related to following query https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article...chapter-4/
I wish to share the following:
6/5/2021 I recently wrote to Ask A rabbi chabad website with the following Query:Query is arrogance and pride the root of rebellion against the L-d?
Examples: A scholar studies Holy Texts for so long he forgets to live the spirit and the meaning of the texts and prides himself on how much he Knows... or an another example one of the first pacts between Abraham and the L-D was circumsion...indeed there is one story of a mother who took this to heart see /the story The-Nazi-Accomplice-in-the-Circumcision yet the Knesset had to produce a film defending circumcision because there is a movement to ban it in europe which would of course adversally effect the last living rements of European Jewry. Is it man arrogance to think he van overturn a decree of the L-d simply by oratory or Legislative fiat? How can a devout Jewish person prevent arrogance or pride from dominating their lives?
6/10/2021 the reply
ב"ה
Hi
Great question.
Arrogance and pride are indeed considered an insurmountable obstacle to connecting with G-dliness, to which reason and logic are powerless to combat.
You rightly point out that even a Torah scholar is not immune to this problem, and in fact, can be quite susceptible to it.
Here are two different insightful articles that discuss this general issue and methods to combat it..
https://www.chabad.org/2283
https://www.chabad.org/1159067
Please let me know if you have any further questions.
All the best,
Mendel Fogelman
Chabad.org
On June 14, 2021 I sent the following query
On a question of the way of Living the Torah ina persons life-does the Torah explain the difference between one is is in Zealus for the Torah such as the Priest Pinchas and one who is a fanatic in their observence? for example a galat torah scholar who happenes to be Anti-Zionist so deeply he will not look at a picture of Jerusalem western wall on the grounds that if he did it would be an endorsement of Zionisam-well he becomes very ill; at the hospital his life is stabilized and he will live as long as he follows doctors orders. However when he finds out the physician is visting from Tel Aviv-he refuses to take any proscribed medicine and dies proudly proclaiming that his body has never been defiled By mediicne given by a heretic. Now of Course for the record this is a fictional story.
On June 22, 2021 the reply:
B"H
Hi
Thank you for your question.
Without commenting on the specific hypothetical you presented, the Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that when it comes to zealotry, the motivation of the zealot are a major factor in determining whether it is a good thing or not. "The true zealot is an utterly selfless individual—one who is concerned only about the relationship between G‑d and His people, with no thought for his own feelings on the matter. The moment his personal prejudices and inclinations are involved, he ceases to be a zealot." (www.chabad.org/4071544) See also www.chabad.org/2995
One Chassidic master pointed out that with regards to Pinchas, it says "he picked up a spear", and explained that only a person who does not carry a spear (and only picks it up in a time of need) can be said to be acting in the spirit of Pinchas. If a person is one who carries the spear in his hand looking for those to poke then his zealotry is not of pure motivation.
If you have any further questions, please let us know.
All the best,
Rabbi Shlomie Deren
I wish to share the following:
6/5/2021 I recently wrote to Ask A rabbi chabad website with the following Query:Query is arrogance and pride the root of rebellion against the L-d?
Examples: A scholar studies Holy Texts for so long he forgets to live the spirit and the meaning of the texts and prides himself on how much he Knows... or an another example one of the first pacts between Abraham and the L-D was circumsion...indeed there is one story of a mother who took this to heart see /the story The-Nazi-Accomplice-in-the-Circumcision yet the Knesset had to produce a film defending circumcision because there is a movement to ban it in europe which would of course adversally effect the last living rements of European Jewry. Is it man arrogance to think he van overturn a decree of the L-d simply by oratory or Legislative fiat? How can a devout Jewish person prevent arrogance or pride from dominating their lives?
6/10/2021 the reply
ב"ה
Hi
Great question.
Arrogance and pride are indeed considered an insurmountable obstacle to connecting with G-dliness, to which reason and logic are powerless to combat.
You rightly point out that even a Torah scholar is not immune to this problem, and in fact, can be quite susceptible to it.
Here are two different insightful articles that discuss this general issue and methods to combat it..
https://www.chabad.org/2283
https://www.chabad.org/1159067
Please let me know if you have any further questions.
All the best,
Mendel Fogelman
Chabad.org
On June 14, 2021 I sent the following query
On a question of the way of Living the Torah ina persons life-does the Torah explain the difference between one is is in Zealus for the Torah such as the Priest Pinchas and one who is a fanatic in their observence? for example a galat torah scholar who happenes to be Anti-Zionist so deeply he will not look at a picture of Jerusalem western wall on the grounds that if he did it would be an endorsement of Zionisam-well he becomes very ill; at the hospital his life is stabilized and he will live as long as he follows doctors orders. However when he finds out the physician is visting from Tel Aviv-he refuses to take any proscribed medicine and dies proudly proclaiming that his body has never been defiled By mediicne given by a heretic. Now of Course for the record this is a fictional story.
On June 22, 2021 the reply:
B"H
Hi
Thank you for your question.
Without commenting on the specific hypothetical you presented, the Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that when it comes to zealotry, the motivation of the zealot are a major factor in determining whether it is a good thing or not. "The true zealot is an utterly selfless individual—one who is concerned only about the relationship between G‑d and His people, with no thought for his own feelings on the matter. The moment his personal prejudices and inclinations are involved, he ceases to be a zealot." (www.chabad.org/4071544) See also www.chabad.org/2995
One Chassidic master pointed out that with regards to Pinchas, it says "he picked up a spear", and explained that only a person who does not carry a spear (and only picks it up in a time of need) can be said to be acting in the spirit of Pinchas. If a person is one who carries the spear in his hand looking for those to poke then his zealotry is not of pure motivation.
If you have any further questions, please let us know.
All the best,
Rabbi Shlomie Deren