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The great rebbe of Kotzk, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Morgenstern (Halperin) pointed out the fallacy of such thinking in his pithy statement: "If I am I and you are you, then I am I and you are you. However if I am you and you are me then I am not I and you are not you."
The problems of egocentricity and exaggerated self-esteem are serious personality defects. But low self-esteem and feelings of persecution and paranoia, mental depression and poor self-worth are even more serious personality problems. The history of the Jewish people has been characterized by the ability of a small, persecuted and seemingly powerless people to remain proud, steadfast and resilient in the truth of its faith and traditions.
Individual Jews throughout the ages have fallen off of the wagon and become "others" but the Jewish people as a whole have never wavered in their understanding of their special self-definition. And that has been the true source of Jewish survival over the long and mostly bitter exile of millennia.
The main obstacle as I view it in the decades long struggle with our Arab neighbors is that they define themselves almost exclusively in terms of the "other" – namely the Jews and the State of Israel. There is no real drive within them to really create a state of their own. They only want to destroy and inherit our state.
Their educational system is based almost exclusively on incitement and hatred towards Jews. There is no drive to produce a productive culture of their own, an economy not dependent on UN and European Union largesse and handouts. Destruction of the "other" is not a basis for positive self-identity or nation building. No resolution passed by the United Nations General Assembly can in any way contribute to any form of self-definition.
As the words themselves indicate, self-definition and self-worth must arise from one’s own self. Many revolutions, while apparently successful initially, descend into chaos, anarchy, violence and end up as tyrannies simply because there is no basis for further development of self-worth after the "other" has somehow been eliminated.
That was the reason for the failure of any Arab state to arise next to Israel over the past many decades. And that continues to be the reason that prospects for any sort of resolution of the Israeli-Arab dispute in the near future remains very unlikely. It is not only that we don’t have a partner to deal with. It is that our proposed partner does not know what its goals are except for the destruction of the State of Israel. It is well nigh impossible to conduct meaningful negotiations under such circumstances.
To be a Jew requires a clear sense of self-identity. That self-identity can only be achieved through a basic knowledge of Judaism and tradition. Knowing the story of our people can contribute to this necessary sense of self-identity and personal understanding that guarantees the Jewish future.
Unfortunately many in the Jewish world define themselves currently in terms of vague, high-sounding humanistic values, which do not relate to the practicalities of the world that we live in – certainly not to the position of the Jewish people and state in that world. Such Jews again define themselves in terms of the "other" and the result is that they eventually become that "other" and are lost to the Jewish fold.
More sadly, those that become the "other" have a terrible tendency to criticize and incite hatred against the very people that they themselves sprang from. Such behavior eventually destroys not only the object of its hatred but the haters themselves as well. Jewish history is littered with the debris of those who lost their self-definition and forgot… ‘I am I and you are you’ – the arrangement that guarantees mental and social health for both ‘I and you.’
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Shoftim TESHUVA IN COURT OF LAW?
Parshat Shoftim-Chodesh Elul
Why does parshat Shoftim always come out during Elul? This innovative and central explanation is an eye-opener regarding many aspects of Judaism.
The Month of Elul TESHUVA IS THE ANSWER
The month of Elul serves as a vital time for self-reflection and personal accountability to prepare for true repentance.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
P'ninat Mishpat Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Chemdat Yamim The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part II
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the cornerstone laying for the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh – 1938)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the cornerstone laying for the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh – 1938)
Re'e NEVER EXTREME EXCEPT ISRAEL
Parshat Re'eh
Judaism is against extremism, so how can we understand the seemingly extreme statements found in our sages in favor of living in the Land of Israel and against living in Chutz laAretz? The article deals with the seeming contradiction between the strength of Free-Will and the strength of being influenced by our surroundings.
Ekev DANCE FOR ISRAEL- FOR YOUR BENEFIT
Parshat Eikev
Description: The 7 Haftarot we read after Tisha B'Av ("Shiva D'Nichemta") surely get us excited that they're coming TRUE, and awaken us to yearn, dance & join the return to Zion! The short article also deals with the problems and solutions facing the American Jewish community as discussed at a recent panel, as well as the question why Jews come from America to Israel to help when we face problems, but Israelis don't come to aid Jews in America when they face anti-Semitism.
