Continuing a thought from the previous post:
I recently spoke to a product of the day school system who explained to me that Torah is only what Hashem said [i.e. the Chumash]. Everything else is the rabbis who use and abuse authority that they furnished for themselves. [So I understood from him and it was a long talk].
He really believes this. He also knows one gemara - that a rabbi in the gemara did something vulgar [?. I asked him where this gemara appears. He promised to find the source. I know what he was referring to and it wasn't vulgar at all].
There are [at least] two problems with his understanding [but in fact many more]. 1] If one negates chachomim then how can he wear tefillin, put on tzitzis, keep shabbos or just about every mitzva which require the explanation of torah she-bial peh. The Chumash never spells out what tfillin are or what tzitzis are or how to keep shabbos. 2] He has a din kofer and his wine might be יין נסך [I wouldn't drink it]. The Rambam says [Teshuva 3/8] that one who is מכחיש מגידיה is a kofer. That means that he casts aspersion on the character or teachings of the chachomim [see Nefesh Harav page 42]. He is also called by the Rambam [Teshuva 3/8] a כופר בפירושה who doesn't accept the binding nature of the Torah she-bial peh.
For this - his parents [from whom he may or may not have heard his opinions] paid six figures:-).
He is not the only one. I know many boys who only started believing in Hashem a few months into their stay in Israel for the year. Some never make it.
Without emunah - a person has NOTHING. All of his mitzvos are empty [we have written about this in the past ואכמ"ל].
