Dei'ah veDibur - Information & 
Insight
  

A Window into the Chareidi 
World

20 Kislev 5762 - December 5, 2001 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
NEWS

OPINION
& COMMENT

OBSERVATIONS

HOME
& FAMILY

IN-DEPTH
FEATURES

VAAD HORABBONIM HAOLAMI LEINYONEI GIYUR

TOPICS IN THE NEWS

HOMEPAGE

 

< font face="Arial" size="1">Produced and housed by
Shema Yisrael Torah Network
Shema Yisrael Torah Network

Opinion & Comment
"If there is the slightest deviation, our behavior is no longer in accordance with the Torah altogether."

Following is a translation of part of the mussar shmuess delivered by Maran HaRav Shach (zt"l) in the Ponovezh Yeshiva on Sunday 19 Marcheshvon, 5752 (1992) as published in the Hebrew Yated Ne'eman.

It seems to me that we should be happy about the fact that we have something unique, something that no other people has. We have, in the Torah, an exact chronology and history of the Creation of the world, day by day. Even more. We were given details of the hourly Creation: the first hour, the second hour and so on.

These are events that took place more than five thousand years ago, and we have them with such wonderful exactness!

When we say "You have chosen us from among all the nations," we should dance for joy, that He has set us apart from idol worshipers and given us such a Torah!

Just imagine, if we had -- lehavdil -- a book of stories about the details of events that took place thousands of years ago. We would be fascinated by it. We could not put it down, from curiosity. Now that we have the Toras emes that is not chas vesholom a simple book of stories but the pure truth about what happened then, how wonderful it is; how happy we should be to have it.

Therefore it behooves us to pass on to further generations only things that are extremely accurate, and not to distort anything, because if anything is changed -- even in the slightest -- it is no longer Torah.

Similarly, the deeds of Hashem are careful and exact. HaTzur tomim po'olo ki chol derochov mishpot! If HaKodosh Boruch Hu decrees chas vesholom suffering on someone, it will not be delayed for even a second: it will come and go at the exact time decreed.

The Torah demands that all one's actions be fully in accordance with the Torah. Not only our "big" deeds, but even the smallest ones have to be wholly correct. If there is the slightest deviation, our behavior is no longer in accordance with the Torah altogether.

It is like a person who buys a diamond. He is prepared to pay an enormous sum for it if it is clean. If it has the slightest scratch, the price will be much less, seemingly out of proportion to the small defect. The reason is that it is something else entirely.

Let us see how these things are explained in the Torah. In Bereishis and Noach the Torah records all the exact extent of the lives of the earliest generations: when they were born, when they had children, how long they lived and when they died. What is the reason for this? It all comes to teach us that we must be exact, calculated and perfectly in accord with the Torah.

More than this we learn from Rabbenu Yonah in Sha'arei Teshuva (3:15): "We find that the people of Sedom were evil to Hashem in a number of degenerate ways, like theft, robbery, distorted judgments and licentiousness. Despite all this, Scripture writes that they were destroyed because of lack of tzedokoh, as it says `This was the sin of Sedom your sister . . . that she did not support the hand of the poor and impoverished.' "

We see that along with the insistence on doing great things correctly, the Torah demands perfection, even in the little things from everyone.

Especially talmidei chachomim must be careful in everything they do. For even the slightest sin can bring about a corruption for generations, since his children may learn from him and their children from them, carrying the influence through to many generations. Chas vesholom they may say of a ben Torah, "Woe to the rebbe who taught him Torah."

On the other hand, if he behaves with nobility and dignity, he has a great influence for the good on his environment.

How awesome are the words of Rabbenu Yonah: "It is said about those people who are not constantly thinking about the proper way in yiras Hashem `And their fear of Him was only as of people following a routine, so therefore I will add on to that people an amazing [punishment].' "

How much do these remarks require us to constantly think about yiras Hashem and to learn mussar. If Rabbenu Yonah said that a piece of meat is treif would anyone dare to eat it? Is this any different?

Subsequently, HaRav Shach said:

We must know that he who associates with reshoim is a partner to a destructive man. The mere fact of association gives the rosho a chizuk [for the rosho], even for the future. The masses are always drawn to whomever is in power. Whoever has control of the government influences mass opinion. Who knows where it may lead?

Those who learn Torah are not impressed with government power, but the masses are not so reflective and they are always drawn after whoever has the honor and power in his hands.

Still, we must be careful not to use violence. One can argue with them, but one should refrain from violence. That is not our way. Violence is not our way. It may be the way of others, but it is not our way.

We will go along our path, the pure way, and will strengthen our opinions that they may be correct and pure without any taint of violence. That is the way of Torah. Especially the bnei Torah need to be careful about this, that they should be completely clean both for our own personal reasons and due to the fact that the street is constantly looking for faults in bnei Torah.


All material on this site is copyrighted and its use is restricted.
Click here for conditions of use.