Not on Facebook or WhatsApp: this is how you will make real friends
How many of your thousands of friends on Facebook, WhatsApp or Twitter are really friends?
Probably very little.
So here, this is the way to find true friends
Not on Facebook or WhatsApp: this is how you will make real friends
Eruvin Tractate, page 22 (Photography and editing: Walla! NEWS)
Man by nature is sociable.
Everyone needs to have friends who can talk to them, share their experiences, consult with them and learn from them.
But who is a good friend and how do you find him?
In the Gemara in Tractate Eruvin, page 23, the words of Rabbi Elai, who was a definite disciple of Rabbi Elazar, are quoted. Rabbi Elazar, and asked if there was a friend among them who also remembers hearing the same laws from his rabbi.
Rabbi Chaim David Kowalski, presenter of the digital gemara, explained that from this story we learn the importance of friends, which we need for the sake of clarifying the truth.
One person, even if he is smart, cannot rely solely on his own intellect and judgment.
Anyone who cares about the truth should seek the help of friends: ask them what they remember, what they think, what they think about judgment and more.
Do not just rely on yourself, but always consult with friends and hear their opinions.
Friends have not only information we do not have, but also a different perspective on things, which is sometimes better than ours.
So how do you choose good friends?
First, connect it from the word "connection."
A good friend is first and foremost a person who has a deep mental connection between you, and not just a passing interest in a common field.
Second, a true friend is a person who wants your best.
He is not connecting with you just because of a particular interest, but he really wants you to be good.
Third, a true friend is one who does not refrain from criticizing when necessary.
This is how you will make real and good friends.
Illustration (Photo: ShutterStock)
Handshake (Photo: ShutterStock)
While being too critical is neither good nor pleasant, and no one wants to connect with a critical person, there are situations where criticism is essential.
A person who sees his friend walking a path that causes him physical, financial or spiritual harm - it is his duty to warn him of the danger, and to explain to him why he is lost in the way.
There is a saying 'a good friend is one with whom I want to be better, but a true friend is one with whom I am already better'.
According to Rabbi Kowalski, a good friend evokes in a person the desire to improve, to transcend, to be a better person.
A true friend is one whose presence - in fact - already affects us for good.
When I'm next to him, I'm already behaving differently, better.
We should all look for such friends - and also be ourselves.
Want to learn more topics according to the Gemara?
This is your chance to join the digital gemara venture.
This is a project in which you will watch a daily video clip based on the daily page presented by Rabbi Kowalski, founder and head of the Maorot Daf Yomi organization.
As part of this, each person can be part of hundreds of thousands in Israel and around the world who take care to regularly study one page of Gemara a day, by watching a short daily video.
The section on true friendships is based on Tractate Eruvin, page 22, and is also published on the Digital Gemara website.
In this section, you will meet daily at significant and fascinating points related to daily life, based on the daily study of the Gemara.
The project is free of charge for its participants.
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