[Avodah] Torah Study vs. other contributions to soCIETY

[saul mashbaum]

>The source was the Gemara in Megillah which states that Talmud Torah is indeed greater than Hatzalas <Nefashos as a choice of prioritization
I have never understood why this gemara is so often cited as a proof for the absolute primacy of Talmud Torah over everthing else. The gemara says of Mordechai that "pirshu mimenu miktzat Sanhedrin" on this point, clearly indicating that most of the Sanhedrin essentially supported Mordechai. Adraba, this demonstrates that Mordechai's actions were normative, not the minority position of  the poshim. It has always seemed to me that this is a raaya listor that Talmud Torah is superior to hatzalat nefashot.
Saul Mashbaum
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