ידל: אפריל 2006

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ידל

יום רביעי, אפריל 26, 2006

Chafetz Chaim VS Newsweek

I saw the following in the "Daily Halacha" from Yeshivat Beit El by R' David Samson.

In general, when it comes to secular magazines and newspapers, it is best to follow the always wise words of the Chafetz Chaim, who writes:

“Due to our great sins, the evil inclination, who is the Satan, has instigated mankind to pursue after a new demise - to cause our brethren, the Children of Israel, to sin the sin of leitzanut (cynicism) and thus cause the removal of Divine Providence from the world via the reading of newspapers, which has increased so greatly in our times. These publications are filled with cynicism, evil speech, libel, scorn, untruth, and the outright mockery of G-d…Everyone will have to pay for this sin in the end, when they come before the King of Kings - those who print newspapers, those who sell them, and those who read them. This habit has become so ubiquitous that many Jews are so addicted to it, they cannot pass one day without reading a newspaper and wasting away many hours.

“And I have heard something even more scandalous - that the Sabbath day and Holidays which were given to us at Sinai to be sanctified, have sunk to the very opposite through the work of the Satan, through the publication on Erev Shabbat of twice the number of newspapers, whose editors outdo themselves by filling the pages with all sorts of cynicism, mockery, evil talk, and lewdness. And many of our brethren spend the entire Sabbath day reading these matters!!!”[9]

9. Shmirat HaLashon, Letters of the Chafetz Chaim, 42.

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יום ראשון, אפריל 02, 2006

Re: Observing Passover

The following is a message that I received about a non-jew who was interested in "observing" pesach this year, and my response. I'd like to point out 2 things:

First is that it seems rather odd that a non-jew would want to celebrate pesach, It is like a south african celebrating Cinco DeMayo.

The second is that I'm not any type of authority on the responsibilities of non-jews in the world, I'm only a simple jew sharing some of the little knowledge that I have gleaned. Do not take any of what you are about to read too seriously without first checking up on its accuracy from a more reliable source.

Hi

This may seem an odd question, and it probably is, but I've been exploring my religious horizons recently, and with Passover coming soon, I was hoping to understand it more and how it is observed. I thought I could talk to someone I knew more personally about it first before maybe talking to someone more formally. But I know this is a fairly personal topic and I don't know what are the regulations in regards to discussing or participating in the observation, so I understand if it's unfeasible. But if you have any ideas of something I can read or talk to instead or beforehand I'd appreciate that as well.

Take care,

-John Q Non-Jew

Hello

We have the tradition that g-d, our creator (yours and mine) made the jewish people along with many other nations (peoples) , each nation has its own unique purpose. To us jews he gave special instructions to live our lives, in a way that will fit our spiritual needs best. Following the path he created for us will lead to growth and elevation on all realms, the spiritual , as will as the the world that we can experience with our physical senses. But if we follow the path set for one of the other nations it will cause us harm. We have the tradition ( for over 3k years) that if some one from one of the other nations tries to follow the path designated for the jewish people then he will more than likely cause him self more harm than good.

Let me give an example. One day a week jews rest from all creative activity, because we have specific instructions from The creator to do so, and for us it is a great thing "in his eyes*" . But if a non-jew does no creative work for a whole day , what has he done ? Wasted a whole day. He had no instructions to do so. Maybe that was the day he was supposed to discover the cure for cancer, or foil a terrorist plot, or meet his wife. Even though he had the best intentions, to become closer to his creator he has in-fact done harm to him self , as well as possibly the whole world.

I'm sure you can easily understand this.

It is for example I'm sure you understand that some people are more fitted for certain jobs. If a world renowned brain surgeon, with the best intentions, tried to design a nuclear power-plant to provide power to a poor third world country, the results would be disastrous. And of course the same thing would apply in reverse, I wouldn't want a nuclear engineer performing brain surgery on me. Obviously they would cause damage, but we might ignore is that the time that they spent causing damage could have been used to cause benefit . Spirituality is much the same, we all have "spiritual aptitude" or "spiritual talents" for different tasks.

With that said when some one without jewish "spiritual talents" tries to do to the tasks designated for jews, he is not doing him self or the world any kindness. ( the same thing of course applies when a jew tries to do a task that requires the "spiritual-talents" of a different nation. )

One, out of the many tasks that requires specifically jewish "spiritual talents" is keeping passover. While I can understand why some one who is "exploring his religious horizons" would be interested in exploring one of the foundations of the jewish faith, you should know that it will do you more harm than good.

So if you can't practice the jewish religion then what should you do? We also have from tradition certain things that The creator expects from the other nations as well, the 7 laws for the children of Noach.

One of the great jewish sages teaches : (note that this is a translation from the original language, and as with translations much of the meaning was lost)

Whoever accepts the seven commandments and is careful to do them, behold he is from the righteous of the nations of the world, and he has a portion in the world to come. And that is if he accepts them and does them because the Holy One Blessed be He commanded them and informed us about them through Moshe our teacher, that the children of Noah were commanded to obey them. But if he did them because of his own philosophical conclusions, he is not a "Righteous Gentile" and is not from the righteous of the nations nor from their wise ones

So what are these 7 laws ?

Recognize and worship only The creator of the world.
Do not murder.
Respect the family, by not committing "sexual immorality"
No stealing, even of an inconsequential amount
Do not eat the limb of an animal while it is still alive
Respect the name of The creator of the world.
Set up courts to enforce the above.

This is, of course an over simplification of each of the laws, there are many details to exactly what each one means, and how exactly to "guard" each law. If you (hopefully) have interest let me know and I'll find you more information, or direct you to some one else who can help.

One last word of caution. There are many groups out there today who claim to be teaching Judaism or kabalah. Any one who teaches non-jews about these things is either an ignoramus or a fraud. Most of these organizations are out there to just collect your money. Any "synagogue" that encourages the participation of non-jews, should be stayed away from because it is not a holy place.

~YDL

*The creator does not have any physical attributes, we only use them as a metaphor.

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