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  Elie -5 years ago

  A couple of points after hearing a few shiurim I would like to suggest:

  
  

  ********************
  

  At Your recent Yud shvat farbrengen towards the end, your guest speaker Rabbi Pinson shlita seemed to be unable to come up with a satisfactory answer for those who feel as if G-d is an angry punishing G-d and feel detached or distant from Him. Your guest was trying to inspire awe rather than fear but I dont think it worked.

   

  Perhaps I may suggest our relationship with Hashem is in stages similar to that of a father (who as children we regard as a god of sorts). 

  Hopefully this is not too simplistic

  1. Our first stage relationship with our father when healthy is one of only love and embrace, like when one is a baby to toddler, and into first grade age, child can do no wrong.
  2. The second stage in a healthy relationship with our father perhaps 8 years old to bar mitzvah is one of fear of not getting into trouble and doing well in school. grows a bit distant from stage one, but theres still love.
  3. Teenage rebellious stage 
  4. As a young adult, return to the father this time with a respect and love and with the father having some pride in the adult son. 

  For someone who grew up with an unhealthy father relationship, they never experienced stage one, of unconditional love, thus every other stage doesnt feel right, the core attachment is missing.  

   

  I think for those who are in that position I would say to them focus on only stage one as if you were a newborn, with a loving G-d and try to connect that way, dont think too much about disappointing Hashem. Then work into stage two, etc.

   

  ***********************************

  The Emunah series

  In the same vein, people were asking how we should regard the point the Torah makes about Kel Nekamos Hashem, that G-d is vengeful and takes out punishment on the wicked, as if G-d is a borderline personality R"L. I once heard a wonderful explanation, maybe it was you who mentioned it? I dont recall, but its worth repeating.

   

  In a public debate in the middle ages a priest challenges a rabbi, "Your G-d is portrayed in the old testament as an angry negative G-d, who takes revenge, and punishes.  But our god JC is full of love and speaks of loving everyone etc. How do you respond ?"  

   

  The rabbi answers, "Yes, you are correct, our G-d takes revenge and punishes, so who is left to do the loving and caring, its us the Jewish people. We help those who need love"

   

  "But you christians, who does the loving, your god !, so who's left to do take revenge and do the punishing ? You people, the christians !

   

  ********************************

  I recently heard Rabbi Manis Friedman mention to girls in a youtube video on the subject of dating, that they should stay away from men who have difficult relationships with their fathers, as they bring this problem into marriage and the unresolved issues dont allow these men to properly connect as husbands, they cannot detach from the father to be 'dovek Be'Ishto'.

   

  I think this is a very important subject that could/ should be addressed perhaps in a future talk down the road.  I recall a shiur you gave a few years back about Abba Shaul, and HaBen shoel es Ha Av, to 'borrow' a father, that really spoke to me.  Perhaps, that is one reason why the Rebbe became so successful and gained so many loyal followers, that he was a father for many physical and emotional orphans.

   

  Thank you once again for incredibly amazing shiurim, may you be blessed with parnasah beharchava, to continue. They are my lifeline !! 

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• EW

  Eli Weber -5 years ago

  Amazing words of compassion and comfort.  Kudos and hatzlacha.  The miracle of internet communication.  What an incredible world we live in.

  Eli 

  Brooklyn

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• YG

  Yochanan Gordon -5 years ago

  I’ve always explained this question an expression of the two outcomes of a God in people’s lives. For many God and themselves are interchangeable. Meaning because they are on a quest to serve God in the purest and most perfect way nobody can get in the way of that. In essence though, they aren’t serving Gd they are serving themselves but using Gd as an excuse. In other words, perhaps a play on words they’re not serving Gd but אדם מעל הכסא.

   

  However, the flipside is that when someone truly comes in contact with divinity their own autonomy melts in the divine aura. היש ה׳ בקרבינו אם אין is enunciating that question whether Gd is the cause of ones narcissism or selflessness.

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• YG

  Yochanan Gordon -5 years ago

  Commenting on the vort of the Talmidei habaal Shem Tov on the reality of the plague of blood in essence amounting to a difference in worldview vis-a-vis Gds involvement in it. He mentioned that the difference between the word for blood, Dam and Adam is the aleph which represents the אלופו של עולם in the world. Therefore someone whose life is missing that realization sees things as blood or death as opposed to supernaturally. I wanted to point out that D”M is also the Roshei Teivos of Mayin Duchrin. I was wondering how to reconcile these seemingly divergent realities. 

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• A

  Ari -5 years ago

  I enjoyed your shuir last night with rabbi pinson especially when you dealt with a person must be a person first to build Torah on,tzuras Haadam.I think that point needs to be spoken about more ,so many teach Torah but what they dont realize is that so many dont have the tzuras haddam so the torah cant be accepted.

   

  Thank you

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Monsey Yud Shevat 5779 Farbrengen

Rabbi YY Jacobson

• January 15, 2019
• |
• 9 Sh'vat 5779
• |
• 8858 views

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