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1) When seeking justice or truth, one must strive to find the highest, most competent & knowledgeable sources; 2) Justice must be obtained only through just means; 3) Justice is sometimes administered on a human level, but at other times it is dispensed at the hands of Heaven.
There is yet another fascinating slant on Tsedek, Tsedek. The Gemara in Sanhedrin explains that one approach to justice is to be strict, with no quarter or compromise given; while another type of justice is to be flexible, with healthy amounts of compromise & compassion. Both have their place in a just society.
There are times when society & its judges must be strict & rigidly unbending. At those times, even Torah law may be superseded or magnified, if the authorities see fit. For example, the Sanhedrin could (& did, though rarely) impose the death penalty on people who rode horses on Shabbat, which at most is a Rabbinic prohibition & certainly not a capital offense. And we know that Chazal, to protect the sanctity of Shabbat, forbade sounding the Shofar on Shabbat Rosh Hashana (like this year!), despite it being mandated by the Torah & actually done in the days of the Bet HaMikdash.
And yet, we also see amazing lenience regarding the laws of Shabbat, when necessary. For instance, the Gemara suspends certain restrictions (e.g. muktze) when Kavod HaBriyut - human dignity - is involved. And so, the posek Rav Dovid Cohen told me there is a heter for opening a light in a totally-dark bathroom with a shinui on Shabbat, if it is necessary to use the facilities. And one is permitted to light a lamp on Shabbat, says the Shulchan Aruch, in a room with a pregnant woman, even if that woman is blind, if it enhances her peace of mind that others can see in case she goes into labor.
I humbly suggest that, all too often, we tend to take the strict approach to judgment, both in how we judge others as well as how we treat them. But perhaps, in these crucial days leading up to Yom Kippur, we can try to err on the lenient side and give people the benefit of the doubt, shrug off an insult, demand less than our fair share. After all, the way we judge others may be exactly the way Hashem judges us!
The Gemara says that going beyond the measure of the law is the key to Redemption. Do we measure up?
Rabbi Stewart Weiss
Was ordained at the Hebrew Theological College in Skokie, Illinois, and led congregations in Chicago and Dallas prior to making Aliyah in 1992. He directs the Jewish Outreach Center in Ra'anana, helping to facilitate the spiritual absorption of new olim.
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D'varim Judaism’s Social Vision
Re’eh
Giving is more than an act of generosity—it is an essential part of human dignity that belongs to everyone, rich and poor alike. The ultimate goal of help is to empower others to stand on their own.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 9 - "Seeing is Believing" (parag. 21-30)
These paragraphs elaborate on the theme that seeing and knowing is better than any attempt to prove logically, and begins explaining the difference between Israel and gentiles.
Ein Aya Various Universal Stages of the Geula Process
Rav Kook examines the various stages of redemption, explaining how (in addition to the obvious oft-mentioned stages of ingathering the exiles, reviving the Hebrew language, army, state etc.) the messianic dream of world prosperity, the State of Israel and world unity can and are realistically and logically gradually coming true.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 8- "Answering Questions on the Kuzari's Proof from Mass Revelation
How do we know that the "claim" of mass revelation to 2,000,000 witnesses at Mt. Sinai is really true? This important class answers all of the questions skeptics ask about this claim of the Kuzari.
Ein Aya Armies Still Necessary for Balance & the War Against Wars
Rav Kook explains why the world was originally divided into the various seemingly contradicting ideologies and cultures, in order to develop each one respectively. Swords or armies symbolize how each respective ideology defends themselves, as well as deters their opposing ideologies and cultures. On the other hand, the messianic era will be one of peace, and Rav Kook explains the transition to that stage, which mankind is already undergoing.
