Machshava:

Ethics 

Collections: Rabbi Weinberger: Tanya

Description

P. 96 At the moment of sinning, a person is a "rasha" (wicked person) and defiled. But, after the sin, we pick ouselves up again, and the Nefesh Elokis (divine soul) gathers itself and all its forces to ask forgiveness and cotinues to battle. When a person has true regret, he can no longer tolerate, or even look at the item that brought him down. The importance of davening (praying) from a siddur (prayer book) rather than an electronic device. Making the case for a "tzaddik" computer that never did anything wrong and only contained Torah from the very first time it was turned on. A siddur is only used for davening - what a beautiful thing. Different sins require different - and sometimes harder - levels of kaparah (atonement); the teshuvah (repentence) has to fit the aveirah (sin). Even though a person has done teshuvah, has been forgiven, and is - halachically - a tzaddik, at his essence, he is still a rashah vetov lo (a [sometimes] wicked person who holds on to the good within him).