In the past few years I have wondered why Hashem would allow this growing alliance between Jews and xians. Why would he allow xians to attach themselves to our government, our land, our customs and our people. Why would He let rabbis teach them Torah, which they then use for their own agenda? Why would Hashem let "judeo-xianity" develop and spread? Well finally I think I know the answer. Before we were given a Torah and a land, Moshe Rabbeinu accepted the Erev Rav into Am Yisrael. Before we can be completely redeemed, the Erev Rav has to be separated and removed from within Am Yisrael. Those Jews who have attached themselves to the goyim by making alliances and building relationships with them are the Erev Rav. Once the separation is completed, the evil will be removed. Of course this is only one part of the separation but it is the part that most affects my "community".
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No doubt, you are right.
ReplyDeleteThis touches on some very deep questions that are not so simple. For instance, H' told Moshe not to bring the Erev Rav out of Egypt, and that it would be a disaster, but Moshe persevered. Why he did that is a very tricky question.
ReplyDeleteAlso, while nobody can argue that there is a modern Erev Rav concept in Torah (e.g. the Vilna Gaon in Kol ha'Tor), it is not simple or straightforward to know who is who. Sometimes seemingly assimilated or anti-religious Jews do teshuvah and end up amazing, but would be written off as Erev Rav while they are in mid-process.
Consider R' Akiva saying before he did teshuvah, if he saw a talmid chochom he would have bitten him like a wild donkey. And he turned out to be the Father of the Oral Torah.
So yes, there's an Erev Rav. But only H' really knows who is who.
Whenever possible, I'd argue we should avoid writing off our fellow Jews.
Of course there are some behaviors or moments when this is needed. But I'm wary of ever thinking i personally know who is who. Or whom. Can't remember grammar these days. :)
It's sad to consider how many of us are actively helping the other side. I'm not defending Jews who teach avodah zerah, or who assist others in doing so. I'm just wary of any time we rely on our personal seichel to determine something that affects so many of us, and can so easily become a form of ostracising those we disagree with. The Torah seems clear that Jews teaching avidah zerah is a tremendous problem, whether as individuals, rebbeim or communities.
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