[Avodah] RYGB v. Colleague

[Jacob Sasson]

David Finch writes:

>In Judaism, on the other hand, there is no "salvation," i.e., a
>guaranteed ticket to heaven. We have no mechanism to wash away our
>sins, especially our original sin, which doesn't exist. .... As
>for ritual, I imagine that Rambam (among many others, including
>especially RYBS) would recoil at the notion that Jews observe mitzvot
>primarily (or robotically) for the sake of atonement or eternal reward.

But see http://mail-jewish.org/rav/talmud_torah.txt where RYBS states (in
the last paragraph):
"halacha ... is a living, dynamic discipline which was given to man in order
to redeem him and to save him."

With respect to Talmud Torah (the subject of the RYGB v. Colleague dispute),
he writes that "talmud torah [is] a redemptive, cathartic, and inspiring
reality."  Surely, RYGB's colleague would argue that, a la RYBS, all
talmidim deserve an equal oportunity for "redemption."

Jacob
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