Will Michael Jordan Get Schar For Torah

Hi, this is Rabbi Aronovsky with our question and answer series. Do you think the athletes that Rebbeim use as a moshol after 120 will get s'char? I think it really depends what they're being used as a moshol for. >> [laughter] >> Sometimes we use Hitler as a moshol, but I don't think he's going to get any s'char for that. Yeah, we use him as uh what not to do. Right? Rabbi Rakafot once gave an entire shiur about Joe DiMaggio and all of the different wonderful things about Joe DiMaggio. I tell you truth, I don't really know that much about Joe DiMaggio. He was a Yankee um way before I was following the Yankees. Um after that he was uh uh selling uh insulated windows on TV. That's all the only time I saw Joe DiMaggio. I know he'd been married to Marilyn Monroe. Other than that, I didn't really know too much about him. You know, and he went through different miles and things about Joe DiMaggio. So, do I think there'll be s'char for him that he was able to be used as a form of inspiration? Sure. Yeah? Uh when Michael Jordan refused to talk against people even though it was not apparently with sincerity, his reason he gave was even Republicans buy uh sneakers, so he didn't want to alienate anybody. So, if you want to use him as an example, that's fine, you know? Um uh What was his name? Um one of the famous basketball players when they asked uh asked him, "Who do you find inspiring?" He said, "Mr. Shattenstein because he put out the English Talmud uh with ArtScroll." Okay, I Do I think he has s'char for that? I'm sure he does. But if you bring an example of you know a guy who's a mushchis you know, and how he's terrible, you know. Listen, Babe Ruth was a drunk. But you know, he did nice things for kids in hospitals and stuff like that, you know. Um so the fact that he was a drunk, that doesn't take away from the fact that he helped people and kids who were in difficult situations. Um Schindler Oskar Schindler was apparently not a very nice person. Yeah, in his own personal life, but he saved a bunch of Yidden. So does he have s'char for that? Sure he does. Cuz life's complicated, yeah. So if a athlete is used as a source of inspiration then of course there's s'char for it. I'm going to tell my story that I've told many times already. I had a girl at my table and uh she was in the racial line. I said, "How did you get here?" She tells me, "Madonna." Well, I'm intrigued. >> [laughter] >> I said, "What happened?" She says, "When I was growing up, Madonna was always my hero. Yeah." Madonna is this uh woman who was a singer and uh was not really known for much of a moral lifestyle, but at some point she got involved with the Kabbalah Center. And gave herself a Jewish name Esther, and she started taking on certain Jewish practices. I don't know, she used to wear a cross all the time. I don't know if she still did, but you know, so somehow in her mind she's now has a shaychis to Judaism, yeah. Anyway, this girl finishes college and she goes to Neve Yerushalayim, and she becomes frum. Comes frum. And she's there for I don't know, 6 months. I don't know how long she was there for. And she goes back and she gets a job interning on the Larry King show. So, since her hero has always been Madonna, she wants to help the show book Madonna. But, she's a nobody. And Madonna is not going to go on the Larry King Larry King Larry right? He's not He's not like a cool show, you know? Yeah, that that like Madonna would would be showcased on. So, um So, uh but she tries. So, she calls Madonna's person. And uh and she says, "Look, I'll speak to Madonna, but I don't think she's going to be interested in doing Larry King. Uh give me your numbers and I'll call you back." She says, "Okay, these are my numbers, but you can't reach me Friday night and Saturday." She says, "Why not? I you know, I've got your all your numbers. Uh why can't I reach you?" She says, "I don't answer the phone on Friday night and Saturday." She goes, "Are you Sabbath observant?" The girl says, "Yeah." "Let me ask you a question. Do you tear toilet paper on Shabbos?" So, uh she says, "No." She goes, "That is so cool. I'm going to get you Madonna." >> [laughter] >> Well, sure enough, they uh Madonna's person calls up Larry King and says Madonna will come on the show. So, after that, this little girl is a nobody. They push her off to the side, you know? And uh I don't remember what her name was, you know? So, he says, "No, no. Madonna is only going to work with Susan." This is this intern. And all the important people on the show can't believe it cuz she's just a little lowly intern. But, she's the one who's going to arrange everything. So, when Madonna comes, Susan's waiting there to greet her and to bring her whatever. And she says, "This is uh Susan." She goes, "Hello." She goes, "She doesn't tear toilet paper on Saturday." Madonna says, "Why not?" She goes, uh "Cuz it's one of the 39 forbidden uh categories of work you can't do on Shabbos." She says, "Like what else?" Now, suddenly she's being forhered in the lamid test melochos by Madonna. She goes, "Well, you you you you can't plow and and you can't harvest and you can't thresh." >> [laughter] >> She's trying to remember all of the all of those melochos, you know. So, Madonna looks at her and says, "That's the coolest thing I ever heard." She goes in she does the interview. This girl says, "If Madonna thinks it's cool that I learned Torah, then I'm going back to Neve." So, does Madonna have a zchus for that? 100%. It wasn't even like an indirect, it was a direct. So, uh yeah. So, if you serve to be an inspiration for a Jew to be better, you're going to have uh s'char for that. And if uh you are a negative influence and don't do anything positive, then you know, and everyone just says, "Look at that person, don't be like them." I don't know that you have s'char for being a bad example. This is Dovid Rosowsky with our question and answer series.