Tuesday, September 1, 2020

3 Paths To Hell

The Gemorah in Eiruvin (19a) says וְאָמַר רַבִּי יִרְמְיָה (בַּר) אֶלְעָזָר: שְׁלֹשָׁה פְּתָחִים יֵשׁ לַגֵּיהִנָּם, אֶחָד בַּמִּדְבָּר וְאֶחָד בַּיָּם וְאֶחָד בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם.  What is the meaning that there are three entrances, in the sea, desert and Yerushalim, and why in these three places?  I think that they represent three pathways that lead to hell.  One path is that of the midbar, the desert is empty and dry, that represents those  have no thirst for spirituality, for Judaism and they go down the entrance to hell because they never to any interest in anything important.  Another path is that of the sea, the sea has strong waves that drown and pull a person down.  That represents those that get drowned in the puruit of life, liberty and happiness and get drowned running after their desires.  They enter the entrance of the sea.  The third category, are people that fall into hell through good intentions.  They are the people that are מקנה למען האמת, they think they are going to Yerushalim, to great holiness.  The only problem is that their אמת is שקר and therefore, there is a special place in Yerushalim designated for them so that they to can end up in their rightful place, in hell.  There are such people that will print in newspapers clearly antisemitic pictures not of people in their own community, that they could have found plenty of examples for, but of hassidim specifically, because they are worried about a ספק ספק ספיקא and going לפנים משורת הדין in their quest for purporting their distorted view of the אמת.  [Of course they would only show the 'ultra-orthodox because it is great for all Jews further to the 'left' of them to look for every opportunity to make fun of them, to excuse their own lack of emulating the hassidim's good traits and adherence to the Jewish religion that they refuse to achieve.]  These same people would never think of having weekly classes on the lack of actual dinim in Shulchna Aruch, never mind hiddurim prevalent in their community on a constant base, but for the one thing that he advocates for, he must have weekly propaganda sessions about it. Many people are worried about antisemitism these days, but I don't care if a gentile hates me, but it is quite troubling to see a newspaper with the word Jewish on the cover that would print something so anti-semitic and no less in the name of a Rabbi.  At least he has his his own path to hell. 

No comments:

Post a Comment