[Avodah] Another View on How to Portray People of the Past

[T613K at aol.com]

From: "Joseph I. Lauer" _josephlauer at hotmail.com_ 
(mailto:josephlauer at hotmail.com) 


>>'What is gained by pointing out
>>their inadequacies and  their contradictions? We want to be inspired by 
their
>>example and  learn from their experience....'" [--RSS]


>> How does one "learn from their experience" when only part of  the
experience is related? <<
Joseph I. Lauer  





>>>>>
RJL asked a great question.  I think that (in  many cases) the historian 
SHOULD write about great people's failings and  challenges and weaknesses -- 
especially if they overcame them.  The  hagiography that paints "gedolim" as people 
who were born as malachim and were  always perfect does not teach us anything 
that we can actually learn from, as  well as being fundamentally sheker.
 
*The Making of a Godol*  was banned because its author, R' Nasan  Kaminetsky, 
portrayed gedolim as full rounded human beings, but I found  MOAG to be a 
very inspiring book.


--Toby  Katz
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