A Reform rabbi boasted to a רב that he is fluent in several languages. The רב told him: “מסכת חגיגה says אם הרב דומה למלאך ה׳ יבקשו תורה מפיהו. But can anyone know if the רב is דומה למלאך or not? The answer is found in מסכת סוטה, which says that the מלאכי השרת don’t know לשון ארמי. From this, we see that we may learn תורה from a רב who is not fluent in languages; but if he is a בקי in languages, it’s best that we let him stick to his expertise and not learn תורה from him.”
06/10/2021