.
If you talk about kashrus industry, then rabbis begin to think in terms of the production process, so they think "secular" for a while, but this is just to assess whether the food production line is kosher or not.
There is some website where the Chazon Ish is mentioned in regard to the younger Rav Shlomo Goren, on his view on electricity. He apparently criticised Rav Goren's thinking , because he was not thinking in totally hareidi mode. These are clues as to how Chareidim sniff out MO "reformers" . Ironically, RSZA also concurred with Rav Goren on electricity, so it's not all bad.
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ReplyDeleteJews have a Nefesh Elokis"so there can be no bad ones.
But secular and modern jews, Zionists, reformers are apikrosim, and must be totally separate from yeshiva people.
I disagree. First of all, look at all the editing and revising that goes on in the Chareidi press today. I don't doubt that in a few years Chaim Walder will be an official tzadik who met his end at the hands of unscrupulous people jealous of his success. Artscroll will write a hagiography. Anyone who dares contradict it will be a kofer.
ReplyDeleteSo here's the scary question - who says this just started now? Who says that this is the first generation where men who publicly look righteous and know oh-so-much Torah did terrible things behind closed doors? how many great "tzadiki" and "Gedolim" in the past centuries did the same but never had their crimes recorded for posterity?
Let's play make believe - reality is totally ignored
ReplyDeleteMaybe Hitler and Stalin were tzadikim
If you have facts present them- if not just pound the table
Walder not really a rabbi, maybe he passed some exams. Artscroll generally write about big rabbonim. There's no comparison on level of greatness of say a chazon ish. Rav kanievsky ztl, and lehavdil a scumbag like Walder.
ReplyDeleteThere's plenty of other areas of scumminess, eg neturei karta. OK they had amram blau who was otherwise a great rav, but the bums that run that outfit today are not receiving any write ups.
I just look at trends. We have big shots in the Chareidi community who, until the minute of their downfall, are tzadikim and gedolim, inspirations to all. My thought is: what if this has always been the case? Remember, it's only the internet and the ability the disseminate the terrible information that has led to any changes. Imagine Chaim Walder or Avraham Mondrowitz fifty years ago. They would've gotten away with their crimes and the victims would've remained victims. If Tzadik A today can suddenly be revealed to be a serial molester, then when I'm reading about Tzadik B from 100 years ago, why can't I wonder: hmmmmm, did he too?
ReplyDeleteAs for your Hitler, y"sh and Stalin, y"sh, comment, here's something to consider - in their minds they were tzadikim trying to save the world and create a new, just society.
your examples are not great- the better examples for your argument would be Berland - who was a gadol and tzaddik, sheinberg and a few others in the RZ community. And also Carlebach.
ReplyDeleteI have a book about one of these guys from 350 years ago, but it is not Artscroll. It is about Shabbetai Zvi , the Mystical Messiah.
Wow I just look at trends and I see connections everyone else is too stupid to see. I see good people are really bad so I can't assume anyone is actually good. I see good wives committing adultery and good children killing their parents - I don't trust anyone - they all are out to get me!
ReplyDeleteThe yazdi "rabbi " posted here today. Some use kabbalah to get money . Others use it to brainwash and rape. Oh some just use it for sorcery and idolatry.
ReplyDeleteBut it always comes down to the same thing _ kabbalah arayos because the "master" has a special heter which makes it OK.
Except for tropper, who did his deeds through nigleh and not nistar.
And some use Kabballah for spiritual reasons. Your conclusion is wrong!
ReplyDeleteWhy do you always overgeneralize?
Yes, the righteous majority.
ReplyDeleteThis sub-thread was about the "other side" people, who are outwardly frum, but commit sins, and use parts of the Torah or Kabbalah as a "spade" with which to dig for themselves.
there were historical cases of gedolim accusing other Gedolim of heresy , sabbateanism etc. Usually this did not go on forever - The Gra made accusations; Rav Emden made accusations, and the case went to the excellent Noda B'Yehuda, who judged and found the other party to be kosher, but that she should not write so many amulets. Even the Ramchal was under suspicion, and was banned from giving any more classes on Kabbalah, and had to bury most of his books - i.e. the ones no longer extant. One of these was the Zohar on Koheleth, which was "revealed " to him! It is just beyond our comprehension what this was, and what such a Book contained. In any case, Ramchal is now a major authority , widely read and revered.
ReplyDeleteWill you answer my question nonetheless?
ReplyDeleteIs that Tanya terminology?
ReplyDeleteA nochri can circumcise, accept the Torah and immerse in a mikveh, to acquire this Jewishness. If after a few months he goes back to idolatry or atheism, he's still Jewish. What with nefesh Elokis?