One of the hardest arguments to defeat is one based on hypocrisy. The lie is so blatantly obvious yet it's hypnotic siren song captivates the minds and hearts of many well-intentioned people.
Take Mark Twain for example. Twain was an educated and astute person who besides writing Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, also wrote about his 1867 trip to Eretz Yisrael in his book "
Innocents Abroad" He writes that biblical Yosef was "one of the truly great men of the Old Testament." We learn from Yosef of his nobility for not killing his brothers when he reveals to them that he is second in command in Egypt. So far, so good. Curiously he also writes:
Joseph is one of the truly great men of the Old Testament. And he was the noblest and the manliest, save Esau. Why shall we not say a good word for the princely Bedouin? The only crime that can be brought against him is that he was unfortunate. Why must every body praise Joseph's great-hearted generosity to his cruel brethren, without stint of fervent language, and fling only a reluctant bone of praise to Esau for his still sublimer generosity to the brother who had wronged him? Jacob took advantage of Esau's consuming hunger to rob him of his birthright and the great honor and consideration that belonged to the position; by treachery and falsehood he robbed him of his father's blessing; he made of him a stranger in his home, and a wanderer. Yet after twenty years had passed away and Jacob met Esau and fell at his feet quaking with fear and begging piteously to be spared the punishment he knew he deserved, what did that magnificent savage do? He fell upon his neck and embraced him!
How can it be that Mark Twain falls into the hypnotic trap of Esav, when its totally clear to Chazal of Esav's hypocrisy and evil? The Gemara in Bava Batra has some choice words for Esav:
אמר רבי יוחנן: חמש עבירות עבר אותו רשע באותו היום
בא על נערה מאורסה, והרג את הנפש, וכפר בעיקר, וכפר בתחיית המתים, ושט את הבכורה
Yet how is it that Twain and so many others bend over backwards to find a defense for this truly wicked person?
The hypnotic effect of hypocrisy causes good, decent people, with the best of intentions of tikun olam to mistakenly view the venom of our enemies as honey. Just as Esav was defended by Twain, many Jews today demand moral justice for the Arabs of Eretz Yisrael before compassion towards the Jews of Eretz Yisrael. Tikkun Olam is not about self flagellation and national suicide.
The problem, I think, is this: Zionists of a certain age and generation think of the Arabs as cartoon villains, with greased mustaches and diabolical plans. To them, Palestinians are symbols, not people. And this tendency to simplify, to rob people of their humanity, cuts both ways: The IDF and Mossad, in their eyes, are flawless, and faultless, the just and glorious warriors.
...they are falling into the trap.
When upwards of 80% of a "people" can justify suicide bombing attacks against Jewish civilians it automatically robs a "people" of their humanity. To even suggest that they are cartooned villains shows a basic lack of understanding of what Israel faces today. The IDF is statistical model of the Jewish people in Israel -- and for the most part, they really are just and glorious warriors.
You are sooo correct.I will name this-blogger 'Dov Bear.'
ReplyDeleteHe is so radical left and 'openminded' that all his brains have fallen out.He also has admitted easy way to increase his 'numbers.'
He may call himself 'dov' jewish sounding but he may be the real palestinian.
Ihope my comment is 'letoelet.'
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteMark Twain would often make interesting, radical, humerous, blasphemous, and provocative remarks about the bible in his writings (just read “The Bible According to Mark Twain” if you weren’t sure).
ReplyDeleteSome were tongue-in-cheek, some quite cynical, and some were valid questions.
It would be difficult to say if he really believed that about Eisav or if he was simply trying to get someone’s goat.
But imagine that, nearly 150 years after he wrote it, he managed to get Jameel’s goat (or camel).
Twain didn't get my camel at all - rather he apparently became the basis for DB's blog.
ReplyDeleteNote the similarities:
Interesting, radical, humerous, blasphemous, and provocative remarks about the bible in his writings. Some were tongue-in-cheek, some quite cynical, and some were valid questions.
Twain didn't use his real name on his Blog either...
Twain was Christian though. Hmmm.
Dear Muqata,
ReplyDeleteSome very interesting remarks here, but I do have some comments:
The criticism that Clemens fell into the hypnotic trap of Eisav when Chazal ... seems to me rather inappropriate as I doubt that Clemens-though indisputably a widely read man of letters-was learned in the literature of Our Sages of Blessed Memory; it simply is an inapplicable measure that his views be gauged by an authority with which he probably had little or no familiarity.
Secondly, I do not think that Eisav was so clearly absolutely evil as you seem to suggest ... given that he was ben Yitzhak; see the posting in http://asimplejew.blogspot.com/2005/12/guest-posting-from-chabakuk-elisha_15.html
Lastly, it is well-known that Clemens was a friend and defender of the Jewish people ... the literature on this point is abundant. Woulds't that we had more friends of his caliber! See http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1898twain-jews.html ... for starters.
In any case, I enjoyed your post and plan to visit regularly. I am ...
Very Sincerely yours,
Alan D. Busch c/o
TheBookofBen.blogspot.com
Shalom Alan -
ReplyDeleteThanks for dropping in. Please Allow me to comment;
1. Clemen's falling into the trap does nothing to diminish his stature or his knowledge. My point was that it's easy to fall into the trap, which has ensnared many good people.
2. Eisav's stature as an evil person was decided on by the Gemara. Where he weighed in on a scale of 1 to 10, I can't say. If he's hashkafically related to the suicide bombers of today, I'd consider him pretty evil.
3. Clemens' being a good friend of Israel has nothing to do with making a mistake of thinking Eisav was the most noble character in Tanach.
In defense of Mark Twain, try reading the Torah without the knowledge of the Midrashim. Is it that hard to see where he's coming from? Eisav was tricked out of his birthright and though angry enough to kill his brother later reconciled with him. Any intimation of his evil in the p'shat would be missed by someone reading the story in a translation (or translation of a translation.)
ReplyDeleteI realize that that's not your main point. And your criticism of that blogger is something I had wanted to address, maybe now I won't.
Of course DB isn't Mark Twain, I already uncovered his true identity.
David:
ReplyDeleteIts not obvious from the word, ויבז, that Eisav denegrated his birthrite? That's plain pshat.
ויאכל וישת ויקם וילך, ויבז עשו את הבכורה
What Yaakov did afterwards was simply ensuring he got his end of the sale, instead of being ripped off (which is what Eisav was planning to do to him).
BTW - amazing research you did on DB. They should teach that at Rabbi Carmy's YU course: Introduction to Bloggable Exegesis.
Well Biur Chametz's research is even more impressive! I had planned my post for awhile and once BC did his exegetical column, I piggybacked mine onto his. (Of course it raises the question as to whether we all just have too much time on our hands :-)
ReplyDeleteThere's that one sentence that concludes that Eisav rejected his birthright. Most of the rest of the story could be read by someone unaware of the Midrashim as showing Eisav as having changed and being forgiving.
We've never had the opportunity to learn the parsha without being aware of the Midrashim.
It's a little stupid to fault Twain for being unaware of the midrashin, and its even stupider to act like the midrash's view of Eisav is self-evident from the text. It's not.
ReplyDeleteTwain didn't get my camel at all - rather he apparently became the basis for DB's blog.
I'm flattered that you think me and Twain have something in common.
What Yaakov did afterwards was simply ensuring he got his end of the sale, instead of being ripped off (which is what Eisav was planning to do to him).
That's wrong per the Ramban and others. Eisav sold the right to take twice his father's wealth; he didn't sell the blessing.
And moreover, there are strands of rabininc literature which suggest Eisav wasn't too horrible. One wag has suggested that if it weren't for Rashi, we wouldn't think Eisav was bad. There is something to that.
(Oh, and finally, Muslim terrorists are yishmoel, not eisav)
DB:
ReplyDeleteIt's a little stupid to fault Twain for being unaware of the midrashin, and its even stupider to act like the midrash's view of Eisav is self-evident from the text. It's not.
As I already wrote in the comments to SoccerDad;
Its not obvious from the word, ויבז, that Eisav denegrated his birthrite? That's plain pshat.
Twain didn't get my camel at all - rather he apparently became the basis for DB's blog.
I'm flattered that you think me and Twain have something in common.
A little flattery never hurt anyone.
What Yaakov did afterwards was simply ensuring he got his end of the sale, instead of being ripped off (which is what Eisav was planning to do to him).
That's wrong per the Ramban and others. Eisav sold the right to take twice his father's wealth; he didn't sell the blessing.
First you say that Twain can't know pshat according to meforshim, then you bring the meforshim as proof?
And moreover, there are strands of rabininc literature which suggest Eisav wasn't too horrible. One wag has suggested that if it weren't for Rashi, we wouldn't think Eisav was bad. There is something to that.
Yes, there is something to that, and it comes to teach us a minor point compared to the wickedness of Eisav brought down in the Gemara.
(Oh, and finally, Muslim terrorists are yishmoel, not eisav)
Hello? Didn't you read what I wrote? Its all about falling for hypocrisy. Its totally irrelavent whether its Eisav, Yishmael or Hamas.
Yes, there could possibly be minor issues ascribed to the Palestinian Arabs. Yet to turn those into the major issue based on lies, while totally ignoring major Jewish issues (like Jewish civilians getting blown to bits) is hypocrisy.
Its not obvious from the word, ויבז, that Eisav denegrated his birthrite? That's plain pshat.
ReplyDeleteNot the blessing, the right to inherit, and as the RIshonim say, he denigrated that because he thought he would die before Eisav. No where, per the rishonim does it say he denigrated the blessing.
Man I'm glad I found your blog about guaranteed marketing. It's a good bit of information on guaranteed marketing.
ReplyDelete