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Rav Ruderman – 613 Mitzvos Doesn’t Automatically Make You A Tzaddik
“I have lived with Lavan (Im Lavan Garti), and tarried until now” [Bereshis 32:5]. Rashi cites the famous Chazal that the word “Garti” (I lived) has the numerical value of 613 (Taryag), indicating “I lived with the wicked Lavan, but I observed the 613 Commandments – without learning from his evil ways.”
Rav Ruderman noted the apparent redundancy in Yaakov’s message to his brother, Eisav. If Yaakov had already sent the message “I observed the 613 Commandments,” what is added by further stating “and I have not learned from the evil ways of Lavan?” Rav Ruderman Zt”l, taught that the inference to be drawn is that one can observe the 613 commandments and, nevertheless, learn from the ways of a Lavan.
Even within the context of a fully observant life-style, a person can wind up looking like a Lavan. Even when an individual’s actions are technically permissible, the person may still be acting like a Lavan. A person can live an indulgent life-style — one that may not technically deviate from the letter of the Law, but one,which is totally foreign from the spirit of the Law.
Therefore, Yaakov clarified: “Not only have I observed the letter of the 613 commandments, I have also not learned from Lavan and have even continued to observe the spirit of those laws.”
From Revach.net
Living yiddishkeit and living it like a lavan is a novohl b’reshus hatorah. the gerrer rebbe chidushei harim said that if the soton was to really get someone, he takes away his inner self. after that he can go on practicing yiddishkeit, its empty anyway.
This vort from R, Ruderman is very true and very hard hitting especially in our generation when we seem to be getting frummer and at the same time frayer by the day. (WIY thank you)
I completely agree with this. Many people today say that they are living completely Torahdik lives – except maybe for a just a little Lashon Hora or little something else. Blindly following all of the laws or minhagim without some inner soul searching and understanding of why they must do certain things does not make them tzadikkim. How they live their lives is also very important.
Duh!!! ya think?????
Maybe everyone needs a little soul searching on this one! Quoting and doing are also not the same and just because one is typing and not speaking or everyone is anonymous it is still L”H and in many cases rechilus and motzi shem rah. So everyone really needs to work on that “little something else”.
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