חדש באתר: מיכי-בוט. עוזר חכם על כתבי הרב מיכאל אברהם.

'Definitions of concepts'

שו"ת'Definitions of concepts'
שאל לפני 2 שנים

Hello Rabbi,
 
This isn't exactly a question, more of a feeling I wanted to share with you:
 
I am a devoted follower and reader of your writings – and this is also the place to say thank you very much! – and recently I had an insight into your great added value (at least one of them) – the systematic and systematized definition of concepts and terms clearly on the table. Something that, as much as it is seemingly necessary and trivial, is surprisingly not found at all.
 
In many of your writings, you discuss the halakhic terms themselves – what is 'chalot'? What is money? Or 'secular' concepts such as what is a 'democratic state'? What is a 'people' and a 'nation'? And so on. Similarly, much of your writing deals with the very definitions and terms such as – what is thinking? Should the definition include only essential components? And so on.
 
Similarly, before discussing whether or not 'private providence' exists, it is worth discussing for a moment the question of what exactly 'providence' is? And what is the (questionable) field of 'Israeli thought' in general? What is the meaning of 'authority'? And for a moment, first of all, what is 'study'? And what are 'halakhah' and halakhic obedience? And the work of God? And proof? And God? And when the questioner asks 'Is there, by all means, 100 percent overwhelming proof for the existence of God,' then when we break down the concept of 'proof', 'God' and define things in a creative way, suddenly we can deal with it… And another example: Before defining what 'choice and free will' is, we can wonder and get confused and write mountains of meaningless text, but when the definition itself is given a precise meaning, suddenly one experiment or another turns out to be irrelevant…
 
In short, in light of the conceptual analysis and systematic adherence to the terms, a brilliant, fundamental, and critical new intellectual world is revealed and unfolded, and most importantly, it is an excellent and clear method for drawing conclusions, deciding questions, and dispelling ambiguity.
 
I could really go on and on, but the rule: your many posts, books, articles, and considerable time basically stand for the methodological importance of definitions and concepts.
 
It is difficult not to overstate this enormous contribution to intellectual thought (and, as a consequence, to the religious significance derived from it). So simply – thank you very much!
 
And after all this talk, and sorry for the nitpicking, it only raises a small hope that if the day comes and the rabbi does think about writing a book, then I would ask that the rabbi consider writing on 'Definitions, Terms and Concepts – Their Meaning and the Importance of Systematic Methodology.' As important as a book on morality and ethics (or other things) is, in my opinion, you have enormous added value on this particular subject, and what is more, it is the basis for many other discussions.
 
At least you opened my eyes, and 'I only knew about myself', and from the moment I was exposed to it, my criticality of texts also became sharper and the formulation of my intellectual position became easier, sharper, and I hope more correct.
 
That's it. I unpacked.
 
Have a happy holiday!
 


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מיכי צוות ענה לפני 3 חודשים

Hello, hello. I made a similar comment in column 637. Happy holidays and good news.


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