Rocky, there’s an inherent contradiction in your posts. First you say that soldiers’ actions are bigger because they’re metzuveh, then you say that they’re doing it out of the goodness of their heart.
Which is it?
Metzuveh is bigger because he has to fight a YH. The YH is an inclination to go against Hashem, not a military commander. So what YH do the secular soldiers – who don’t believe in a YH to begin with – have that they’re fighting in order to be in the army?
Personal struggles aren’t always automatically the YH. If someone is struggling against something preventing them from being a good soldier and they overcome it – good for them. Is that avodas Hashem when the person doesn’t even believe, or has a casual idea of Him? Absolutely not
Or is it just “soldiers good, better than torah learners no matter what” that’s making you shift and slide between ideas as they suit you?
Not entirely related, but i think i know where you’re coming from.
I think we tend to overstate the role mental health plays in avodas Hashem, to the point where there are people who think that every time a person fights anxiety or eating disorders, that they’re automatically a tzadik. It’s no different than taking care of your physical body; if you’re doing it for Hashem, it’s a mitzvah, if you’re doing it for something else, then it’s just taking care of your needs…