Monday, December 26, 2022

not ready for tefillin?

A Chabad guy told me that he had a tefillin stand in Yafo street and a kid from one of the BT schools used to come by to put on tefillin. His BT school didn't allow him to wear tefillin, defending the prohibition by saying that he had to learn more Torah first, learn what guf naki is.

You can explain guf naki to a sentient person in about 1 minute, as if the school explains much halacha anyway while they are doing their gemara lomdus. What I think really is going on is that they don't respect mitzvos. They figure what's the difference, it's only a mitzvah. Tell me, if he is not ready for tefillin, is he ready for Gemara? Does he have moach naki after growing up on television and likely pornography?

Also, there's the condescension and control of the BT, control being an essential part of running a cult, as is condescension, making the person feel small. So he sees the whole community putting on tefillin and he doesn't get to. He has to earn it so to speak. That's the attitude.

Chabad has a different attitude. You are a Jew. You don't have to earn the right to do mitzvos. And not only because it's your heritage, meaning Avraham earned it for you (the Manalist approach) but your neshama is holy, and it's your natural right. 

One approach - make you feel terrible. The other approach - make you feel good about yourself as a Jew. 

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