Page 400 - 20818_park-c_efi

20818_efi-ab - 20818_park-C_efi-ab | 14 - A | 18-08-20 | 13:46:25 | SR:-- | Cyan
20818_efi-ab - 20818_park-C_efi-ab | 14 - A | 18-08-20 | 13:46:25 | SR:-- | Black
#20818_efi-ab - 20818_park-C_efi-ab | 14 - A | 18-08-20 | 13:46:25 | SR:-- | Yellow
20818_efi-ab - 20818_park-C_efi-ab | 14 - A | 18-08-20 | 13:46:25 | SR:-- | Magenta
to deliver to you, your enemies before you and your camp will be
holy and there will not be seen any unseemly thing and and He will
turn away from you.” And we learned in Sifri (Devarim, Piska #254):
“You shall safeguard yourself from all evil” refers to ritually pure and
impure things and tithes, but the Talmud says that here it refers to
forbidden sexual relations. From where do we learn that this also in-
#
cludes idolatry and murder and the curse of the Lord? From the fact
that the Torah says, “You shall safeguard yourself from all evil.” Just
as forbidden sexual relations caused the Canaanites to be exiled and
drove away the Divine Presence, so too, included here is any act for
which the Canaanites were exiled and the Divine Presence withdrew.
The word “davar” includes gossip (lashon hara). (End of quote.)
Sifrei D’vei Rav (by Rav Dovid Pardo) discusses the question:
Why does the war-camp require a special warning against these evils?
He answers that the Torah is warning even against things that are
only Rabbinically prohibited in order to distance people from sin. For
example, one should not wash in or drink water which has gathered
from rain showers because it looks like kissing an idol. Also, one
should not look at a gentile woman and similar things which are only
Rabbinically prohibited since the Torah does not specifically prohibit
them. In a war- camp, the Torah warns us to avoid all sinful behav-
ior. In terms of murder, the Torah is not warning us against actually
killing, but rather enjoining us not to violate the prohibition “Do not
stand idly by the blood of your fellowman” if we see a gentile about
to kill a Jew. One should intervene to save the life of his fellow Jew,
even if the gentiles are many, and even if during peacetime, one would
be exempt from endangering oneself in this way. Nonetheless, during
wartime, one is obligated to do so. The Torah also warns against caus-
ing any unnecessary bloodshed, such as sending his friend into the
war zone, even though it would be unintentional causation. In war-
time, we require extra shemirah. The Torah specifically warns against
those things that are common in wartime, when one is exposed to idol
worship and women. “Cursing of the Lord” is not to be understood
literally, but rather as referring to anything negative spoken against
the Lord. One should not sin with his mouth in this way if he is hit,
386 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein
for his view from Tractate Baba Kamma, (117b) where it says that if a
person brings a donkey onto a ship and the donkey caused the boat to
sink, the donkey owner is viewed as a pursuer, even though his intent
was not to endanger the passengers. Also it says in Tractate Sanhedrin
(above) that an explanation is needed for “it is Heavenly pursuit” and
it is not sufficient to say that the fetus did not intend to endanger its
mother. This differs from the understanding of the Tiferes Yisrael that
“Heavenly pursuit” means that he had no intention to kill (the fetus
had no intent to kill its mother).
However, in Shitah Mekubetzes (Baba Kamma, ibid) it says in the
name of Rav R. Yehonasan: If the donkey owner knew his business
was bad, he is defined as a pursuer. This sounds as though he agrees
with Tiferes Yisrael, that one who acts unintentionally is not consid-
ered a pursuer. See also Shach (Choshen Mishpat #380:8) and Taz
(ibid) who write that the donkey owner is the pursuer because he
should have known that when taking a donkey on a ship, the donkey 14
could jump and endanger the ship. According to their words, there is
no difficulty with Tiferes Yisrael from the words of the Vilna Gaon
(above) because his main intent is to clarify that although the forger
did not intend to pursue his brothers, nevertheless, his act of forgery
was done with full knowledge and willingly.
And I heard from my father-in-law, Rav Y. S. Elyashiv zt”l, that
even if we do not accept the words of Tiferes Yisrael but explain the
topic by its simple meaning – that a minor pursuing his friend, is a
pursuer, since anyone who brings about his friend’s death is a pursu-
er and it is permissible to kill him, unless he is being compelled by
heaven to do so – it’s possible that we still would not be permitted
to kill the pilot. One cannot call him a “pursuer” to kill fellow Jews,
at the very time that he is out to save them, and even endangering his
own life for their sake. And he added that even if the rescuer is not
endangering his own life, but his purpose is to save lives, even then,
it is prohibited to kill him. This is similar to a story that occurred at
the time of the Chasam Sofer. A maidservant fainted and her mistress
quickly poured water into her mouth to revive her. Because of the
confusion, she erred and poured gasoline into her mouth. If a by-
Saving the wounded when chances are slim 2 403