The Opposite of “H” Yemach Sh’mo AND Yuval Harari’s Hochmah!

More Shavuos gems to take seriously

Rabbi Avidor Miller ZT”L :

[…] I’m going to tell you something now, a chiddush I heard from one of my rebbeim

in Slabodka and it’s something that I always repeat. Besides the fact that we

transmit to our children the story of the yirah that we gained on that day, we are

also transmitting genes of yirah, the characteristics of being a yorei shomayim.

Lamarckism and Reality

I’ll take the time now to explain that for a few minutes because it’s very

important. You know, for many years there was a question among the scientists if

certain characteristics that are acquired during your lifetime can be transmitted

to your posterity. There was once a theory like this called Lamarckism – it got that

name from the scientist Jeanne-Paul Lamarck who wrote about this idea that a

parent can acquire physical characteristics and then pass on those traits to

children.

Now, although the idea of acquired characteristics being transmitted by

heredity is already dead – it’s been proven to be false - however there is a little bit

of truth in the theory; at least in the idea behind the theory. Because we have a

tradition that up until a certain period of time in the history of the world – when

the world was still somewhat new and the families were separating and becoming

nations – Hakadosh Baruch Hu allowed a certain plasticity in human genes.

In the days of old, as the nations were being established, there were

opportunities available to people that aren’t available anymore. In those days it

was still possible for the progenitors of each nation to create characteristics:

middos and attitudes, for their descendants. Today – I’m not saying that as a

certainty, as a final statement, but it’s probably so that today our chromosomes

and genes are set forever; probably you won’t be able to change your genes by

means of your emunah and bitachon and pass it down to your children. But up to

a certain time, when the world was young, Hakadosh Baruch Hu allowed a certain

amorphous quality in the human genes and so it was possible for people

to accomplish in their character, in their nature, achievements of mind and soul

that would be transmitted to their posterity.

Molding a Nation

And so when the Avos and Imahos chose to walk in the ways of perfection –

in the ways of emunah and character perfection – Hakadosh Baruch Hu allowed

them to mold their nature into a shape that would be passed on in their genes.

They were molding not only their own characters but what they accomplished

became the permanent character genes of their descendants.

That’s what the Gemara says, sheloshah simanim yesh beumah zu, there are

three characteristics of this people, rachmanim beyshanim vegomlei chassadim.

They have pity, compassion. Bayshanim, they are modest; they have shame of

wrong actions. They don't like to do immoral things. And gomlei chassadim, they

have a sincere desire to do kindness to others.

I’ll give you an example. You remember when Rivkah, our great mother, was

asked to give a stranger a drink, so she volunteered to give even his camels water

to drink. And she ran back and forth and drew water for all their camels. It was a

day's work; and she didn't regret her offer. And when she was chosen to be the

mother of the Am Yisroel you can be certain that this quality of compassion and

kindness that had entered into her genes became part of the nature of her

descendants too.

The Goodness of Wicked Liberals

The fact that the Jewish liberals are always leading the way in espousing the

cause of compassion is part of their nature as Jews to feel pity for the downtrodden.

It’s misused of course but it’s coming from the genetic makeup that our Avos and

Imahos created. Karl Marx, that rasha, one of the lowest characters of our nation,

was driven by a certain feeling of compassion for the downtrodden. Now of course

he was misusing it and it was falsely interpreted by him and it became a doctrine

of wickedness. The best ideals can be distorted.

But we have to know that in all of our reshaim, all of our wicked, there is that

gene in their nature of rachmanim beyshanim vegomlei chassadim. Sometimes

they do a lot of work to cover it up, to repress it, but it's there. And if they'll have

children and the children won't be adversely influenced, you'd be surprised that

there crop up in the children of reshaim people who have Jewish qualities.

And so, this Gemara is telling us that the work that our Avos and Imahos put

into transforming themselves entered into the Jewish genes. The ideals and

attitudes that Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov practiced, the character and ideology

that Sarah and Rivka and Rochel and Leah developed in their lifetime became the

permanent inborn inheritance of their children forever. It couldn't happen

afterwards – we ourselves probably can’t accomplish such a thing, to acquire a

good character trait and then pass it down to our children – but at that time it

took place.

Implanting Yirah

Now at Har Sinai this happened once more. Maamad Har Sinai was such a

tremendous event in the history of the world – the entire world history depended

on that great event – that once again something took place in the genes of our

forefathers.

At Har Sinai they weren’t merely mekabel the Torah – they were mekabel

new neshamos. They were actually transformed. They became physically different,

emotionally and mentally different, and their neshamos became intrinsically

different. Like the Gemara says about a person who has certain good middos – 

You can see from his character that his forefathers stood

at Har Sinai (see Nedarim 20a). It means that at Har Sinai they acquired certain

good qualities of character that would be passed down forever and ever. Something

happened then to the Jewish gene, to the chromosomal makeup of a Yisroel.

And among the good qualities they acquired the most fundamental one was

[.] … Because they passed that test so successfully, as a result,

yiras Hashem entered into them and became part of their nature. They swallowed

the fright; they absorbed it and became saturated with yiras Hashem so much so

that they passed out. They died from fright. But when they revived, they were no

longer the same. בעֲַּבורּ†means that the fear of Hashem entered into the nature of

the Jewish people. It entered into our blood. It changed our genes and from then

on we are no longer a nation among nations.

A Change in Status

That’s the secret of Maamad Har Sinai. When our nation stood around Har

Sinai, it wasn’t accepting the Torah like l’havdil a people accepting a constitution.

It wasn’t that we remained the same people only we took upon ourselves a new

way of life. No! When they heard the Voice of Hashem and allowed themselves to

be overwhelmed with the understanding of the responsibility that Kabolas

HaTorah means, something happened – their souls shot out of the bodies. Like it

says, […] – My soul went forth when He spoke. And when their souls

were restored to their bodies, they were not the same as previously.

And that's why the Jewish nation was born at that time. We became elevated

to a new status. We’re a different kind of creature now. We went forth from the

status of Bnei Noach – Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov and their descendants were

included in the category of Bnei Noach; they were not Bnei Yisroel – and now they

all became geirim. At Har Sinai, not only were we converted to Torah, but our

natures were converted; we were converted to yiras shomayim. The Jewish nation

left the company of mankind at that time and they became transformed into a

different kind of being. A being capable of achieving yiras shomayim on levels that

would have been impossible before then.