B-H
Recently, I received a link on WhatsApp to a
YouTube video featuring an old Monty Python comedy sketch. For most of my life,
I consciously chose not to own a TV, even in my old years in Poland. My
parents, on the other hand, had two televisions at one point. I vividly
remember when they bought their first one, around 1970 or 1971.
However, there was a time when I did get a
TV, and one of the shows I truly enjoyed was Monty Python. I wouldn’t recommend
it to my more frum readers, as I generally advise against watching TV
altogether. Monty Python’s humor is unique, and to appreciate the depth of
their films or sketches, one must be quite familiar with general culture.
The video I’m referring to is only three and
a half minutes long. In it, the performers depict a hypothetical soccer match
between Germans and Greeks. The players are not typical soccer players—except
for Franz Beckenbauer, who was a real athlete in the 1970s. The German team
includes the likes of Leibnitz, Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Schelling, Jaspers,
Beckenbauer (for fun of it), Schlegel, Wittgenstein, Nietzsche, and Heidegger.
At one point, Wittgenstein is replaced by a vigorous Karl Marx. The Greek team
is made up of Plato, Epictetus, Aristotle, Sophocles, Empedocles, Plotinus,
Epicurus, Heraclitus, Democritus, Socrates, and Archimedes. I can’t help but
miss one of my favorites, Diogenes, though I suppose Monty Python had their own
criteria for selecting the players.
The only non-European on the field is the
main referee, Confucius, with St. Augustine and Thomas Aquinas serving as the
two side referees.
At one point in my life, I familiarized
myself with the writings of nearly all the philosophers mentioned. Some I read
directly, while for others, I turned to summaries and analyses of their
philosophies. I began with the Greek philosophers and later moved on to the
Germans and others.
It’s clear that many nations have contributed
significantly to the field of philosophy—French, Russian, British, and Italian
philosophers have all made their mark. Poland, with its Bibliotheca Fratrum Polonorum, has its own representation. But no other
nation has produced enough philosophers to form a full team, at least not in
the same way the Germans and Greeks have. Perhaps Arab philosophers could
easily form such a team, but they are often overlooked by the Eurocentric
mindset.
There is another group of
philosophers—recognised in the academic world but largely unknown to the
public, and I don’t mean masses—whom I would like to mention: Jewish
philosophers. Some of them lived in Europe and include figures such as Saadia
Gaon (technically Asian), Yitzhak ben Yosef, Abraham bar Hiyya, Maimonides,
Abraham Ibn Ezra, Yehuda Halevi, Nachmanides, Shlomo Ibn Gabriol, Bahya ibn
Pakuda, Yona of Gerona, Levi ben Gershon, Hasdai Crescas, Yosef Albo and many
others. This list is far from exhaustive, and it’s fascinating to think that we
could form a strong Iberian team of Jewish philosophers. But there is more -
Gershom ben Yehuda (Or Hageula), Asher ben Yehiel (Rosh), Yakov ben Asher
(Tur). Yosef Caro (Remu), Yehuda Loev of Prague, Akiva Eiger, Israel ben Eliezer, Shneur
Zalman of Liady, Nachman of Breslov, Elimelech of Lizansk, Chaim of Sanc,
Yechezkel of Shenava, Symcha Bunim of Przysha, Shimshon Raphael Hirsch, Yisrael
Meir Kagan, Eliahu Dessler…we can go on and on and on and we listed not even
the part of the major personalities on this possible list, lechavdil to the
previous list. We can definitely make our own Olympics.
These philosophers are known not only for
their vast knowledge but also for their ability to intertwine multiple
disciplines, from law and ethics to mysticism (Kabbalah) and philosophy (Hakira
and Hashkafa). The depth and breadth of their works are unparalleled, and their
writings reflect an integration of revelation with reason, making their
contributions distinct from their non-Jewish counterparts. We are not even
going back to the wisdom of Talmudic Sages as I want to stick with Europe.
It’s fun to imagine the greatest minds in
history playing sports, and the Monty Python sketch captures this in a humorous
way. After the referee’s whistle, instead of playing soccer, the philosophers
wander off, some in pairs discussing abstract ideas, others lost in their own
thoughts, all while dressed in the attire of their respective eras.
Chazal (our sages) appreciate wisdom from
outside our own tradition. There are elements in the wisdom of other nations
that we can learn from, which is why halacha reflects a respect for older
individuals and scholars. The Maharal, for instance, limits the concept of Chochma Umois Oilom (wisdom of the nations of the world)
primarily to the discipline of rhetoric, the art of speech for speech’s sake.
Jewish speculation, however, must always have a practical application. Even
Kabbalah, Hakira, and Hashkafa ultimately serve to guide our decision-making in
the real world.
While non-Jewish philosophers, such as the
German existentialists and the classical Greeks, also aimed to connect
philosophy with real-life applications, figures like Francis Bacon and John
Locke laid the foundations for the social order. But it was the Americans who
took these ideas and "kicked the ball" forward.
For millennia, Jews have been "kicking
the ball," though the world often doesn’t recognize it. This unfamiliarity
with our wisdom can be attributed to two factors: isolationism and
exceptionalism. While isolationism results from the persecution Jews have faced
throughout history, exceptionalism stems from a sense of mission and the belief
that we are different by divine mandate.
This mission is central to our identity, but
the challenge arises when this sense of mission veers into a feeling of
superiority, something our most humble leaders, like Moshe Rabbeinu, cautioned
against.
One of the most jarring experiences I had was
studying the history of the Warsaw Ghetto and its uprising. I was deeply
shocked by the image of a carousel that operated during the final days of the
Ghetto, as Jews were being slaughtered just inside the Ghetto. The disturbing reality was
the indifference of those living just beyond the walls, enjoying a peaceful,
normal life while horrific atrocities occurred so close by. It echoed a
chilling theme of dehumanization, a concept that has haunted history and
continues to be relevant today.
Although I am not deeply involved in social
media, I use WhatsApp and YouTube to stay connected with family and friends.
WhatsApp, in particular, has become a vital tool for maintaining communication,
especially with family members, which is crucial for someone like me who travels
extensively. Through WhatsApp, I also receive status updates from Jewish users,
including advertisements for organized trips to Holy Land. One such trip
included stops at major Jewish sites Koisel, Keiver Ruchel, Maaras HaMakpeila,
Meron and few other crucial to the Jewish awareness places., except for one
unexpected inclusion: the Gaza Border.
Apparently, the Gaza border has now become an
official tourist attraction for visitors from abroad. I had heard that, during
past conflicts, some individuals even brought folding chairs to the area, as
though attending a parade—similar to how people might enjoy a festive event in
an American town on the Fourth of July. Seeing this was deeply unsettling to
me. It immediately reminded me of the image of the carousel just outside the walls of the Warsaw
Ghetto, where, in the midst of unspeakable suffering, some seemed to carry on
with their lives as if nothing was amiss or even worse, like this is some kind
of entertaining event. I found myself asking: Should I be shocked now, as we
observe our nation drifting so far from the ideals our leaders preserved for
us, values that we have long cherished as our greatest treasure: the sanctity
of human life, dignity, and the right to live in freedom and peace?
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