TA Junior

The TA Junior this week says the following:

“Tell me, boys,” Totty asked. “What do you want to do when you grow up?”

“We always thought we’d learn in kollel for as long as possible,” said Shimmy.

“And then if we needed parnasah, we would maybe get a job as a rebbe or a

rov or something,” Yitzy added, as Shimmy nodded in agreement.

“Beautiful!” Totty said. “Now in Parshas Noach, which of the people I

mentioned were saved from the mabul?”

“Uh…” thought Shimmy. “None of them. Only Noach and his children.”

“Exactly!” Totty said. “Hashem didn’t save those so-called important people.

He saved the tzadik and his family, regardless of what the rest of the world

thought of them. By striving to be the best eved Hashem you can possibly be, you

will be more important in Hashem’s eyes than any doctor, lawyer or scientist!”

This is a contrast to the following words from Rabbi Miller:

Question: “How can one cope with the stress of having chovos. He has debts,” 

Rabbi Avigdor Miller:

Number one is that you have to have a job. Very important to learn a parnassah. There are so many ways of making a living. America is the land of opportunity. Only if you think you’re a choshuve person and that it’s beneath your dignity to work. You want to act like a talmid chocham and live on charity and on debts. You should know, Ha-Kadosh Boruch Hu is not satisfied with you.

     יפה תלמוד תורה עם דרך ארץ, שיגיעת שניהם משכחת עון  

You have to work and make a living, together with learning, and if you work, you’ll pay off your debts. But if you don’t work, your debts will increase and multiply. It’s a very important principle in life not to live a life of idleness. You’ll say, “I’m learning all day long. I have bitachon.” No, no. That’s not bitachon. It’s just wildness. It’s just wildness. It’s just yielding to the yetzer ha-ra. And therefore, it’s so important for people to learn a parnassah.

Now, you might say, “That’s a contradiction. We should sit and all day and learn all our lives.” You’re contradicting the Torah. הרבה עשו כרבי שמעון בר יוחאי ולא עלתה בידם.  Many people didn’t succeed like him. No, it’s not for many people. It’s for a mi’ut. The majority of people cannot do that.

And therefore, it’s necessary for people to be honest with themselves and go out and make a living.

The TA Juniors should reflect Rabbi Miller's views. They should not be propaganda pieces for kollel culture. We already receive that every day of the week.