gilgul

Question

Dear Esteemed Rabbi, I would firstly like to express my gratitude for this site, I love it , and visit it almost daily. However I was very taken aback when reading your response about gilgul (reincarnation), "its part of reality"???? Whose reality? supermans! seriously though, where do you get that from? you were very vague when talking about sources you said "it's written in the gemara and many seforim" which gemara (i've gone through shas don't recall such a gemara, although its possible I just don't remember though) seforim?? You know just because it's written in a sefer that doesn't make it true. You are such a big proponent of authentic sources, so please quote me one here. And to say "In todays day and age, we tend not to believe in things that we cannot understand" this is not an answer, if Ovadya were to respond and say to you, Rabbi you just don't understand but its not in the spirit of shabbos to go swimming, would you say, ok maybe I just don't understand, or would you respond much like you did and ask for proof or some sort of reasoning?? why is it different when it comes to hashkafic matters?? Should we not use our tzelem Elokim in these areas? Saadia Goan calls gilgul nonsense and stupidity, but obvioulsy doesn't just leave it at that, he lists the four mistaken premises which led people to this false belief then refutes them by way of logic. Was R' Saadia Goan also too involved in the world of Gashmi and removed from the spiritual and mystical side?? (on a side note I'm not even sure what spiritual and mystical means, can you please define these terms, thanx). With regards to the dybbuk tape from 5 years ago, not only did I hear the tape i also saw the video, (i too am a cynical guy,and rabbi if you believed that I have a bridge to sell you) On a more serious note , it wasn't good acting, and the woman came out a few months after the event and said it was a scam. And if R' MOshe Feinstein told me that Eliyahu Hanavie flew to him and told him moshiach was coming next tuesday I would wouldn't laugh I'd actually cry, cause i would realize that one of our gedolei hadar is probably coming down with some sort of illness. Judaism doesn't believe in people, judaism demands proof, chochmah. As jews we live rational lives and would not even follow a command in the Torah if it did not make sense as stated by the Ibn Ezra in parshas Yisro "if we had found a command and after careful study and consulting with the rabbis we saw no reason for it, we woulod abandon it". Lets think for a moment what made R' Moshe a reliable source that people trust, it was his chochmah and knowledge, so if he were to say things that go against chochmah and logical reasoning, we would then be forced to abandon these statments. We must use our minds and reasoning to arrive at truth. Even if there are great rabbis of yesteryear that believed that such occurances of dybbuk took place, they were so to say victims of their time, they didn'tr know of schizophrenia and many other diseases back then, they just lacked certain knowledege but to belive in such primitive ideas today with the knowledege we posess?? HOw?? I can't even fathom it. (aren't the jewish ppl, Rack Am chochom Vnavon) If youd like I could list some more sources to refute this gilgul fallacy such as, schar Vonesh, Elokai neshoma shenasta Bi Thora hi which we say every morning in birchas hashachar, amongst others, I could expound if youd like. I would just like to end off by saying that I'm under the impression that this is an open forum in which we r all searching for truth, and won't compromise this goal in any way. The rambam many times called certain ideas that the ramban held of as stupid and visa versa, so I didn't mean any harm in my strong language and felt that I had to lash out against false ideas, I hope nobody gets sinsulted in anayway, and I offer you to use strong words against me as well. And if I am out of line and incorrect in my thinking, (that this is an open forum), or if anyone got insulted by my statements, I would like to ask mechilla publicly. Thank you very much and look forwrad to a response.