{"id":88562,"date":"2021-02-09T15:15:40","date_gmt":"2021-02-09T13:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=88562"},"modified":"2021-02-09T15:15:40","modified_gmt":"2021-02-09T13:15:40","slug":"altruism-as-a-necessity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/altruism-as-a-necessity\/","title":{"rendered":"Altruism As A Necessity"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"88562","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":86824,"related_cahpter":"675","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"In order to be human most of the time, we must be superhuman some of the time.\r\n\r\n","content":"

…Allow me to make myself clear: I do not mean that one must <\/span>always<\/em> <\/span>be selfless and altruistic. I do not mean that we are to become angels all of a sudden. I wish to be thoroughly realistic. But I do believe that at least something in life must be sealed off from our ubiquitous egotism. I believe that one deed during the day, one mitzvah, one little area of life, ought to be reserved for that which is unselfish and \u05dc\u05e9\u05dd \u05e9\u05de\u05d9\u05dd, for the sake of Heaven.<\/span><\/p>\n

You may say that this is unnatural and superhuman. Granted–but it is still a necessity! To be natural is not always a virtue; the cow munching on the pasture, the elephant drinking from a brook, and the monkey stealing bananas, are all being natural. And insofar as humanity is concerned, I am convinced that in order to be human <\/span>most<\/em> <\/span>of the time, we must be superhuman <\/span>some<\/em> <\/span>of the time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Talmud indicates this in a most interesting way. The study of Torah is one of the greatest commandments known to Judaism. Torah study is desirable no matter what the motive: whether we study Torah for its own sake, without any selfish motives; or whether we study it not for its own sake, but because we have a personal benefit such as the prestige we desire, or we want to become teachers or rabbis. What is the difference between studying Torah with or without a selfish interest? The Talmud assigns these two motives to two different verses in the Psalms. One verse reads: \u05db\u05d9 \u05d2\u05d3\u05d5\u05dc <\/span>\u05e2\u05d3<\/span> \u05e9\u05de\u05d9\u05dd \u05d7\u05e1\u05d3\u05da, that God\u2019s love (i.e His Torah and our study of it) is high <\/span>unto<\/em> <\/span>Heaven. The second verse reads \u05db\u05d9 \u05d2\u05d3\u05d5\u05dc <\/span>\u05de\u05e2\u05dc<\/span> \u05e9\u05de\u05d9\u05dd \u05d7\u05e1\u05d3\u05da, that God\u2019s love is great <\/span>beyond<\/em> <\/span>or <\/span>above<\/em> <\/span>the Heavens.<\/span><\/p>\n

How do you reconcile these two apparently contradictory verses? The Talmud answers: the first verse refers to Torah study for a selfish reason; whereas the second verse refers to Torah study for unselfish reasons.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What the Talmud means that as long as we study Torah, even if there is a personal element involved, we reach the highest limit of human conduct and aspirations. Then our love for God and our study of Torah leads us to be great <\/span>unto the Heavens<\/span><\/em>. But if we study Torah for its own sake, selflessly, then our love and our relationship to God magnifies our personality even <\/span>beyond<\/em> <\/span>the Heavens; for then, indeed, we humans become superhuman.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reprinted with permission from <\/span>The Lamm Heritage Archives<\/span><\/a> \/ 1964<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":87306,"id":87306,"title":"Lamm Archives","filename":"Lamm-Archives.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/tuning-up-to-play\/lamm-archives\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"lamm-archives","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":86845,"date":"2021-01-21 17:18:36","modified":"2021-02-09 13:14:47","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":961,"height":321,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives-300x100.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":100,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives-768x257.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":257,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","large-width":961,"large-height":321,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","1536x1536-width":961,"1536x1536-height":321,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","2048x2048-width":961,"2048x2048-height":321,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","post_full_size-width":961,"post_full_size-height":321,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","home_baner-width":961,"home_baner-height":321}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"Altruism As A Necessity","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"In order to be human most of the time, we must be superhuman some of the time.","preview_embedded":"","preview_image":{"ID":87306,"id":87306,"title":"Lamm Archives","filename":"Lamm-Archives.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/tuning-up-to-play\/lamm-archives\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"lamm-archives","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":86845,"date":"2021-01-21 17:18:36","modified":"2021-02-09 13:14:47","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":961,"height":321,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives-300x100.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":100,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives-768x257.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":257,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","large-width":961,"large-height":321,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","1536x1536-width":961,"1536x1536-height":321,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","2048x2048-width":961,"2048x2048-height":321,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","post_full_size-width":961,"post_full_size-height":321,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Lamm-Archives.jpg","home_baner-width":961,"home_baner-height":321}},"preview_video":"","external_link":"","link_for_pay":false,"tile_gallery_items":false,"credits":""},"alternate_tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"","hide_media":false},"tile_group":{"preview_image_url":false,"main_caption":"","sub_caption":"","":null,"popup_package_extra_content":"","read_time":""},"home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo":{"seo_title":"","seo_description":"","seo_default_title":"","seo_default_description":""},"links":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88562"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88562"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88562\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88563,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88562\/revisions\/88563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88562"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88562"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88562"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}