Is Torah Study a Sin? The Necessity of Averah Lishma in R. Yoel Teitelbaum of Satmar

This essay explores the question of averah lishma (sin for the sake of heaven) in Hungarian Hasidism, in particular in the works of Yoel Teitelbaum of Satmar. The hasidic tradition deems averah lishma not only as inevitable, but as a necessary redemptive act whereby the righteous can eradicate evil by temporarily entering into it. Through a fascinating series of hermeneutical moves, Teitelbaum addresses the difficulty of how to determine when averah lishma is applicable, and offers a novel suggestion that Torah study is itself an act of averah lishma.