Category: Dei`os

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Neo-Chassidic Spirituality and Self-Focus – a Pothole to Avoid

A big problem, and perhaps The Big Problem, of the Orthodox community as it revived post-Shoah has been “Frumkeit”, as Rabbi Wolbe defines the term. Doing mitzvos out of an instinct that I need to be holier, rather than out of a desire that Hashem’s Will be done. It is a self-centered and self-serving orientation, as are all instincts. Rav Dessler would say it is coming from one’s Will to Take rather than one’s Will to Give. … Neo-Chassidus, with its focus on my relationship with G-d, doesn’t have many tools to fix that. Going to a kumzitz or a singing minyan to have an inspirational moment certainly don’t. All it offers is a hope that one internalizes one’s studies.

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Rav Shlomo Wolbe, “Frumkeit – Relationship ep. 26

Wednesday night (Sep 28th, 2022) the Beyond Meaningful Relationship – Relationshipful Meaning chaburah chaburah discussed Rav Wolbe’s essay titled “Frumkeit”, found in Alei Shur vol II, pp 152-155. (Warning: he actually comes out against!)

Brunecker Turm Peak in the Morning, Val Gardena, Dolomite Mountains, Italys 0

What does Hashem ask of you?

Adding together the two pesuqim, then, we get a more complete description of the path Hashem expects us to walk:

1- To be aware of the enormity of the Divine,,,.
2- which should motivate us to emulate…
3- … we come to love Him
and aim everything at wholeheartedly following His Plan to be good to us.
4- Hashem gave us Jews the Torah and mitzvos …
5- To help us become good human beings, creatures who are fair, motivated by lovingkindness, humility, in our partnership with our Creator.

Halakhah is a Floor - Not a Ceiling! 0

Toward a Torah Definition of “Ethics”

A short thought, maybe “just” a conversation starter… There is a paradoxical obligation: it is prohibited to conform in all ways only to the letter of the law. One must stay well within it...

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Learning and Teaching

I The pasuq (Devarim 28:61, parashas Ki Savo) reads, if we would translate it naively (ignoring the point we’re about to see in Rashi): גַּ֤ם כׇּל־חֳלִי֙ וְכׇל־מַכָּ֔ה אֲשֶׁר֙ לֹ֣א כָת֔וּב בְּסֵ֖פֶר הַתּוֹרָ֣ה הַזֹּ֑את יַעְלֵ֤ם...

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Yeru+Shalem

The first time we encounter Yerushalayim (Bereishis 14:18), it is under the rule of Malki-Tzedeq, a “kohein leKeil elyon — a priest of the most high G-d”, under the name “Shaleim”. The other half...

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Hardening the Heart vs. Weighing it Down

So, I recently noticed that the translation of Unqelus I am using offers “hardened Par’oh’s heart” and the like regardless of whether the original word ויחזק (Aramaic: ואתקף) or another word built from \חזק\...

Rav Hirsch, Rav Yisrael and Me 0

Rav Hirsch, Rav Yisrael and Me

I was very “into” Rav Hirsch’s worldview as a bachur. The symbol system explains so much. Don’t mix meat and milk because for an animal, the only creativity is procreativity, it’s in who it...

תפילה לזכות לאור ולאהבה 0

תפילה לזכות לאור ולאהבה

תפילה לזכות לאור ולאהבה רבי אלימלך מליז’ענסק A Prayer to Merit Light and Love by Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk (1717-1787, one of the early rebbes of the Chassidic movement) This prayer, written by the...

Four Types of Perfection 0

Four Types of Perfection

It seems, therefore, that Rav Yochanan is simply saying that a navi must be perfect in every way. Even those that would seem to be less important.

But.

Notice that the Rambam reverses the order of the third and fourth items. The gemara’s list is “גבור ועשיר וחכם ועניו — mighty, wealthy, wise, and humble,” The Rambam not only places character third and knowledge of G-d last, he ranks them accordingly.