To elaborate on the point of
this thread, Boru's invocation of "Hebrew thought"…
Boru:
In Hebrew thought, …
"In Hebrew thought…". So much for Catholic dogma, eh? After you were called on this, you first
lied that there was
“no rhyme or reason” to challenge you about invoking “Hebrew thought” in a discussion about Catholic dogma—
only later to claim the opposite.Belatedly you claimed there actually was a reason to discuss “Hebrew thought”:
Boru, a verbatim quote:
“This use of the word Hebrew was used in order to show that the word 'righteousness' has always been, even in the OLD TESTAMENT, to mean 'holiness',”
That is another lie.*Not only is there
no Catholic use of “Hebrew” to convey “righteousness,”
* the Jews use the Hebrew word for “righteous” ( צַדִיק transliterated variously as ’z
addik’ or 'tsedeq') as a name for their revered тαℓмυdic rabbis—as in the Koliner rabbi’s claim [referenced in my previous posts] that “A Z
addik decrees and God obeys.”
• See the end of this post regarding my Grok inquiry on that point.I am sure that this irony is lost on you.
In dissembling to vindicate your invocation of “Hebrew thought,” you have actually dug yourself deeper into the pit of hell.
You sought solace in “Hebrew thought” which actually claims the
Zaddik, the rabbis, have authority over God Himself and who have the authority to alter Scripture.
**You reject the Word of God (John 3:5) and you reject the Extraordinary Magisterium of His Church. You emulate the damned rabbis in such usurpation and rejection and you invoke “Hebrew thought” as part of your ineffectual defense. Oh, the irony!
No amount of verbosity or word salad slithering allows you to escape your mirroring “Hebrew thought” in rejecting the Truth and substituting instead a bunch of man-made bullshit. You emulate the worst of "Hebrew thought."
You lie on the spot to make up any bullshit that is convenient at the moment to promote your errors.
** The Koliner rebbe [17th century rabbi of Prague] stated, “Our Zaddikim’s (famous Orthodox rabbis) words are more important than the Torah of Moses As our Sages teach: A Zaddik decrees, and God obeys.”
“God smiled and said: ‘My sons have defeated Me, My sons have defeated Me!’ God’s sons ‘defeated him’ with their arguments. Rabbi Yehoshua was correct in his contention that a view confirmed by majority vote must be accepted, even where God Himself holds the opposite view.”
Babylonian тαℓмυd, Tractate Bava Metzia 59b, Steinsaltz Edition [NY: Random House 1990], Vol. III p.237
“... The rabbi constituted the projection of the divine on earth. Honor was due him more than to the scroll of the Torah, for through his learning and logic he might alter the very content of Mosaic revelation. He was Torah, not merely because he lived by it, but because at his best he constituted as compelling an embodiment of the heavenly model as did a Torah scroll itself.”
Rabbi Jacob Neusner, “The Phenomenon of the Rabbi in Late Antiquity: II The Ritual of ‘Being a Rabbi’ in Later Sasanian Babylonia,” Numen, Vol.17, Fasc. 1., Feb., 1970, pp.3-4
* Now for Boru's claim that the word "Hebrew" is "always" understood as "righteousness," I asked Grok:Is there any sense in which Catholic theology considers the word "Hebrew" as a synonym, metaphor, or simile for the word "righteousness"?Grok answers:
No, there is no evidence in Catholic theology that the word "Hebrew" is considered a synonym, metaphor, or simile for "righteousness." The term "Hebrew" (from the Hebrew "Ivri") is typically interpreted in Catholic sources, such as the writings of St. Jerome and other Church Fathers, as an ethnic designation derived from Abraham's ancestor Eber (Genesis 10:21, 11:14-17) or as meaning "one who crosses over" or "passer-by" (from the root 'abar, referring to Abraham's migration across the Euphrates River from Ur to Canaan). This "crossing over" is sometimes symbolically linked to Abraham's faith journey away from idolatry toward God, as seen in patristic commentaries on Genesis 14:13. Abraham himself is a model of righteousness by faith in Catholic teaching (e.g., Romans 4, cited in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paras. 144-147), but the word "Hebrew" itself is not used as a direct stand-in for "righteousness."
The Hebrew word for "righteousness" is instead "tsedeq" or "tzedakah," which denotes justice, moral uprightness, or covenant fidelity, and is unrelated etymologically or theologically to "Hebrew" in Catholic tradition. Any symbolic connection between Abraham's "Hebrew" identity and righteousness stems from Jєωιѕн midrashic interpretations (e.g., Abraham standing alone against the world for God), which Catholic theology may acknowledge in broader biblical exegesis but does not adopt as a direct equivalence for the term.
My follow-up question to Grok:
Is צַדִיק , transliterated variously as ’zaddik’ or 'tsedeq', also a term of reverence used by тαℓмυdic Jews to refer to "sages" and respected rabbis?Grok answers:
Yes, the Hebrew term **צַדִּיק** (transliterated as *tzaddik* or *tsaddik*) is used in Jєωιѕн tradition, including тαℓмυdic literature, as a term of reverence to refer to exceptionally righteous individuals, sages, or respected rabbis. The word derives from the root **צ-ד-ק** (*ts-d-q*), meaning "righteousness" or "justice," and denotes someone who embodies moral and spiritual uprightness.
In тαℓмυdic and later Jєωιѕн tradition, a *tzaddik* is not merely a "righteous person" in a general sense but often carries a specific connotation of holiness, wisdom, and closeness to God. The term is applied to figures such as revered rabbis, sages, or spiritual leaders who exemplify piety and adherence to Torah. For example:
- In the тαℓмυd, figures like Rabbi Akiva or Hillel are implicitly regarded as *tzaddikim* due to their exemplary lives and teachings, though the term is not always explicitly applied to every sage.
- In later Jєωιѕн mysticism, particularly in Hasidism, the *tzaddik* became a central figure, often referring to a rebbe (spiritual leader) believed to have a unique connection to God, capable of interceding for their followers. The Hasidic concept of the *tzaddik* builds on earlier тαℓмυdic reverence but elevates it with mystical significance.
The related term **צְדָקָה** (*tzedakah*), also from the same root, refers to acts of charity or righteousness but is distinct from *tzaddik*, which describes a person. In Catholic theology, as noted previously, *tzaddik* or *tsedeq* is understood as "righteousness" in biblical contexts (e.g., in the Hebrew Scriptures), but the specific Jєωιѕн usage as a title for revered sages or rabbis is not paralleled in Catholic tradition, which has its own categories like "saint" or "doctor of the Church" for venerated figures.