The Chatam Sofer confronted the growing strength of the Reform movement. He was faced with those who demanded relatively minor modifications in religious observance, as well as those who were ready to abandon much more essential Jewish practices. His strategy in preserving the mesorah was a simple one: no compromise whatsoever. Borrowing a phrase from a specific halachic context, he asserted, “Chadash assur min haTorah; All that is new is prohibited.” He opposed modernization in all its forms.
The Chatam Sofer’s approach reflected his deep mistrust of the historical developments of his time that originated in non-Jewish sources. To him, all values had to stem from impeccably Jewish origins. Every deviation, no matter how slight, was to be vigorously opposed. Every proposed innovation, however innocuous it might seem, had idolatrous roots and would lead to serious transgressions.
For the Chatam Sofer, not one iota of mesorah could be sacrificed. He used to say, “Let one thousand of my opponents be lost, but let not one jot or tittle of Jewish custom be dislodged from its place,” and, “Anyone who questions our norms and customs is suspect [of heresy].”
Viewed this way, mesorah is so much more than a system of traditional practices that can be easily modified. Rather, mesorah is the exquisitely nuanced, intricately complex system through which the loftiest values of our religion can find expression.
Lately there have been others that learned in Yeshivish Yeshivas and were successful in the business world, yet they feel that anything and everything may be questioned from their prospective. Sorry to say, the Mesorah is handed down from generation to generation, and only those that are the carriers of the Mesorah may interpret "how does mesorah deal with this situation"?
Hgaon Reb Chaim shlita explains that the reason for the severity of punishment for those who embarrass authentic talmidi chochumim is because it severes the mesorah r'l. He also brings down that one should have hakaros htov to one's children as they are the next link in the mesoras Htorah!
ReplyDeletePer Rav Shmuel Wosner, Z"L the issue with todays Dayonim is they did not have sufficient shimush by "an alter Ruv", so their psak is based "not on Mesorah", but on what they found in seforim and made their own decision, on who to pasken like. That is not Mesorah.
ReplyDeleteMesorah does not necessarily go over to the children, Moshe Rabainu gave it over (mesorah) to Yehoshua, not his sons.
Mesorah is for amhaaratzim. Learn Torah, stop with yhe nonsense
ReplyDelete