From: goldberg@techunix.technion.ac.il (Jacques Goldberg)
Subject: Re: Not a Charm?
Organization: Technion, Israel Institute of Technology
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 1992 07:42:28 GMT

MASH@WEIZMANN.WEIZMANN.AC.IL (Michael Shimshoni) writes:

>In: <P09gqB1w164w@cybernet.cse.fau.edu>
>murray.bbs@cybernet.cse.fau.edu  brings:

>>**********************************************************************
>>
>>       L'CHAIM              ISSUE  #   230  PART   1  OF   8
>>**********************************************************************

>Towards the end we read (I only bring that part of L'Chaim):

>>   The mezuza is not a charm or amulet  and should not be considered as
>>one.  Yet it does  offer protection. As  explained in the  Kabbala, the
>>mezuza provides  G- d's  protection from  the time we  leave the  house
>>until the time we return home.

>I wonder  why this  function of the  mezuza does not  make it  what is
>commonly called a  charm or amulet? Where is the  difference? Is it in
>that one believes that it is a charm which invokes God?
   
    Perhaps the question ought to be rephrased, to generate agreement: what
KIND of protection do you expect from an amulet, what kind of protection do
you expect from a Mezuzah?

    In Spring '74 touring children from Zfat were"hi-jacked" by some PLO
heroes (they were sleeping at nib\ght in a school in Maaloth); many were
killed or injured (by the way, I recommend a brief visit at the Zfat
cemetary, or at least a look at the cemetary from the old Synagogues area,
as a lesson of History: tombs of famous Rabbis, of Dov Gruner, of these kids,
almost side by side). In winter 74-75 I was on Sabbatical in Paris. A trio
of Hassidim of a very (rightly) famous Rebbe, easily recognised by their 
uniform, once knocked and asked to check the Mezuza on the door, which I
of course agreed to (the appartment belonged to a very observant friend then
living in my home in Haifa). They asked if I knew why Mezuzoth had to be
checked these days: periodical check, I answered. No, it's because it had
been found that Mezuzoth were bad where Zfat kids had been hurt, and Ok
where other kids were not hurt in the "incident" above. Then I withdrew
the approval to check the Mezuza, the three screamed at a person allegedly 
"rebelling" against a request from their Rebbe (whom, again, although not 
mine, I very deeply respect), and left quite unhappy after I had repeated
that I could not believe that their Rebbe could have given such a stupid 
reason. Sure enough, on the next Shabbath one of the three walked across
Paris to the Synagogue near my home, just to announce that they had checked,
found I was right, and had identified the warmed up source of the alleged
reason to check Mezuzoth in Winter 74-75, not their Rebbe needless to say.

    So what sort of protection does one expect from a Mezuzah? What kind of
reward does one expect from performing a Mizwah? I can't resist quoting again
Emmanuel Levinas, now translated in English ("Difficult Freedom"), partly
because I feel as indirectly quoting my late Master: " the way to REAL
Monotheism HAS to go through Atheism". 

>Michael Shimshoni
             Yaaqov Goldberg
Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish