30.8.16
Cuckolding
Cuckolding is in fact very serious. It comes under the category of ניאוף. [adultry]The definition of adultery in the Torah is sexual intercourse with a married woman or a betrothed woman by anyone other than her husband. It makes the woman forbidden to her husband. The children are ממזרים bastards, [and can not marry an Israelite woman]. If the act is done in front of two witnesses there is the death penalty for both the adulterer and adulteress. [Leviticus 18 and 20]
Gentiles are entirely unaware of this. They try to piece together a coherent idea of what the Torah holds based on random readings and scraps from place to place. Clearly that can not work.They do this based on Luther. That was a reaction to the problem that the Catholic church which had started out sincere and had become a self perpetrating bureaucracy. So on one hand he was doing a good thing- but it left a lot of misunderstandings. Since then it has been up to debate what the simple meaning of any verse is. How the individual wants to understand it? How the author meant? How the people reading it thought it meant when it was written? Etc.
Gentiles are entirely unaware of this. They try to piece together a coherent idea of what the Torah holds based on random readings and scraps from place to place. Clearly that can not work.They do this based on Luther. That was a reaction to the problem that the Catholic church which had started out sincere and had become a self perpetrating bureaucracy. So on one hand he was doing a good thing- but it left a lot of misunderstandings. Since then it has been up to debate what the simple meaning of any verse is. How the individual wants to understand it? How the author meant? How the people reading it thought it meant when it was written? Etc.
The rise and fall of Navardok yeshivas.But besides the great Litvak yeshivas in NY, the system has become a self perpetuating bureaucracy.
I mentioned a few times some critiques on the yeshiva system nowadays. These institutions started out sincere and great based on Reb Chaim from Voloshins's model of separating the yeshiva from the "Kahal" and authority of the local religious authorities. [Before that the local yeshiva was simply the local synagogue where teenagers learned during the day and the local home owners put them up with a place to sleep and meals].
But besides the great Litvak yeshivas in NY, the system has become a self perpetuating bureaucracy.
So Avi Preder suggested a return to the basic Beit Midrash Model, [i.e., study hall model].
Based on what I have seen and heard from many people, this makes sense. Too many people have been burnt by the system as it is in place today.
So what I suggest is a "Musar Beit Midrash." That is a kind of permutation from the "Musar Yeshiva" to a Musar Beit Midrash where the main emphasis is development of good character.
[This all came up because I was thinking about the rise and fall of Navardok yeshivas and thinking about the amazing effect they had on the students that learned in them.]
[I am I admit not sure how this would work in Israel. The Ponovitch yeshiva which is the greatest yeshiva in the world still goes by the old yeshiva model, and that might be the only practical way to go about things in Israel itself.]
[But what would happen if you don't pay people to learn Torah? All the yeshivas would empty out. I say that is a good thing. The only people then that would learn Torah would be the ones that do it for its own sake. Torah Lishma.]
But besides the great Litvak yeshivas in NY, the system has become a self perpetuating bureaucracy.
So Avi Preder suggested a return to the basic Beit Midrash Model, [i.e., study hall model].
Based on what I have seen and heard from many people, this makes sense. Too many people have been burnt by the system as it is in place today.
So what I suggest is a "Musar Beit Midrash." That is a kind of permutation from the "Musar Yeshiva" to a Musar Beit Midrash where the main emphasis is development of good character.
[This all came up because I was thinking about the rise and fall of Navardok yeshivas and thinking about the amazing effect they had on the students that learned in them.]
[I am I admit not sure how this would work in Israel. The Ponovitch yeshiva which is the greatest yeshiva in the world still goes by the old yeshiva model, and that might be the only practical way to go about things in Israel itself.]
[But what would happen if you don't pay people to learn Torah? All the yeshivas would empty out. I say that is a good thing. The only people then that would learn Torah would be the ones that do it for its own sake. Torah Lishma.]
29.8.16
So who do you trust to have a true and clear idea of what the Torah says? The Rambam or them?
On a related not to the previous blog entry I wanted to add that books that claim to be teaching the worldview of Torah are almost always teaching their worldview in the name of Torah.
After all people smart enough have already done the job of telling us the basic השקפה thought structure of the Torah--the Rambam and Saadia Gaon. And there is no book on השקפה today that agrees with anything they wrote. In the religious world, no one dares touch the Guide For the Perplexed of the Rambam or the אמונות ודעות of Saadia Gaon because the world view of the religious world is in fact directly opposed to everything the Rambam wrote in the Guide and Saadia Gaon.
So who do you trust to have a true and clear idea of what the Torah says? The Rambam or them?
And it is not as if the Rambam is hard to understand. The trouble is that he is infinitely easy to understand. The religious just don't like what he has to say.
After all people smart enough have already done the job of telling us the basic השקפה thought structure of the Torah--the Rambam and Saadia Gaon. And there is no book on השקפה today that agrees with anything they wrote. In the religious world, no one dares touch the Guide For the Perplexed of the Rambam or the אמונות ודעות of Saadia Gaon because the world view of the religious world is in fact directly opposed to everything the Rambam wrote in the Guide and Saadia Gaon.
So who do you trust to have a true and clear idea of what the Torah says? The Rambam or them?
And it is not as if the Rambam is hard to understand. The trouble is that he is infinitely easy to understand. The religious just don't like what he has to say.
"Outside books".[ ספרים חיצוניים
"Outside books".[ ספרים חיצוניים] The way the Rif and Rosh understand this is that outside books are books that explain the Torah not according to קבלת חז''ל. There are lots of books in the Ultra-Religious world that would come under the category of ספרים חיצוניים outside books according to that definition.
I did not go into detail because I am not sure where to draw the line. [Almost all religious books nowadays explain the Torah not according to the tradition of Chazal {the sages of the Talmud}] They always add mizvot that are not from Torah nor the Talmud. Always. And they subtract things the Chazal (sages) say are important. And they pervert the meaning of Torah to always mean that their cult is the right one. [And the things they add are always related to OCD things like mikveh or food preparation or graves of tzadikim or sexual hangups or to advance their cult. They say keep Torah but add this such and such. This is opposed to the Torah which says "Thou shalt not add nor subtract to the things that God has commanded you in the book of the Law."
(No offence intended towards Reb Nachman who was a great tzadik. Rather the critique here is directed to those groups that make a cult out him.)
The back topic starts with a mishna in Sanhedrin: "These are those who have no portion in the next world... R. Akiva added, 'One who reads outside books'." The Rambam does not poskin [decide]like R. Akiva. He brings in Laws of Repentance all the things that one loses his portion in the next world for and does not include the statement of R Akiva. But to the Rambam there are books that are forbidden ספרי עבודה זרה books on idol worship. This is brought in Laws of Idolatry.
Does the Rambam have the version printed in our Gemaras outside books are "Books of Minim?"
"Minim" Rashi there says means "books of idol worship." Is this perhaps what the Rambam is thinking? Minim we know has a specific definition and it does not mean idolatry?
[We know the Rambam is not just borrowing from Aristotle but also says that the command to learn the Oral Law includes the two subjects of Physics and Metaphysics as understood by the ancient Greeks. So he is certainly not thinking of Aristotle of Plato as being forbidden.
One person was involved in a cult (the Adi Da group) and left it. He died in a plane crash a few months later. But he left a few writings and interviews which explain the problem. He called it "consciousness trap." Books that seems to have everything right and even great advice--but there is some consciousness trap hidden inside them.
[כל הפורש מעבודה זרה מיד מת who ever separates himself from idol worship immediately dies. That is there is no escape. As for that fellow who fell into that cult I can only say that some people have come into the world to reveal some great secret and once they reveal it they are gone. It is almost as if they gave their life in order to bring some great knowledge into the world.
Like President Kennedy brought the awareness of jogging into the world. So that fellow who fell into that cult- perhaps he existed just to tell us all some of the dangers of cults and how to be afraid of things we ought to be afraid of.
In any case, if there are people out there that want to know what I think are kosher Torah books: the Written and Oral Law [the two Talmuds and midrashei Chazal]. There is little in mysticism that I think is kosher. The only kosher things would be the Arizal himself and Yaakov Abuchatzeira, nothing else. Everything else I would burn [just like the Gra did in Villna] as being books using the Chazal to create cults of idolatry.\
___________________________________________________________________________
ספרים חיצוניים. The way the רי''ף and רא''ש understand this is that ספרים חיצוניים are books that explain the Torah not according to קבלת חז''ל. There are lots of books in the חרדי world that would come under the category of ספרים חיצוניים outside books according to that definition.
Almost all religious books nowadays explain the Torah not according to the tradition of חז''ל the sages of the Talmud. They always add מצוות that are not from Torah nor the Talmud. Always. And they subtract things the חז''ל say are important. And they pervert the meaning of Torah to always mean that their cult is the right one.
The back topic starts with a משנה in סנהדרין: אלו בם שאין להם חלק בעולם הבאה האפיקורסים וכו' רבי עקיבא אמר גם הקורא בספרים חיצונים The רבב''ם does אינו פוסק כרבי עקיבא. He brings in הלכות תשובה all the things that one loses his portion in the next world for and does not include the statement of רבי עקיבא. But to the רמב''ם there are books that are forbidden ספרי עבודה זרה books on idol worship. This is brought in הלכות עבודה זרה.
Does the רמב''ם have the version printed in our גמרא outside books are ספרי מינים?
רש''י מפרש מינים להיות עובדי כוכבים Is this perhaps what the רמב''ם is thinking? מינים we know has a specific definition and it does not mean idolatry.
We know the רמב''ם is not just borrowing from אריסטו but also says that the command to learn the Oral Law includes the two subjects of פיסיקה and Metaphysics as understood by the ancient Greeks. So he is certainly not thinking of Aristotle of Plato as being forbidden.
One person was involved in a cult and left it. He died in a plane crash a few months later. But he left a few writings and interviews which explain the problem. He called it "consciousness trap." Books that seems to have everything right and even great advice--but there is some consciousness trap hidden inside them.
[כל הפורש מעבודה זרה מיד מת who ever separates himself from idol worship immediately dies. That is there is no escape. As for that fellow who fell into that cult I can only say that some people have come into the world to reveal some great secret and once they reveal it they are gone. It is almost as if they gave their life in order to bring some great knowledge into the world.
) סנהדרין. פרק חלק. ספרים חיצוניים. האופן שבו רי''ף ורא''ש הבינו את זאת הוא כי ספרים חיצוניים הם ספרים המסבירים את התורה ולא על פי קבלת חז''ל. יש המון ספרים בעולם החרדיים שיגיעו תחת הקטגוריה של הספרים חיצוניים. כל הספרים הדתיים כמעט כולם בימינו באים לפרש את התורה ולא על פי המסורת של חז''ל. הם תמיד רוצים להוסיף מצוות שאינן מן התורה ולא בתלמוד. תמיד. והם רוצים להחסיר דברים שחז''ל אומרים שהם חשובים. והם סוטים המשמעות של התורה תמיד לומר כי הפולחן שלהם הוא נכון. את הנושא מתחיל עם המשנה בסנהדרין: אלו בם שאין להם חלק בעולם הבא האפיקורסים וכו' רבי עקיבא אמר גם הקורא בספרי חיצונים. רבב''ם אינו פוסק כרבי עקיבא. הוא מביא בהלכות תשובה כל הדברים שאחד מאבד את חלקו בעולם הבא ואינו כולל את הדעה על רבי עקיבא. אבל להרמב''ם ישנם ספרים אסורים, ספרים על עבודת אלילים. זה מובא הלכות עבודה זרה. האם לרמב''ם את הגרסה של הגמרא שלנו "ספרי מינים"? רש''י מפרש מינים להיות עובדי כוכבים. האם זה אולי מה שהיה רמב''ם גרס. אבל מינים אנחנו יודעים את ההגדרה הספציפית וזה לא עבודה זרה. אנחנו יודעים את רמב''ם הוא פשוט לא רק לווה מאריסטו אלא גם אומר כי הפקודה כדי ללמוד את התורה שבעל פה כוללת את שני נושאים של פיסיקה ומטאפיסיקה כפי שהם היו מובנים על ידי היוונים העתיקים. אז הוא בהחלט לא חושב על אריסטו ואפלטון כמי אסור.
ספרים חיצונים יש להם "מלכודת תודעה." ספרים שנראה שיש להם את הכל נכון ואפילו עצות נהדרות - אבל יש מלכודת תודעה, חלק חבוי בהם.
I did not go into detail because I am not sure where to draw the line. [Almost all religious books nowadays explain the Torah not according to the tradition of Chazal {the sages of the Talmud}] They always add mizvot that are not from Torah nor the Talmud. Always. And they subtract things the Chazal (sages) say are important. And they pervert the meaning of Torah to always mean that their cult is the right one. [And the things they add are always related to OCD things like mikveh or food preparation or graves of tzadikim or sexual hangups or to advance their cult. They say keep Torah but add this such and such. This is opposed to the Torah which says "Thou shalt not add nor subtract to the things that God has commanded you in the book of the Law."
(No offence intended towards Reb Nachman who was a great tzadik. Rather the critique here is directed to those groups that make a cult out him.)
The back topic starts with a mishna in Sanhedrin: "These are those who have no portion in the next world... R. Akiva added, 'One who reads outside books'." The Rambam does not poskin [decide]like R. Akiva. He brings in Laws of Repentance all the things that one loses his portion in the next world for and does not include the statement of R Akiva. But to the Rambam there are books that are forbidden ספרי עבודה זרה books on idol worship. This is brought in Laws of Idolatry.
Does the Rambam have the version printed in our Gemaras outside books are "Books of Minim?"
"Minim" Rashi there says means "books of idol worship." Is this perhaps what the Rambam is thinking? Minim we know has a specific definition and it does not mean idolatry?
[We know the Rambam is not just borrowing from Aristotle but also says that the command to learn the Oral Law includes the two subjects of Physics and Metaphysics as understood by the ancient Greeks. So he is certainly not thinking of Aristotle of Plato as being forbidden.
One person was involved in a cult (the Adi Da group) and left it. He died in a plane crash a few months later. But he left a few writings and interviews which explain the problem. He called it "consciousness trap." Books that seems to have everything right and even great advice--but there is some consciousness trap hidden inside them.
[כל הפורש מעבודה זרה מיד מת who ever separates himself from idol worship immediately dies. That is there is no escape. As for that fellow who fell into that cult I can only say that some people have come into the world to reveal some great secret and once they reveal it they are gone. It is almost as if they gave their life in order to bring some great knowledge into the world.
Like President Kennedy brought the awareness of jogging into the world. So that fellow who fell into that cult- perhaps he existed just to tell us all some of the dangers of cults and how to be afraid of things we ought to be afraid of.
In any case, if there are people out there that want to know what I think are kosher Torah books: the Written and Oral Law [the two Talmuds and midrashei Chazal]. There is little in mysticism that I think is kosher. The only kosher things would be the Arizal himself and Yaakov Abuchatzeira, nothing else. Everything else I would burn [just like the Gra did in Villna] as being books using the Chazal to create cults of idolatry.\
___________________________________________________________________________
ספרים חיצוניים. The way the רי''ף and רא''ש understand this is that ספרים חיצוניים are books that explain the Torah not according to קבלת חז''ל. There are lots of books in the חרדי world that would come under the category of ספרים חיצוניים outside books according to that definition.
Almost all religious books nowadays explain the Torah not according to the tradition of חז''ל the sages of the Talmud. They always add מצוות that are not from Torah nor the Talmud. Always. And they subtract things the חז''ל say are important. And they pervert the meaning of Torah to always mean that their cult is the right one.
The back topic starts with a משנה in סנהדרין: אלו בם שאין להם חלק בעולם הבאה האפיקורסים וכו' רבי עקיבא אמר גם הקורא בספרים חיצונים The רבב''ם does אינו פוסק כרבי עקיבא. He brings in הלכות תשובה all the things that one loses his portion in the next world for and does not include the statement of רבי עקיבא. But to the רמב''ם there are books that are forbidden ספרי עבודה זרה books on idol worship. This is brought in הלכות עבודה זרה.
Does the רמב''ם have the version printed in our גמרא outside books are ספרי מינים?
רש''י מפרש מינים להיות עובדי כוכבים Is this perhaps what the רמב''ם is thinking? מינים we know has a specific definition and it does not mean idolatry.
We know the רמב''ם is not just borrowing from אריסטו but also says that the command to learn the Oral Law includes the two subjects of פיסיקה and Metaphysics as understood by the ancient Greeks. So he is certainly not thinking of Aristotle of Plato as being forbidden.
One person was involved in a cult and left it. He died in a plane crash a few months later. But he left a few writings and interviews which explain the problem. He called it "consciousness trap." Books that seems to have everything right and even great advice--but there is some consciousness trap hidden inside them.
[כל הפורש מעבודה זרה מיד מת who ever separates himself from idol worship immediately dies. That is there is no escape. As for that fellow who fell into that cult I can only say that some people have come into the world to reveal some great secret and once they reveal it they are gone. It is almost as if they gave their life in order to bring some great knowledge into the world.
) סנהדרין. פרק חלק. ספרים חיצוניים. האופן שבו רי''ף ורא''ש הבינו את זאת הוא כי ספרים חיצוניים הם ספרים המסבירים את התורה ולא על פי קבלת חז''ל. יש המון ספרים בעולם החרדיים שיגיעו תחת הקטגוריה של הספרים חיצוניים. כל הספרים הדתיים כמעט כולם בימינו באים לפרש את התורה ולא על פי המסורת של חז''ל. הם תמיד רוצים להוסיף מצוות שאינן מן התורה ולא בתלמוד. תמיד. והם רוצים להחסיר דברים שחז''ל אומרים שהם חשובים. והם סוטים המשמעות של התורה תמיד לומר כי הפולחן שלהם הוא נכון. את הנושא מתחיל עם המשנה בסנהדרין: אלו בם שאין להם חלק בעולם הבא האפיקורסים וכו' רבי עקיבא אמר גם הקורא בספרי חיצונים. רבב''ם אינו פוסק כרבי עקיבא. הוא מביא בהלכות תשובה כל הדברים שאחד מאבד את חלקו בעולם הבא ואינו כולל את הדעה על רבי עקיבא. אבל להרמב''ם ישנם ספרים אסורים, ספרים על עבודת אלילים. זה מובא הלכות עבודה זרה. האם לרמב''ם את הגרסה של הגמרא שלנו "ספרי מינים"? רש''י מפרש מינים להיות עובדי כוכבים. האם זה אולי מה שהיה רמב''ם גרס. אבל מינים אנחנו יודעים את ההגדרה הספציפית וזה לא עבודה זרה. אנחנו יודעים את רמב''ם הוא פשוט לא רק לווה מאריסטו אלא גם אומר כי הפקודה כדי ללמוד את התורה שבעל פה כוללת את שני נושאים של פיסיקה ומטאפיסיקה כפי שהם היו מובנים על ידי היוונים העתיקים. אז הוא בהחלט לא חושב על אריסטו ואפלטון כמי אסור.
ספרים חיצונים יש להם "מלכודת תודעה." ספרים שנראה שיש להם את הכל נכון ואפילו עצות נהדרות - אבל יש מלכודת תודעה, חלק חבוי בהם.
28.8.16
Religious people often display the basic set of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) behavior that is characteristic of very sick schizoid personalities.
Without Musar [the Ethics of the Torah], religious people display the basic set of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) behavior that is characteristic of very sick schizoid personalities. That is what is the top of the list with obsessive compulsive disorder? Obsession with bodily cleanliness, food preparation, obsession with holy places and sexual obsessions. When people are religious, but without Musar, they become infected with schizoid personality traits. They get obsessed with mikveh, with extra restrictions on food preparation that have nothing to do with Torah, they get obsessed with graves of tzadikim (and even graves of not tzadikim) and sexual obsessions e.g. with zniut and the like.
And they think their obsessions with these things makes them tzadikim, and they expect to get paid for being tzadikim. What got me fed up with them is after they spend all their time and effort on their obsessions (which have nothing to do with Torah), they have no time or energy left to be decent human beings.
I also found their idol worship highly annoying, [That is worship of their so called tzadikim.]
The word "Musar" refeers to books of moral principles written mainly during the Middle Ages, but also refers to one book written later,- the Mesilaat Yesharim by Luzato. That is the strict meaning. But in a more loose sense,it refers even to later books on ethics, even and including books wriiten by the diciples of Rav Israel Salanter
And they think their obsessions with these things makes them tzadikim, and they expect to get paid for being tzadikim. What got me fed up with them is after they spend all their time and effort on their obsessions (which have nothing to do with Torah), they have no time or energy left to be decent human beings.
I also found their idol worship highly annoying, [That is worship of their so called tzadikim.]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)