Q&A: Debate with Yaron Yadan
Debate with Yaron Yadan
Question
Hello Rabbi,
I heard your debate with Yaron Yadan, where you touched on matters of holiness and on issues concerning the Sages.
Now I have two questions.
One is regarding holiness: in your approach, isn’t there a loss of this important value? Is there no meaning at all to “kissing a rabbi’s hand,” to studying Torah with great “awe,” since it is the source of the living word of God? I get the impression from your words that this concept does not occupy much place in your worldview, yet we learn from sources throughout the generations that this concept has serious significance, expressed not only as a tool to show importance, because we do not relate to a president or king as holy. So if I were to sum up the question: what is holiness in your view?
And the second question is regarding the Sages.
It is true that the Sages are human beings and can make mistakes, but haven’t we learned that there is value to the unity of the group? In the end, a smaller religious court cannot nullify the words of a greater religious court than it. And if a halakhic ruling has been decided, I cannot act as I please when I do not have a sufficiently good argument, and all I have is: “Maybe the Sages were mistaken, and because this is a difficult test, I’ll choose what my own judgment leads me to.” I cannot disagree with a Jewish law ruling merely out of the thought that maybe the one who said it was mistaken.
Thank you very much
Answer
I deal with the question of what is correct, not the question of what leads to losses. This concept has no essential importance, nor does it even have any clear meaning. Its main purpose is to educate the masses.
When there is authority, I obey it. I have discussed this a lot, and you can search for it here on the site. But people have invented authorities out of thin air. And again, educational questions, as stated, do not really interest me. I deal with the question of what is correct, not the question of what is useful or harmful.