other post -- rabbanim
Question
I posted a similar a post before, but I didn't receive a reply -- I genuinely apologize if there was anything inappropriate in it, but I do want to ask a similar question quickly. I've been browsing the sheolot utshuvot, and on philosophy/mesorah issues you often argue that the great Rabbis of the past believed in X so therefore it must have validity/must be true... I don't understand -- Christianity and Islam have minds that are as bright and as insightful as Jews do -- they have their own systems of law and their own mystical traditions that are backed by chains of their own greatest scholars. Does that mean they are true? Does that mean they have validity?? Not necessarily -- it is eminently possible for a large group of extraoridanarily bright people to be misled. How often are the top scientists in teh world wrong? Often. Why? often b/c they have bad or incomplete DATA ... Same with us, it is possible that parts of our Mesorah is faulty -- there may be a 'right' way, but it is surrounded by all sorts of wrong traditions that were created and somehow got turned into legitimate pieces of mesorah. Nearly the whole world is Christian/Muslim -- does that make it any more right?? No. How did it happen, over many years and a lot of unreliable historical data... just curious how you respond...its a question thats bothered me for some time... thanks for the service!
Answer
Answered by Rabbi Abadi-- I genuinely apologize if there was anything inappropriate in it, but I do want to ask a similar question quickly. I've been browsing the sheolot utshuvot, and on philosophy/mesorah issues you often argue that the great Rabbis of the past believed in X so therefore it must have validity/must be true... I don't understand -- Christianity and Islam have minds that are as bright and as insightful as Jews do -- they have their own systems of law and their own mystical traditions that are backed by chains of their own greatest scholars. Does that mean they are true? Does that mean they have validity?? Not necessarily -- it is eminently possible for a large group of extraoridanarily bright people to be misled. How often are the top scientists in teh world wrong? Often. Why? often b/c they have bad or incomplete DATA ... Same with us, it is possible that parts of our Mesorah is faulty -- there may be a 'right' way, but it is surrounded by all sorts of wrong traditions that were created and somehow got turned into legitimate pieces of mesorah. Nearly the whole world is Christian/Muslim -- does that make it any more right?? No. How did it happen, over many years and a lot of unreliable historical data... just curious how you respond...its a question thats bothered me for some time... thanks for the service!