Hyehudi.org

Mussar?

​by Reb Gutman Locks

A Charedi rabbi started publishing a new weekly booklet and someone has been handing them out at the Kotel. It has very interesting stories that strengthen the reader’s understanding and appreciation of Torah.

Well, the first half of his booklet does this. The second half of the booklet is filled with harsh mussar comments. Mussar is a non-Chassidic movement that tries to direct moral conduct. It is usually instruction or discipline. It really has the good objective of furthering ethical and spiritual discipline, but it almost always comes across as; “You better do this or you are going to be punished in hell!” Yuck! I am totally allergic to mussar.

When the booklet first came out I enjoyed reading it, but the second half of the booklet overwhelmed the nice stories so I told the man who hands them out that I did not want it any more. He asked why. The rabbi who writes them happens to be very skinny. I answered, “What do you do if one of your kids is very skinny? Do you yell at him and threaten him to get him to eat? Or do you serve him healthy and delicious food that is good for him; food that he will enjoy?” He understood.

I saw another non Chassidic rabbi friend accepting the booklet and I told him that I could not handle the mussar end of the booklet. He said, “We need it.” Well, maybe he needs it, but I don’t.

     Mussar has a fine objective, but as many things in the world it is not being delivered right. Here is how mussar is supposed to taught:

Once there was a cheder rebbe (a Torah teacher of small children): As most non Chasidic rebbes, this rebbe was always very particular to be on time. One day his bus got stuck in traffic. He jumped off the bus and ran to get to class on time. He was ten minutes late! He was so upset that he was late, but there was nothing he could have done about it.

As he ran into the classroom one of his best young students looked up at him with a huge smile. Then he pointed to his watch. He looked really happy! The Rebbe burned inside. “Is that how a student is supposed to respect his teacher? UGH!”

He took his place at the front of the room. He opened his book to begin his class but he was so upset with the boy that he could not teach. He could not restrain himself. He called the boy up to his desk intending to punish him severely for his extremely rude behavior.

But just before he started to unload on the boy, the boy smiled again, pointed to his watch and said; “Rebbe I love you so much, I wanted you to be the first one to see my brand new watch.”

Got it? Sure you do. Wait until you get all of the facts before you blow up.

To teach Torah, serve delicious, wholesome, enjoyable food.

From Mystical Paths, here.

Download (PDF, 115KB)

Reprinted with permission.

The Right has its Power, the Left has its Hegemony, the Arabs have their Knives: By Moshe Feiglin

“I believe that the expulsion of Arab terrorists’ families to Gaza will significantly reduce the terror activity against the State of Israel, its citizens and its residents,” the Prime Minister explained – and requested the Attorney General’s legal opinion.

Channel 2’s legal commentator, Moshe Negbi, immediately explained that this step violates international law, the Geneva Convention and Israeli law. Negbi’s position is not surprising. In the past he supported civil war if Israel would expel Arabs. (What is strange here is that the people who pay the price in blood for his political stance are the same people who pay his salary at Public Broadcasting… ) An array of military and civilian judicial experts jumped on Hanegbi’s bandwagon – at which point it became clear that the High Court would not allow the government to take this obvious step to prevent the murders in our streets.

About two weeks ago, in an answer to a petition served by the “Regavim” movement, which demanded the destruction of all the illegal Arab housing that the European Union is building in areas of Judea and Samaria under full Israeli control, High Court Justice Meni Mazuz angrily replied that “the law is not the entire picture. There are also political considerations.” So there are considerations that are above the law, after all. Hmmm….

When policies dovetail with the High Court’s worldview, “the law is not the entire picture.” But when it is about saving lives, the entire senior legal echelon bows down to the law.

In truth, though, the problem is not the “Rule of Law Gang” (a definition created by President Ruby Rivlin, after his appointment as Justice Minister was invalidated.) The problem is the Prime Minister.

It is the Prime Minister’s job to protect his nation. It is the Attorney General’s job to protect the Prime Minister. In other words, if the Prime Minister thinks that the expulsion of families of terrorists to Gaza will save lives, he should have done that yesterday. Why on earth is he sending highly publicized letters to the Attorney General? If he thinks it will save lives, it is his duty and obligation to do so immediately. And the Attorney General’s duty is to have his back.

AG Mandelblit does not have to authorize or recommend. Mandelblit has to do exactly what Justice Mazuz did when he felt that the law was irrelevant. Mandelblit must find the international precedents and explain why, in this case, the “law is not the entire picture…” He has to explain that we are in a state of war and create the insulation to protect the PM. If need be, he must initiate a legislative change. If he is incapable of doing this, the PM must replace him (and if need be, change the law to allow for the replacement).

In Israel, though, everything is upside down. The Prime Minister is the functionary and the Attorney General rules. That is very convenient for the PM. Do you really think that Netanyahu didn’t know what answer he would receive from the AG? But now, the Right will not blame the Prime Minister. Instead, it will blame the “Rule of Law Gang”. A perfect arrangement…

Netanyahu protects the “rule of law” and allows it to clone itself and appoint its own successors without public input (because the law is not the entire picture…) to the most important positions in the country.

Netanyahu allowed Shai Nitzan to be appointed as State Attorney. There were no other candidates. And with the same method – again with no other candidate – Netanyahu allowed the appointment of the Attorney General, who has already proven his subservience to the “rule of law”. (Is it any surprise that Mandelblit hurried to close the case against Ruth David, a very senior former Tel Aviv District Attorney?)

In exchange for protecting the hegemony of “the rule of law”, the Rule of Law Gang allows Netanyahu to remain in his job without too much disturbance.

The Right votes for Netanyahu and blames the “Gang”. The “Gang” is unmoved, because it appoints itself and couldn’t care less about the voters, and everybody is happy.

The Right is in power, the Left has its hegemony and the Arabs have their knives.

“The sun shone,

The method blossomed

And the slaughterer slaughtered.” (Chaim Nachman Bialik after the Kischinev pogroms)

From Zehut, here.