Rischa D'Araisa-Season 2-Episode 16: Is the principle of Daas Torah an alien concept that has taken root with destructive results?

Rabbi Bechhofer finds support for his previously stated opinion on unquestioning reliance on Gedolim(specifically Rav Chaim Kanievsky Shlita) in a maamar from Rav Mayer Twersky.In the article,Twersky delineates two archetypes of great Torah personalities, one ,while steeped in Shas and Poskim, remains keenly sensitive to the nuances of society while the other in his quest for holiness has become out of sync with the real contours of the mundane world and its halachic needs priorities.He underscores the damage that can result when the latter is called on to give direction on matters beyond pure Issur and Heter and the intense difficulty of backpedaling once the decree has been issued.Twersky also rails against the concept of Daas Torah, claiming it was an idea not accepted in pre-war Europe, and bemoans the primacy it has assumed in the Yeshiva world.Rabbi Kivelevitz asks Bechhofer if Twersky's critique lands with much force in the communities of North America,where a Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah is charged with issuing measured directives with input from each member of the presidium.The pair discuss whether Daas Torah fealty differs greatly with unwavering belief in the Admorim of Chasidim.As an example of how the by product of a decidedly non-Halachic,secular event can be glorified transformed and memorialized into a fervent religious day of praise and worship, Kivelevitz points to the newest Chabad "Holiday", the 5th of Teves ,and speculates that in a different time, the spectacle of having to take an einekel to court and expose the deep sibling rifts in Rav Yosef Yitzchack Schneerson's children would have been quietly endured. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This podcast has been graciously sponsored by JewishPodcasts.fm. There is much overhead to maintain this service so please help us continue our goal of helping Jewish lecturers become podcasters and support us with a donation: https://thechesedfund.com/jewishpodcasts/donate