What Exactly Is Wrong With Filtered Internet? [#14845]

August 24, 2021

QUESTION:

The Rav is totally against using any media or internet capable devices, smartphones, etc. Is the Rav’s view mainly coming from pnimiyus haTorah (the inner dimension of Torah) or is a person also obligated even from a perspective of nigleh (the revealed dimension of Torah) to keep away from the Internet and be moser nefesh not to use it? For example, if a person is not deep and spiritual, or if he is a very superficial kind of person, or if his soul is rooted in nigleh and not in pnimiyus haTorah, or if his spiritual level is asiyah d’asiyah (he is very action-oriented and he is not drawn after the spiritual), does such a person also need to be moser nefesh to an extreme and stay away as far as possible from any internet use? And when Rabbonim and Poskim permit filtered internet use for parnassah purposes and other necessities, is this because the Rabbonim and Poskim are coming from the nigleh aspect of Torah?

ANSWER:

Even from the perspective of “nigleh” (revealed dimension) in Torah, it is not possible to give a heter (permission) to use internet, because it is a heter which enables spiritual destruction to come to the generation, and it has brought so many people Rachmana Litzlan into the abysses of spiritual defilement, and this is nigleh (revealed in front of us) to the eyes of everyone. Internet use has also brought down almost any individual who has used it, because it is actual tumah (defilement) itself, and therefore it is not possible to use a heter of “An alternate path is available [i.e. using filtered internet] for it.
However, it is basically impossible to go the furthest extreme to separate totally from Internet use. (I have been very careful with my wording when I state this.)