I was unaware of what was going on in the Christian world for a long time. It only occurred to me to notice something going on with what is known as Pentecostal. I imagine because I tend to look more at doctrinal difference between groups that I was scarcely aware of their existence. Part of this is really not from lack of awareness, but more from the fact that Pentecostal people and groups do not like the name and so go by the more mild sounding "Evangelical." It only occurred to me recently what really makes them different from every other group. It is the Pentecostal experience. This is way beyond what it sounds like. To them this is the one and only thing that separates a real christian from a fake.
I really only became aware of this after reading a Catholic critique on it.
I really can not tell exactly what they are thinking however from personal experience.
I was pretty solidly into the Torah point of view when I got to Israel, and when the Divine Light started shining, I thought little of it, and thought it was just the common experience of everyone in Israel. To me experience of the Divine Light is nothing more or less that fulfilling the verse in Deuteronomy 11: 22 ''to be attached to God'' which is one of the 613 commandments.
At any rate, what I wanted to say today was simply this: To me it seems so hard to get to be a decent human being because people are basically depraved and vicious beyond belief. So in my mind, anything that people do to come to gain good character is praiseworthy.
In other words my viewpoint is the good character is the center of gravity of the Torah. [Based on the אור צפון, the רש''ש Shalom Sharabi, the Hafetz Chaim, and Rav Yerucham of the Mir in Europe.] So to my point of view, what ever it takes for anyone to come to good character is a good thing.
That is to say besides that people are depraved, I see most groups and especially most religious groups as adding to their inborn depravity a thousand fold. So anything at all on the side of getting people to be a little more honest, to lie a little less, to have a little more compassion on others, is already a great thing and a rare thing. For most groups encourage just the opposite under nice sounding slogans
I really only became aware of this after reading a Catholic critique on it.
I really can not tell exactly what they are thinking however from personal experience.
I was pretty solidly into the Torah point of view when I got to Israel, and when the Divine Light started shining, I thought little of it, and thought it was just the common experience of everyone in Israel. To me experience of the Divine Light is nothing more or less that fulfilling the verse in Deuteronomy 11: 22 ''to be attached to God'' which is one of the 613 commandments.
At any rate, what I wanted to say today was simply this: To me it seems so hard to get to be a decent human being because people are basically depraved and vicious beyond belief. So in my mind, anything that people do to come to gain good character is praiseworthy.
In other words my viewpoint is the good character is the center of gravity of the Torah. [Based on the אור צפון, the רש''ש Shalom Sharabi, the Hafetz Chaim, and Rav Yerucham of the Mir in Europe.] So to my point of view, what ever it takes for anyone to come to good character is a good thing.
That is to say besides that people are depraved, I see most groups and especially most religious groups as adding to their inborn depravity a thousand fold. So anything at all on the side of getting people to be a little more honest, to lie a little less, to have a little more compassion on others, is already a great thing and a rare thing. For most groups encourage just the opposite under nice sounding slogans
