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him that instead of masturbating in public he should do so in private
– it is not so. The Torah forbids this and it is like trying to extinguish
a fire by pouring oil onto it. We can trust the Creator who has said
that by providing such guidance we actively defile the soul of the mi-
nor or the imbecile and Hashem will not forgive anyone who feeds
forbidden foods to a minor or an imbecile or who encourages them to
engage in forbidden behavior.

ɳ Preferential Order of Treatment

We shall now arrange the various treatments mentioned by the phy-
sicians in order of preference.

1. The simplest approach is the one we have heard about
from Dr. A. Lepkipar, namely that inappropriate behavior
on the part of retarded individuals sometimes arises from
their lack of understanding and naivety. In such cases
educational intervention to properly clarify what kind of
conduct lies outside the bounds of acceptable behavior. We
heard about a similar approach from Dr. P. Oscher, citing
Dr. D. Schorr. This should obviously tried first and [about
this it is said] “Happy is he who understands the wretch-
ed; on the day of evil Hashem will deliver him” (Tehillim
41:2). In other words, happy is the person who grasps the
mentality of the wretched individual, teaches him the way
to live and rectifies his soul. His reward will be that on the
day of evil Hashem will deliver him.

Dr. Yosef Kastner, a specialist in psychiatry at Tel
Hashomer Hospital, adds that in his experience the inap-
propriate behavior of retarded individuals can sometimes
stem from trauma, depression or tension and that med-
ication [to ease these conditions] can be dovetailed with
educational intervention, as well as occupying them during
free time so that there is no time for sinning. It is also pos-

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