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November 14, 1996

Tolerance - The Delicate Balance (1996)

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Moderation (1988)

The following Citation comes from an article by Judge Learned Hand, published by the Massachusetts Bar Association in 1942.... This much I think I do know — that a society so riven that the spirit of moderation is gone, no court can save; that a society where that spirit flourishes, no court need save; that in a society which evades its responsibility by thrusting upon the courts the nurture of that spirit, that spirit in the end will perish. What is the spirit of moderation? It is a temper which does not press a partisan advantage to its bitter end, which can understand and respect the other side, which feels a unity between all citizens -­real and not the factitious product of propaganda — which recognizes their common fate and their common aspirations -­in a word, which has faith in the sacredness of the individual. If you asked me how such a temper and such a faith are bred and fostered, I cannot answer. They are the last flowers of civilization, delicate and easily overrun by the weeds of our sinful human nature; we may even now be witnessing their uprooting and disappearance until in the progress of the ages their seeds can once more find some friendly soil. But I am satisfied that they must have the vigor within themselves to withstand the winds and weather of an indifferent and ruthless world; and that it is idle to seek shelter for them in a courtroom. Men must take that temper and that faith with them into the field, into the market place, into the factory, into the council-rooms, into their homes; they cannot be imposed; they must be lived.
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On Tolerance (1988)

Set this in a broader philosophical perspective: The conflict between the demand of free will on the one hand and the demands of socialization on the other. Insofar as the individual is concerned, without free will there is no Torah, and the halakha regards coercive behavior as a denial of freedom. On the other hand, there can be no community without accepted norms of conduct, and the community must socialize individuals into accepting its basic principles both of theory and practice.If we go too far in the direction of freedom, we have destroyed society. If we tip the balance to society and community, we have robbed the individual of his freedom.Hence, what is necessary is an ongoing dialectic between both extremes, such that the basic integrity of a human being is preserved, allowing him to express his freedom, and provision is made for the orderly continuity of the society.Refer to the Gemora (Shabbat 88) that the Torah was not normative as long as it was forced upon us, and did not become authoritative until it was reaccepted in the days of Mordechai and Esther.
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Tolerance and its Limits (1997)

This lecture=totally non-political; I have no partisan end in mind, I do not refer at all to the religious/political controversies that afflict both Am-Jy/Israel. Is occasioned by the terribly intolerant acts in recent J history: Baruch Goldstein massacre in Hebron, assassin'n Yitzhak Rabin and, most recently, the shooting by a demented Dati soldier in Hebron.. As result Rabin assass'n, I appointed ...Com on J’sm & Human Values... tolerance/dem'cy/ ethics dissent...fr w-i J sources...Com assiduously at work, should report several months. This present lecture=introduction to the theme; not a systematic treatment, but effort to sketch ideas on role of tolerance in sources of JudaismArnold Toynbee: J'sm, as advocate of monotheism=intolerant; its single-minded rejection of idolatry left it with little patience for other forms of worship. Was he right?Yes, partially. Posit at outset: tolerance=not an absolute. There are things/ideas that= intolerable to any decent/civilized persn. Hence, there are examples aplenty of intolerant attitudes in Tor: (ג״ע שפ״ד ע״ז (״תועבה״; or עיר הנדחת ובן סורר ומורה. So too לה״ר ורכילות Nor should we today tolerate rapists/drug-pushers/muggers. Unlimitd tol'ce betrays intell'l cowardice & =invit'n to soc collapse and the deterioration of all standards.Yet: to tolerate is divine! R. Elijah de Vidas (ראשית חכמה), God tolerates the sinner even at the very moment of his rebellion by continuing to grant him the gift of life.W.V. Quine (Quiddities pp. 206-210): "delicate balance of tolerance." This balance-not easy: ס-ב-ל=root of both suffering and of patience (סבלנות)— & tol'ce (סובלנות)Bec balance=so delicate, is presumpt's offer advance clear direc'n all cases. Most cn hope f =fw guide-lines as examine each case own merits/try f bst accomm'n bth conflict'g theses.Indirect reference to "balance of tolerance": —מינוי יהושע כמנהיג ישראל אחרי משהיפקד ה' אלקי הרוחית לכל־בשר איש על־העדה (פר׳ פנחס, במדבר כ״ ז: טו-כג)-רש״י (פס׳ טו ד״ה אלק…
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