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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Nov. 7, 2003
/12 Mar-Cheshvan, 5764
Was Abraham a generalist or a specialist?
By Rabbi Hillel Goldberg
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http://www.jewishworldreview.com |
Just before Passover, 1969, I was sitting in the Beth Joseph yeshiva in Brooklyn. Sitting next to me
was Rabbi Jechiel J. Perr. He was broken. His wife's grandfather, Rabbi Avraham Joffen, had died in Jerusalem the night before. Rabbi Joffen, the successor to the founder of the Novorodock branch of the Musar movement, was "the last link," Rabbi Perr was saying in mourning. Now the link was gone.
One reason for Rabbi Perr's description was the simple fact that so many of Rabbi Joffen's students had been killed by the Nazis. There was no remembrance of them — then.
In a few years, this changed. I went to Jerusalem in 1972 and was fortunate to study with another Novorodock master, Rabbi Eliezer Ben Zion Bruk. One day, in 1973 or so, he told me that quite by accident he had been shuffling through some old papers in a drawer one day. He had come upon notes that he had taken some 40 years earlier, back in Poland. These notes
were transcriptions of Torah thoughts delivered by promising young students in the Novorodock yeshivas, all of whom were later killed.
Rabbi Bruk was intent on publishing these Torah thoughts. They would become the only memorial to snuffed out lives. Shortly after our discussion, Rabbi Bruk did refine and publish the notes he had found. He called the book "Parchments of Fire" after a Talmudic statement about the martyrs of Rabbi Akiva's time, "the parchments were consumed, but the letters floated
upward." The bodies of the martyrs were consumed, but their teachings remained — because Rabbi Bruk published them.
In 1996, Meir Levin published a book that contained a translation of some of the teachings of these young, idealistic scholars. He called the book Novarodok: A Movement That Lived in Struggle, and, Its Unique Approach to the Problem of Man. The excerpt that I reprint from this book is by Rabbi Nisan Bobruisker, murdered by the Nazis in Vilna, Lithuania, in 1941.
I apply Rabbi Bobruisker's Torah thought to Abraham the Patriarch, but it illuminates the ethical (Musar) approach of all the Patriarchs and Matriarchs. Their ethical aspirations encompassed their entire lives; in this they were all generalists. But lofty vision must be applied in real life. The Patriarchs and Matriarchs specialized in applying ethics to their every act.
This point is brought out by the martyred Rabbi Bobruisker in a very charming way — so charming that one can miss his point.
The rabbi's use of a midrash about a dog and a baker's cart teaches us not to be satisfied merely with lofty visions — generalized accomplishments. Each act, no matter how small, is either an ethical victory or an ethical defeat. To overlook a small transgression is to imperil one's entire spirituality.
"Sin crouches by the entrance" (Gen. 4:7). On this Rabbi Tanchum commented: "There are crafty dogs in Rome who know how to obtain what they want. A dog goes and sits in front of a baker and pretends to be sleeping. The baker also falls asleep. The dog then upsets the baker's cart and scatters the breads all over on the ground. Before the baker can gather his loaves, the dog snatches one of them and carries it away" (Genesis Rabbah 22:12).
Why was this specific parable selected to illustrate the tricks of the Evil Inclination ("sin")?
Oftentimes a man who has stumbled and sinned is filled with remorse over his failure. At other times, however, he comes out with pride and satisfaction at his "victory."
For example, a person may be late for work. His Evil Inclination tells him not to put lay tefilin because he is running late. Of course, he doesn't succumb and does put them on, but he hurriedly mumbles the absolute minimum of the required prayers, tears off the precious mitzvah (religious duty) and then speeds off. This man rejoices in his supposed victory and he is proud of his righteousness.
Another example:
A man argues with a friend. The dispute grows and heats up until sharp words are exchanged. At the last moment, the two individuals draw back from the brink to which they have come. They do not say the insults that could have been said. These ones also take pride in their refinement and the purity of their character.
A wealthy man is tempted to keep his store open on Shabbes the Sabbath. He resists, but gradually the business begins to close later and
later on Friday and to open earlier and earlier on Saturday night. This man is also proud for, he thinks, he has resisted the temptation of his Evil Inclination.
Similarly, there are those who do not stand up to the wicked but would much rather seek compromises. At the end, they pat themselves on the back for keeping these scoffers from an even greater apostasy through their tolerant attitude and their "ways of peace."
The Evil Urge is a very shrewd tactician and a master warrior. It leaves itself room to withdraw in order to pursue its grand design and to attack again. It is a seasoned negotiator; it demands more than it really wants. Above all, it wants its victims not to feel bad, to think they won, to remain smug and contented, not to regret the losses they have suffered. Then they will not gather strength to resist, to close the breaches, to go on the offensive.
The parable of the Sages is precise. The dog did not want all the breads. All he wanted was one loaf. By upsetting the whole cart, he led the baker to believe that everything was threatened. When only one loaf was lost, the baker felt a tremendous relief. He will not learn from this experience for he does not realize that he has been tricked. Next time the baker will be fooled
again.
We can learn from this, each person according to his own level. We must learn not to compromise even as much as a hair's breadth. This is all that the Evil One wants — just a hair's breadth — and this is where the battle lines are drawn.
Abraham, like the dog, knew that each loaf, each sin, compromises the whole. Abraham specialized in remedying each of his
transgressions in order to sustain his general spiritual stature.
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JWR contributor Rabbi Hillel Goldberg is executive editor of the Intermountain Jewish News. To comment, please click here.
© 2003, Rabbi Hillel Goldberg
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