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Sefer Chafetz Chayim 4
Hilchot Esurei Lashon Hara

Kelal Gimal - Halachah 1

circumstances, as Rabbeinu Yonah writes in the cited Sha’are Teshuvah,
section # 214.

(These denigrating remarks, this Lashon Hara) How is it mitigated if the
speaker reasons that he would have made those same remarks directly
to the “victim,” since truthfully in so doing it is a sin to degrade him?
Heaven forbid that one should imagine that Rebbe Yossi was talking about
this kind of verbal exchange when he said “Never once in my life did I
have to retract something that I said,” since according to all Authorities
those remarks are absolute Lashon Hara. Moreover, if those remarks were
expressed directly to the victim, the speaker would be further culpable for
violating the esur of using oppressive language.

Furthermore, don’t say that Rebbe Yossi was referring to a personal
experience, where he (the speaker) personally saw him (the “victim”)
commit a sin between himself and G‑d, because here too that approach
would be a difficult to reconcile since Rebbe Yossi would surely not have
said something that he would later have to regret, because he would be
obligated by the Torah to reprimand him (the “victim”). Nevertheless, the
language of the rebuke must be gentle in order not to embarrass him. And
how much even more so should this speaker not become an “enemy” of
the “victim,” nor publicize his (the “victim’s”) disgrace, as I explained this
subject at length above in the 2nd Kelal, in the 1st notation.

Also, one should not say that Rebbe Yossi’s statement was made in the
context of his seeing someone violating a negative principal of the Torah,
that he warned this person (against repeating this violation) and his
warning was ignored, that under such circumstances it would be permitted
to hate this person as this is the law cited in Shulchan Aruch Choshen
Mishpat, section #272 (paragraph #11) which in turn, evolved from the
Gemara Pesachim (113b). In this cited law, where the sinner is no longer
categorized as “your brother \ your fellow Jew” from which it follows that
it is permissible to denigrate him, do not think this was the case Rebbe
Yossi was referring to. On that same referenced page (113b) the Gemara
Pesachim describes Rav Pappa giving Zeegood (the speaker) lashes as
punishment for speaking Lashon Hara against Tuvia who sinned as even
here the halacha dictates that this report is Lashon Hara and the law
forbids those remarks (in a circumstance where the speaker knows that he
is reporting truthfully and accurately and he is making his remarks in the
presence of the victim) since the person making the remarks is only a single
witness and nothing can be done (i.e., no judicial outcome is possible)
on the strength of the testimony of only a single witness. Therefore the

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