[Avodah] Our Attitude towards Segulos

[Yitzchok Levine]

The following is from 
http://www.stevens.edu/golem/llevine/hamodia/segulos.pdf 
This article appeared some time ago in the Hamodia.

This is a big file, so it will some time to download.

The Mezhbuzher Rav, Harav Avraham Yehoshua Heshel Bick, shlita :

[Segulos ] are nothing more than bubbe maasos, eitzas yetzer hara that
give people a license to spend money way beyond their means and then ask
for a yeshuah. All these formulae ­ saying Shir Hashirim forty times, Tehillim
HaChida, etc. ­ are methods used by the yetzer hara to take from us the little
[spirituality] we have left.

Prayer, on the other hand, is not a segulah ; 
prayer is a way of communicating with the Ribbono
shel Olam. When we use segulos to get what we 
want, it’s as if we are stealing something from Him,
something that is not rightfully ours. It reminds 
me of today’s Chinese auctions at charitable events.
Whereas women used to give charity without 
ulterior motives, they have now replaced their mitzvos
with Chinese auctions.

Now here is a man who speaks my language!!!!
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