Be Normal

There is a Talmudic statement of בטלה דעתו אצל כל אדם. This means that one’s own opinion or view is canceled opposite every person.

This subject came up regarding one who makes a whole meal out of wine. There are those who would claim that they are totally full from such consumption. Nevertheless, he would not say ברכת המזון because this is not the “normal” thing to do. We would call this, בטלה דעתו אצל כל אדם.

Perhaps we can learn from this how important it is to maintain some sense of normalcy in the way we practice our Judaism and conduct our lives.

Extremism is not good for Jewish unity. While uniqueness is important and each individual does need to reach his full potential, we still need to act in a uniform way. The Book of Judges prefaces bad tidings with the words איש הישר בעיניו, that each person did what was “right in his own eyes.” Chazal and Judaism want us to “be normal.”