tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9839224.post110467436040286190..comments2023-09-22T12:40:26.587-04:00Comments on Da'as Hedyot: Trusting Those Who I Don't TrustThe Hedyothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15193083251783618457noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9839224.post-47707742306539751682007-10-25T15:18:00.000-04:002007-10-25T15:18:00.000-04:00Remember what happened to Miriam...I fear for you....Remember what happened to Miriam...I fear for you...this blog is becoming a hotspot of Lashon Hara. As much as you have the right to your opinion, to talk derogatorily for no constructive purpose is wrong.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9839224.post-1142318113517436812006-03-14T01:35:00.000-05:002006-03-14T01:35:00.000-05:00> If you're publicly calling into question the int...<I>> If you're publicly calling into question the integrity of a group of people (the "gedolim") who have been considered people of utmost integrity, for 2,000 years, by many hundreds of thousnads of seemingly intelligent and discerning people (the Torah Jews)...</I><BR/><BR/>This is a ridiculous statement, for the following reasons:<BR/><BR/>A) The people who are in charge today haven't been trusted for 2,000 years. Integrity is not something inherited with DNA. However righteous the previous leaders may or may not have been has no bearing on the people in charge today. Besides which, there is no official classification "the gedolim". The word itself is of relatively recent vintage (in the context we are discussing). And it's not like anyone takes a test to be granted entry to that august and distinguished club ("the gedolim"). It's a meaningless term that's used by every different group to cover whoever they want to raise up in the public eye. Even the term 'Rabbi', which actually does have some official meaning, and can only really be acquired after proving some proficiency, does not carry the same weight as it did 100 years ago, or 500 years ago, and definitely not 1000 years ago, but you want to claim that "Gadol" should have some 2000 year earned trust?!<BR/><BR/>B) Obviously, the people today who are clamoring that the gedolim should be trusted are not the same people who lived 50, 100, 150 years ago. You can't use an argument that "they've been doing it for so long". They haven't. I'm not challenging anyone's claim about who in the past trusted anyone. I'm talking about the people today.<BR/><BR/>C) The kind of trust that is being demanded nowadays is not the same as it was in previous generations. Religious leaders today have assumed (or have been granted) an authority that is unprecedented in history.<BR/><BR/><I>> ...there's simply no way to know whether you're expressing your own subjective bad feelings...</I><BR/><BR/>Of course there is. Read what I said: <I><B>"In my particular case, how is it sensible for me to trust these people?"</B></I> This post was all about why <B><I>I</I></B> don't trust people. Whether you should trust them or not, is something you neeed to ascertain on your own.<BR/><BR/><I>> ...or whether you are raising valid and serious allegations.</I><BR/><BR/>I'm not trying to make a legal case against anyone. That's not my goal. My point is merely to explan how my views have developed.<BR/><BR/><I>> ...if you're publicly calling into question the integrity of a group of people...</I><BR/><BR/>This was not about inegrity. It was about trust. Those are two different issues. Integrity is just one factor that makes up trust. If you don't understand that, then you need to read the post again.<BR/><BR/><I>> Hence, I have no trus in Lipa Margulis. This does not mean that I shouldn't have faith in R' Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, ZT'L.</I><BR/><BR/>I don't want to use R'SZA's name, so let's substitute it for a fictional rabbi. If R' XYZ (who you trusted like RSZA) said that R' Margulies could be trusted, would you still trust R' XYZ? Ok, maybe he wouldn't actually say that. But if he was the leader of the community where R' M. resided and ran his operation, and he didn't do anything to expose the sham, or call him out, would you still trust him?The Hedyothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15193083251783618457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9839224.post-1142140330235124312006-03-12T00:12:00.000-05:002006-03-12T00:12:00.000-05:00You write in EXTREMELY general terms. Can you be a...You write in EXTREMELY general terms. Can you be a little more specific? If you're publicly calling into question the integrity of a group of people (the "gedolim") who have been considered people of utmost integrity, for 2,000 years, by many hundreds of thousnads of seemingly intelligent and discerning people (the Torah Jews) you should give some examples of conduct that you consider questionable.<BR/><BR/>Only if you can list at least a few (maybe five, but less if the conduct that you call into question is especially and obviously stupid, criminal or cruel) examples of bad conduct by specific people, there's simply no way to know whether you're expressing your own subjective bad feelings or whether you are raising valid and serious allegations.<BR/><BR/>Here's one example: When I was in high school in Yeshiva Torah Temima, we had to pay (I believe $0.75) for breakfast and (I believe ($3.00) for dinner Thursday nights. However, when the State Inspectors came around, the Yeshiva gave the breakfast to everyone for free. Here, the owner of the school, Lipa Margulis, was obviously ripping off the government and the parents. Hence, I have no trus in Lipa Margulis. This does not mean that I shouldn't have faith in R' Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, ZT'L.<BR/><BR/>Do you have any specific examples?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9839224.post-1104749666834150682005-01-03T05:54:00.000-05:002005-01-03T05:54:00.000-05:00I guess you didn't understand my explanation in th...I guess you didn't understand my explanation in the beginning. Trust is not just about how much knowledge a person has. <br /><br />Would you trust an expert doctor who knew the laws of medicine way better than you if he was known to cruelly experiment on patients?<br />Would you trust an expert dermatologist who was trusted for his medical expertise in that particular area with giving you heart surgery?The Hedyothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15193083251783618457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9839224.post-1104718823298782562005-01-02T21:20:00.000-05:002005-01-02T21:20:00.000-05:00Why not? As long as you understand what they say a...Why not? As long as you understand what they say and it makes sense and you've studied the applicable laws, I trust them for what they know. When you know as much as they know about Jewish law I will trust your judgement too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com