Distinguished Rabbi

שו”ת › Category: general › Distinguished Rabbi

asked 5 years ago

Hello Rabbi Michael,

In a discussion we had with a group of friends who are graduates of the Golan Yeshiva and have been reading the rabbi’s new trilogy for the past week,

The question arose: does the rabbi have a distinct rabbi?

If the answer is yes, I would love to know who it is.

And if not, how does the Rabbi reconcile himself with the words of the Mishnah: “Make a rabbi for you”?

In the background – we are graduates of the Golan Hesder Yeshiva (most of us are Midrashites) and the head of the yeshiva, the great Gaon Rabbi Amnon Sugarman, always makes sure to tell us that he checks with each person whether they have a rabbi (it doesn’t matter to them what the answer is, the main thing is that they have one) and if they don’t, he says that it is impossible to construct Torah this way or in other words that it is very problematic,

I would like to thank you for your kind consideration of the matter,

N.W.M.P.H.

Discover more from הרב מיכאל אברהם

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

0 Answers

0 Vote Up Vote Down

מיכי Staff answered 5 years ago

Hello. I don’t have a definitive rabbi. There are, of course, non-definitive rabbis, because a rabbi is anyone you’ve learned from. Rabbi Sugarman’s statements are baseless in my opinion. First of all, the Mishnah has several interpretations, and there is certainly no need to say that this is a definitive rabbi. Beyond that, even if this were the intention, the Rema writes that in our day there is no law at all for a definitive rabbi (because there are books). And finally, even if there is an obligation to make a definitive rabbi, if I cannot find someone in whose hands I am willing to entrust myself, then there is no point in appointing me a definitive rabbi just because the Mishnah said so. All the best,

Discover more from הרב מיכאל אברהם

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

נור replied 5 years ago

The invention of a distinct rabbi is an invention that came from the Hasidim, to the Lithuanians and to the entire community.
An invention that was said by Hasidic rabbis in order to achieve certain virtues or feelings.
The invention at its base is perhaps positive, taken out of context, and turned into a sick evil.
"Do for me, Rabbi" was said on halakhic subjects only, and even this as a recommendation as an important value like "Make a friend for me" and "O judge all people with a measure of merit."
The questioner fell into error - if his intention was to uphold "Do for me, Rabbi," why abandon "Judge with a measure of merit?"