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DEUTERONOMY — 19:14 misleads

DEUT950 One who speaks or listens to lashon hara is also subject to the curse of אָר֕וּר מַשְׁגֶּ֥ה עִוֵּ֖ר בַּדָּ֑רֶךְ, “Cursed is one who misleads a blind man on the way” (Devarim 27:18). It is well known that the intent of this pasuk is to curse someone who places a stumbling block before another person, causing him to transgress. This course is similar to the prohibition of וְלִפְנֵ֣י עִוֵּ֔ר לֹ֥א תִתֵּ֖ן מִכְשֹׁ֑ל, “Before a blind person do not place a stumbling block” (Vayikra 19:14), regarding which we explained, in negative commandment 4, that one who speaks or listens to the lashon hara violates this prohibition.

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DEUTERONOMY — 19:15 single

DEUT952 A good name is so important that giving someone a bad name is a vile Jewish offense: "R. Eleazar b. Perata said: Come and see how great is the power of an evil tongue! The ten spies who brought back an evil report against the wood and stones of the land of Israel received a severe punishment; how much the more so will this happen to one who bad-mouths his neighbor! (Ar. 15a). A similar story is told in a legal context. Under Jewish law, one witness is not enough to convict someone of a crime. "It once happened that Tobias sinned and Zigud alone came and testified against him before R. Papa. Since one witness does not constitute definitive proof, R. Papa had the witness ZIgud punished. R. Papa explained, the Torah says: 'One witness shall not rise up against a man' [this verse], so by testifying against him, you have brought him into ill repute" (Pes. 113b). As children, we proved how self-righteous we were if we responded to someone who called us something awful by screeching out: "Sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me." Today we know how false that is, for a "bad name" can be hurtful indeed.

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DEUTERONOMY — 19:15 two

DEUT954 A Jewish court can only rule and act upon the valid report of two legitimate witnesses [this verse], a situation that is almost impossible in cases of sexual abuse of children. And the testimony of a child is not admitted at all in a Jewish court. What then it is the right thing to do according to Judaism at the stage of innuendo, suspicion, and/or accusation without actual proof? The Rabbis had enough savvy to understand how and when to act even without adequate witnesses and to differentiate between accusations and substantiations, between circumstantial evidence and proof. The Talmud asks how King David could have acted upon the Lashon Harah (slanderous speech) of Tziba? It answers that he saw other things besides Tziba's words that convinced him of the facts, and he did not act on the words alone (Shabbat 56a). Thus, we see that sometimes, besides actual witnesses, evidence can be intuitive and common sense can be employed to act upon it, thereby ameliorating the need to rely solely upon accusations. Sometimes even an allegation is enough to justify punishment under certain circumstances (i.e., if other circumstantial evidence helps determine the facts in the case). Therefore, in particular circumstances and in the absence of valid witnesses, the Talmud states that it is permitted to give a person the punishment of flogging merely based on a rumor of evildoing (Kiddushin 81a).

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DEUTERONOMY — 19:15 witness

DEUT957 Do not judge on the basis of testimony from only one witness. Each of us has an element of baseness in him-- the yetzer hara (evil inclination). Sometimes, this baseness stirs up hatred in our heart for a fellow Jew. It can happen even to someone who is known for his righteousness. Suddenly, his whole state of mind changes, and he wants to harm a fellow Jew. For this reason, it is not fitting to accept the testimony if it comes from only one witness. We are forbidden to use such testimony to punish anyone, physically or otherwise, even if the witness is a noted Torah scholar and the accused is a lowlife with a criminal record. Only testimony of two witnesses can be accepted, for it is very unlikely that two Jews would conspire together and lie in court to harm someone.

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DEUTERONOMY — 19:15 witness

DEUT956 "One witness shall not rise up against a man for any inquiry or for any sin" If a solitary witness testifies against someone before a Bais Din in a non-financial matter, he violates this prohibition besides being guilty of speaking loshon hora. In financial matters the testimony of a single witness has practical effects. (It can obligate someone to make an oath.) In non-financial matters, however, the Bais Din cannot accept the testimony of only one witness. Therefore his coming to testify merely blackens the reputation of the person he speaks against without any beneficial results.

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