Imean no offense to the radio and TV broadcasters of the world but it seems that to be a broadcaster is to be a golem. The golem depicted in the fifth chapter of Avos which we learn this Shabbos is not your classic simpleton or ignoramus. He might be a highly educated person with broad horizons a veritable walking library of knowledge — but nonetheless a golem. Let’s look at what the Mishnah says:
“Seven things characterize a golem and seven a chacham. A chacham does not speak before someone greater than he in wisdom or age; he does not interrupt his fellow’s words and is not overhasty to answer he asks pertinent questions and he answers to the point addressing first things first and latter things last. If he doesn’t hear something he says ‘I didn’t hear ’ and he admits the truth. The reverse of all these applies to the golem.” (Avos 5:9)
And so encyclopedic knowledge really has nothing to do with the difference between a wise person and a golem. Rather the difference depends on a certain quality of character that requires further explanation. It is not a quality that we would automatically associate with wisdom intelligence or mental acuity. Furthermore it is insicive that that our Sages with their deep and original approach to the idea chose the word golem as the antithesis of the truly wise person. According to our ordinary way of thinking stupidity or foolishness is the opposite of wisdom. There is even a pasuk in Koheles (2:13) that places these two descriptions in contrast: “And I saw that wisdom has an advantage over folly like the advantage of light over darkness.” Of course Chazal knew this pasuk; but nevertheless they juxtaposed the term golem not the term “fool ” with the concept of wisdom and their choice of terminology has something to teach us.
What is the dictionary meaning of golem? “An unfinished utensil” — as in “golmei klei matechos” (Maseches Kelim 12:6). Or “A body lacking form not yet completely molded.” Or “A pupa enclosed in a hard shell until the fully formed insect breaks out of it.”
Clearly if we apply this “caterpillar” concept to a person we are speaking of an incomplete human being. Someone who like a caterpillar needs to break through a shell that encases him in order to spread his wings. All the powers he needs to be a complete person are locked within him in potential but he has not actualized his potential. There is a gap between his knowledge and his actions his behavior; between what he should be and what he actually is.
The Mishnah surprises us by taking an ethical approach to the concept of wisdom — that is in its implication that the seven characteristics of wisdom which it lists are what actualizes a person. In the Mishnah’s eyes a wise person is one who understands how to listen. He knows how to listen to those who are greater than himself and those who are smaller than himself. This is the quality that improves the mind — this rather than the mere accumulation and storage of facts in the gray cells of the brain. Such a person does not speak before one who is “greater than he in wisdom or age.” He conducts himself this way not only because of the duties of kavod and derech eretz but also because he knows that by listening to one who is older and wiser he will take in something of their superior level. That is to say a humble spirit is a foundation of wisdom.
And by keeping quiet before his elders and listening to what they say the wise person also demonstrates kavod and derech eretz toward past generations. The absence of this quality is one of the calamities of our times. French psychiatrist Henri Barok expressed this idea well in his response to a letter from David Ben-Gurion in which the latter had posed the question “Who is a Jew?”
“The respect that we acquire for the sources (in life and in learning) is one of the foundations of Judaism ” he wrote. “It is drawn from the honor due to our parents who gave us life and includes the respect we show to those who teach us even the smallest things… but chiefly and above all stands respect for G-d Who created man. Thus Hebrew monotheism creates complete and steadfast unity.
“This basic principle of Judaism is constantly violated in our day by Jews and non-Jews alike for it opposes today’s prevailing trends trends that express virulent idolatry in their complete opposition to honoring tradition or citing a source for what one says.
“This systematic exploitation is characterized by getting the maximum use out of parents and teachers and then using what is learned in order to trample them. Gratitude acknowledgement and historical accuracy have lost their value. People have adopted a way of thinking in which they disdain the sources and attribute ideas to themselves.
“Disdain for the sources has led to disdain not only for parents and teachers but also for history. A person cannot advance if he shows no respect for his predecessors who toiled for the advancement of humanity. To use the resources of others without acknowledging them is an act of wickedness. Among other things ignoring the past harms prospects of future advancement.”
I quoted Dr. Barok at length because he sheds light on the qualities the Mishnah ascribes to the chacham — they are so much more than just a decoration that makes a person more gracious on a superficial level. These qualities are a basic need for a healthy society.
The wise person “does not interrupt his fellow’s words ” says the Mishnah. He shows the same respect to his peers as he shows to his elders. He listens to him attentively and does not force his own opinions on the conversation. This is true humility and true wisdom  — leaving room for a proper response and for the other person. He’s been taken seriously; his existence has been acknowledged. It is hard even to imagine what would happen to the big disputes that divide the Jewish world if the disputants were graced with the qualities the Mishnah describes. Our lives would change completely on the personal community even on the national and international levels if we would apply this great truth.
We find moreover that one of Moshe Rabbeinu’s final injunctions to the Jewish People before they entered Eretz Yisrael to live as a nation was “Listen among your brothers and judge with righteousness” (Devarim 1:16). Only proper listening to others at all status levels will bring about justice in the end.
The chacham will conduct himself this way with his students as well. He “is not overhasty to answer.” That is he listens patiently to what they say and weighs it in his mind because from them too he has much to learn. Such an approach to life develops the capacity to acknowledge the truth and to come out and say “I didn’t catch that.” He can be honest and natural. He won’t be compelled to save face with false bravado and all sorts of mental contortions to cover up his lack of knowledge and hide behind a screen of sound bytes.
The golem on the other hand is always broadcasting. He has no time to listen to what his elders and betters say. He’s too busy talking back to them trying to show everyone who’s really the smart one. He interrupts his elders his peers and certainly those lower than he; he won’t let anyone finish a sentence because he has to say his piece no matter what. He’ll never acknowledge the truth because he thinks it’s shameful to admit to being wrong. Whatever is said to him he answers with an apathetic “Yeah yeah I know.” And he thinks this sarcastic street-level put-down is the ultimate in wit.
But how can such people who are constantly broadcasting instead of listening ever learn anything new? Is it any wonder that Chazal describe a person like this as a golem a half-baked human being no matter what rabbinic or academic credentials or how much encyclopedic knowledge he boasts? —