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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling block

LEV415 It may also be stated that enticing one into the use of psychedelics [drugs] entails also the issur of ve-lifne iver lo titen mikhshol -- placing a stumbling block before the inexperienced and naïve [this verse; See Semag, Lavin 168 based on Sifra, ad loc., Pesahim 22b and Zohar Kedoshim 85a. Compare Deuteronomy 27:18 Rashi ad loc]. Violation of such an ethical precept involves a large variety of moral principles bordering on wrong counsel and ill advice, which are an expression of human callousness and disrespect for our fellow man. Maimonides in his Regimen Sanitatis reiterates "the deep concern of the Torah for the mental welfare of the Israelites, whether they be sinful or righteous." In many of his medical works, he stresses "the importance of mental health, the improvement of behavior which is the cure of the mind and its faculties," stating repeatedly "how dangerous it is to indulge in medicine, tranquilizers, sedatives or stimulants and becoming habituated to them." (Maimonides, Pirkei Moshe, 8; see also Eight Chapters, 1.) ... New biomedical evidence points to the genetic damage caused by LSD to the chromosomes, which according to Dr. Maimon Cohen of the State University School of Medicine, could lead to mental retardation and physical abnormalities in the offsprings of LSD users as shown in a number of maternity cases. Traditionally viewed, then taking psychedelic drugs and exposing oneself to a "bad trip" with all the possible psychotic repercussions would be considered a transgression of the positive commandment for man's welfare in the Torah, ve-nishmartem me'od le-nafshoteikhem (taking protective measures to guard one's health) [Deuteronomy 4:15-AJL], committing an act of havallah be-azmo (self-damage) and hampering his homeostasis and mental balance from performing the Divine way of life properly.

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling block

LEV423 Surprisingly, there is one source which appears to rule that destruction of the fetus by Noachides [i.e., non-Jews, who are not bound by Halakhah but by the seven universal laws of morality conveyed to all of humanity through Noah - AJL], at least under some circumstances, does not constitute a moral offense. Maharit (Teshuvot Maharit, I, no. 99) writes: "I remember having seen in a responsum of the Rashba that he bears witness that Ramban rendered medical aid to a gentile woman in return for compensation in order that she might conceive and aided her in aborting the fruit of her womb." (Lengthy footnote questioning the authenticity of this account is omitted - AJL). It is of course inconceivable that an individual of Nachmanides' piety and erudition would have violated the injunction "Thou shall not place a stumbling block before a blind person" [this verse] or that he would have actively assisted transgressors. Applying the line of reasoning adduced above, Rabbi Unterman draws the conclusion that there is a fundamental distinction between Jewish law and Noachide law with regard to the assessment of potential life. According to many authorities, Noachides are under no obligation to preserve the lives of their fellows, to "be fruitful and multiply" or to refrain from wasting the male seed. They are forbidden to commit homicide and to take the life of "a man within a man" [See Genesis 9:6 - AJL] but bear no responsibility for the safeguarding and preservation of seminal life. It would appear, then, that Halakhah holds them accountable only for actual, in contradistinction to potential, life. [Footnote omitted; as of excerpt transcription in February 2020, the footnote is accessible at books.google.com by copying and pasting the sentence preceding it into an internet search engine - AJL].] Accordingly, there is no objection to Noachides aborting or to giving advice and rendering indirect assistance to Noachides in aborting, a fetus within the first forty days of gestation. Since Halakhah considers that during this initial period the embryo has not as yet developed distinctly recognizable organs or an independent circulatory system it cannot be considered "a man with a man" and hence its destruction does not constitute murder under the Noachide dispensation. Nahmanides, Rabbi Unterman avers, sanctioned the performance of abortions by Noachides only within this forty-day period [lengthy footnote omitted].

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling block

LEV413 Furthermore, the heter (i.e., rabbinic allowance--AJL] to repeat lashon hara spoken before three listeners relates only to the speaker, not to the listener. However, if the speaker knows that the listener’s nature is such that he will immediately accept the negative information he hears about Shimon as the truth--and it is also possible that he will add other derogatory comments about Shimon-- then to such a person it is forbidden under any circumstances to utter even the slightest hint of negative information about another person. One who does tell such a person something negative about another person transgresses the negative commandment of וְלִפְנֵ֣י עִוֵּ֔ר לֹ֥א תִתֵּ֖ן מִכְשֹׁ֑ל, “Before a blind person do not place a stumbling block” (Vayikra 19:14) … All that we have written in this section applies even if the speaker does not mention the name of the original speaker who related negative information before three listeners, but rather simply says that such-and-such was said about this person; this is still forbidden. And now, my brother, after all that we have explained, take note of how greatly one should distance himself from this leniency [of repeating negative information said in the presence of three people], for there is virtually no scenario in which it can apply.... according too many poskim there is absolutely no source for this leniency in the Gemara. Therefore, one who is concerned with his spiritual welfare should stay far away from this leniency.

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling block

LEV417 One should also be aware of an important principle regarding issues of lashon hara. If one is interested in entering a relationship with someone else--such as by hiring him as a worker, becoming his business partner, making a shidduch with him, or the like--and even if he has not yet heard anything negative about the other person, he is still permitted to research and investigate by asking others about the person's character and dealings. Although it is possible that the people he asks will tell him derogatory information about the other person, it is nevertheless permitted to make these inquiries, since his sole intent is for his own benefit, in order to spare himself damage and avoid any quarrels, disputes or chillul Hashem, Heaven forbid. It seems to me, however, that the one inquiring is required to inform the person he is asking that he is interested in entering a shidduch or starting some other relationship with the subject of his inquiries. By doing so, he will avoid even the slightest transgression with his inquiries, since his intent is only for his own benefit and not in order to disparage the person, as we explained. (Nevertheless, he should take care not to decisively believe anything negative that the person tells him about the subject, because that would be a violation of the prohibition of believing lashon hara. Rather, he should consider the possibility that the information is true, in order to protect himself.) By informing the person of the reason for his inquiries, he also avoids transgressing the prohibition of וְלִפְנֵ֣י עִוֵּ֔ר לֹ֥א תִתֵּ֖ן מִכְשֹׁ֑ל, “Before a blind person do not place a stumbling block” (Vayikra 19:14), for even if the person exposes the negative aspects of the subject's character, he is not violating any prohibition, since he is aware of the constructive nature of the discussion. His intent in sharing the information is not to disparage the subject; rather, he is speaking the truth in order to help the one who was consulting with him on this matter--which is halachically permitted, as we explained elsewhere. However, the person who was asked for information should be very careful not to exaggerate and say more than he actually knows. There are other conditions that must be fulfilled in such a case; refer to section 9 of Hilchos Rechilus, where we discuss these halachos.

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling block

LEV418 One who speaks or listens to lashon hara also violates the prohibition of לִפְנֵ֣י עִוֵּ֔ר לֹ֥א תִתֵּ֖ן מִכְשֹׁ֑ל, “Before a blind person do not place a stumbling block" (Vayikra 19:14), because the speaker and the listener are each “placing a stumbling block” before the other and causing him to transgress explicit Torah prohibitions. However, there is a difference between the speaker and the listener in this regard. The speaker transgresses this prohibition whether the listeners are many or few. In fact, the more listeners there are, the more transgressions the speaker accumulates, because when he speaks before several individuals he causes each of them to stumble in a prohibition. This is not true of the listener, though, for it is possible that he violates this prohibition only when he is the sole individual listening to the lashon hara or rechilus. If he were to leave, then the speaker would have no one to whom to relate his lashon hara. However, if there are other people listening to the lashon hara at the same time, then perhaps the listener does not transgress this prohibition, but transgresses only the other prohibitions enumerated in this section [for the lashon hara would have been spoken even if he had not been listening]. However, this applies only to a listener who joined the group after the discussion was already underway. But the first listener with whom the speaker was originally conversing definitely violates this prohibition under all circumstances--even though other people came afterward to listen to the derogatory information--because the transgression started with him. In any event, one should take great care not to sit among such groups of people, because in Heaven all the members of the group are recorded as belonging to a wicked assembly, as is stated in the ethical will of Rabbi Eliezer Hagadol, who instructed his son Horkanus: “My son, do not sit among a group of people who speak ill of others, because when their words ascend above, they are recorded in a book, and all the people present are inscribed as members of an assembly of evildoers.”

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling-block

LEV429 Temptation it does not excuse sinful or criminal actions. Theology as well as secular criminal law is based on the notion that human beings must exercise self-control and restraint even in the face of the most powerful incentives to commit a wrong. Despite the demands for absolute rectitude, it is immoral and malicious to tempt an individual to perpetuate an illegal act. This is true even when the proffered temptation is merely a subterfuge as a means of testing a person's character and integrity. Such is the case when an employer deliberately leaves money unattended, within easy reach of an employee, so that he may find out whether the latter is capable of resisting a temptation to steal. An entrapper is a moral accomplice to the criminal. The ancient rabbis expressed their loathing for entrapment by condemning it as a sign of greater gravity then murder (Bamidbar Rabbah 21:4). The principal source of the prohibition of entrapment is [this verse]. The blind person is not aware of the human intervention which caused his fall. In most instances of entrapment the individual who holds out the blandishments is known to his victim. Yet the attraction of the temptation is such that the victim is blinded to the true intent of the entrapper and the potential danger to his own welfare. The young man who induces his friend to smoke marijuana by describing its blissful rewards is an entrapper. The person who persuades his buddy to join him on a stealing rampage because it is "a good way of making some easy money" is an entrapper. The young lady with a taste for expensive jewelry who is willing to offer her favors as soon as the young man proves his love with lavish gifts is an entrapper. The rabbis' objection to entrapment was extended also to the creation of opportunities for entrapment, even when none was intended. Thus they looked with disfavor upon lending money when the transaction is not done in the presence of witnesses or if no receipt is demanded. A debtor pressured for money might be tempted to deny the loan under such circumstances. An individual who deliberately offers misleading advice for selfish reasons of personal gain was considered guilty of violating the law against entrapment. The recipient of his advice, who has confidence in the sincerity of the adviser, is blinded to the trap laid before him (Sifra, Leviticus 19:14). Provocation, like temptation, may impel an individual to commit a wrong. Both are equally immoral and mischievous.

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling-block

LEV427 Hypocrisy intensifies deceit, for the hypocrite pretends to believe one thing while intending to act quite differently. Thus the rabbis warned: "The Holy One, blessed be He, hates a person who says one thing with his mouth and another in his heart" (Pes. 113b). Hypocrites are one of the four kinds of deceivers who may not come into God's presence" (Midrash Psalms 101:7). "There are seven sorts of thieves. The first comprises people who deceive their neighbors by urging them to be their guest when they don't really want them, or those who push a gift when they know the neighbor won't accept it" (Baba Kama 7:8). "The law, 'you must not set a stumbling block before the blind,' [this verse], include the sanction, 'you must not hide a part of your intention in giving someone advice.' You must not say 'sell your field and buy a donkey,' when you are really manipulating things so that you can buy his field" (Sifra Ked. 88). ... People lie for various reasons. Some convince themselves that they should tell only what they think we need to know. Others believe that a sin of omission--giving an incomplete version of the truth--is a lesser vice than a sin of commission--saying and doing whatever they think they can get away with ... Our sages reject such convenient rationalizations. They have always demanded scrupulously high standards, especially of our leaders. Scam artists who pray on the poor, the lonely, and the elderly are particularly reprehensible.

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling-block

LEV430 The Bible tells us not to place a stumbling block before the blind [this verse].… Today's strangers are often those who have just moved into a new neighborhood or are making the first visit to our synagogue.… mentoring those who do not "know the ropes" (as if we still had great sailing ships) is a small but significant part of our practice of lovingkindness.

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LEVITICUS — 19:14 stumbling-block

LEV426 Do not place a stumbling block in front of the innocent. Do not cause harm to a fellow Jew by giving him bad advice. Do just the opposite. Give only good and helpful advice. This prohibition also forbids us to help a fellow Jew to transgress the Torah. [For example, if someone borrows or lends money with interest, he violates the prohibition to lend or borrow with interest. In addition, by simply being a party to such a loan, each party places a “stumbling block” before the other party]. Key concept: So that society prospers and functions as desired, people must give helpful advice to one another.

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