Disagreeing with Jewish Law – The Antiestablishmentarian

Shall I quote my “favourite” saying again?

Rabbi Chanina, the Deputy High Priest, says: Pray for the welfare of the government, for were it not for the fear of it, man would swallow his fellow alive. (Pirkei Avot 3:2, https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.3?lang=bi)

As those who read this blog would know, I wouldn’t spit on government if it was burning much less pray for its welfare.

I received a meme, a message in a picture, that resonates with me much more than this Talmudic teaching.

The self-defeating nature of the statist argument is just too … damn, what’s the word? It’s like “obvious” but in the sense of a really bad smell, a stench. Hmmm … “poignant?” It can mean pungent in scent, cutting, painful. Let me try this. The self-defeating nature of statist argument for government is just too poignant for me. Maybe I should have stuck with “pungent.”

Currently, I read the notion of praying for the welfare of government as follows,

“Pray for the welfare of the institution that promotes and protects injustice and evil, for were it not for the fear of it, man would swallow his fellow alive.”

Actually, in line with that pictorial message I received, I read the Talmudic text as follows.

“Pray for the welfare of the gang of men who swallow and consume people alive, for were it not for the fear of it, man would swallow his fellow alive.”

I’d refuse to follow this piece of advice from the sage.

But that leads to my question.

I’m an outsider to the nation of the sage that said that piece of advice. His word has absolutely no authority over me. He wasn’t trying to explain the details of the seven laws as far as I know. He wasn’t imposing or elucidating international law or an unchanging principle of human morality. So how do I, as a Gentile outside of the nation and authority of “Israel,” interact with such a statement in the Talmud? Does it make me immoral to reject it? Would followers of the ancient sages see me as unwise or as a bad man?

Would the fact that the government I’m under works against the seven laws make a difference? Hmmm … the fact that rabbis are sympathic to figures like Trump, respectful of the American constitution which protects that which the seven laws forbids, … the fact that Jews in general seem to respect and revere government a whole lot more than me … hmmm …

But then again, don’t a lot of rabbis focus a lot on whether a ruler supports Israel or not, right?

Does that say it all?

But I ain’t a Jew. For me, that means a lot.