[Avodah] Kanaus

[Yitzhak Grossman]

On Thu, 20 Sep 2007 05:16:40 -0700 RDE wrote:

> The Shomer Emunim Rebbe told me that according to  Derech Mitzvosecha 
> that one can only be a kanoi if it doesn't provide pleasure or excitement.

There's a story I love about a certain Rav [0], famous as a vehement
zealot, who once reprimanded someone for excessive zealotry.  When
asked, "But you, too, are known as a great zealot?", he responded with
a parable:  A housewife imports a cat to rid her house of mice; both
the woman and the cat have the same goal of eliminating the vermin, but
the woman would ideally prefer that there be no infestation in
the first place, while the cat is delighted to have rodents to chase.
That's the distinction between us, said the Rav;  in my ideal world
there would be no profanation of the glory of Heaven, while you live
for the joy of battle ...

I'm not sure how accurate my rendition of the anecdote is, but there's a
greater truth here even if the details are incorrect.  [It should go
without saying, but for the record, I *in no way* mean by that to
sanction the use of falsehoods in the service of truth.]

[0] I'm not sure of the identity of the protagonist, but I think he was
a prominent Hassidic figure.

Yitzhak
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