Chizuk for the 6th of Elul by our Rosh Yeshiva, the righteous Kabbalist, Rabbi Benayahu Yissachar Shmueli

Based on Rabbi Shmueli's Hebrew Chizuk video for the 6th of Elul, 5786

Safeguarding the Home: Modesty, Interpersonal Sensitivity, and Charity

1. Divine Protection and the Commandment of Modesty

Every individual must safeguard their home, given the tragedies, sudden deaths, and disasters occurring in places such as Beit Shemesh and elsewhere. The Torah explicitly addresses the conditions required for Divine protection in the weekly portion: "For Hashem your L-rd walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and to give your enemies before you; therefore, your camp shall be holy, that He may see no improper thing in you, and turn away from you." While people frequently attribute tragedies to external threats, such as fear of hostile nations, the Torah teaches that Hashem’s presence and protection are conditional upon the holiness and modesty (tzniut) of the community. When immodesty is present, the Divine Presence departs, leaving the community vulnerable to harsh decrees, illness, and tragedy.

2. Historical Accounts and Rabbinic Responses to Immodesty

The Talmud teaches that the sin of unchastity and immodest speech brings severe decrees, including the loss of young lives. Rabbinic leaders throughout history consistently addressed breaches in modesty during times of public distress:

• Rabbi Elazar Menachem Man Schach and the Bnei Brak Tragedy: Following the funeral of the Baba Sali (the 4th of Shevat 5744), four young yeshiva students (avreichim) from Bnei Brak were killed in an automobile accident. When community members approached Rabbi Schach to understand the spiritual cause of the tragedy, he cited the Talmudic principle that breaches in chastity lead to severe decrees, noting that in his youth in Lithuania, communities immediately examined their standards of modesty whenever tragedy struck.
• The Incident in Pinsk: During a period of sudden, tragic deaths in the city of Pinsk, the community convened an emergency meeting with local rabbis. The investigation revealed a family living in an overtly immodest manner who ignored multiple warnings. Led by Rabbi Elazar Moshe HaLevi Horowitz, the community arranged for a funeral procession to pause in front of the family's house to deliver eulogies highlighting the spiritual danger of immodesty. Though the homeowner sued the rabbi in court over the public demonstration, Rabbi Horowitz presented the Talmudic rulings to the non-Jewish judge, who accepted the argument and ruled in favor of the rabbi.
• The Chatam Sofer and the Woman in the Market: Rabbi Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld related an account to the preacher Rabbi Ben Zion Yadler regarding a woman during the era of the Chatam Sofer who publicly defied standards of modesty by not covering her hair properly in the marketplace. After ignoring four separate warnings from the Chatam Sofer, she fell gravely ill. When she sought to repent on her deathbed, the rabbi informed her that she had missed the opportunity. Following her passing, the Chatam Sofer instructed the burial society (Chevra Kadisha) to pause the funeral procession in front of his home, where he publicly confronted her remains and spit on her and accused her of Chutzpa, to emphasize the severity of breaching communal boundaries.
• The Singer in the Era of the Ben Ish Chai: During the period of Rabbi Yosef Chaim (the Ben Ish Chai) and his son Rabbi Yaakov Chaim, a female singer performed before mixed audiences at weddings despite repeated rabbinic warnings. After she refused to cease performing, the Ben Ish Chai instructed the congregation to answer "Amen" to a curse, resulting in her immediate death.

3. Marriage, Repentance, and Character Refinement

Encouraging marriage among young people is vital for maintaining communal purity and securing Divine mercy. The commentary of the Ba'al HaTurim on the verse "He shall be free for his home" hints that upon marriage, an individual's prior sins are forgiven, provided the marriage is entered into for proper spiritual motives:

• The Mafia Leader in Acre: Rabbi Shalom Schwadron (Levinstein) related a story involving the head of a criminal syndicate in Acre who suffered severe health complications, ultimately requiring the amputation of both legs. Facing terminal illness, he called the city's rabbi to perform a wedding ceremony to remarry his ex-wife. Because he had learned in his youth that a groom's sins are forgiven, he paid her ten million shekels to secure her genuine consent. When questioned about the validity of this atonement, Rabbi Nissim Karelitz noted that the individual would be rewarded for investing significant wealth to achieve forgiveness, while Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky said: If he repents—he will be forgiven. With repentance, he says, like Eisav—he repented, returned in repentance, and was forgiven.

Marriage requires an individual to rise above innate personal traits to live peacefully with a partner, thereby earning spiritual elevation and the pardon of transgressions.

4. Extreme Sensitivity to the Feelings of Others

In addition to modesty, avoiding the public or private embarrassment of others is a fundamental duty. Prominent rabbinic figures demonstrated extraordinary care regarding interpersonal sensitivity:

The Young Rabbi and the Sermon: As related by Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky (and recorded in the work Chut HaMeshulash), an aging rabbi who was no longer able to serve his town was succeeded by a younger scholar—a relative of Rabbi Akiva Eger. Against the elderly rabbi's explicit wishes, the town pressured the young scholar to deliver the sermon on Shabbat HaGadol. Following the senior rabbi's subsequent passing, the young rabbi attempted to deliver the eulogy, but experienced a vision of the deceased summoning him to Heavenly judgment; he passed away eleven days later.

It is written on his tombstone: "Eleven days from Horeb."

And here we see how severe it is to cause distress to another person.

One must be extremely careful.

• Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv: In his final years, a cup of scalding tea was accidentally spilled onto Rabbi Elyashiv's clothing by his grandson. Rabbi Elyashiv remained silent and made no sign of discomfort, preventing his grandson from experiencing embarrassment. On another occasion, when his shoes were accidentally placed on the wrong feet by an assistant, he waited until the assistant left the room before allowing his grandson to swap them correctly. Furthermore, he insisted on keeping books sent by contemporary authors in his primary study rather than storage, so that visiting authors would not feel hurt seeing their works set aside.
• The Chazon Ish: In his youth, while traveling to a brit milah, the Chazon Ish took time to address every person who approached him. Upon entering his vehicle, he instructed the driver to proceed slowly for the first fifty meters before accelerating, ensuring that those who had delayed him would not feel they had burdened or distressed him.
• The Pnei Menachem of Gur: During a public gathering, a speaker delivered an unpolished address and stumbled over his words. When the Pnei Menachem of Gur was called to speak afterward, he intentionally feigned confusion, searched his pockets, and acted as though he had lost his notes—deliberately lowering his own standing so the previous speaker would not feel isolated in his embarrassment.

5. The Power of Charity (Tzedakah) to Avert Disasters

The practice of giving charity is a primary mechanism for averting harsh decrees and financial loss, as illustrated by a personal narrative from Bnei Brak:

A man raised in poverty recalled that when he was ten years old, a wealthy neighbor named Yisrael built an unpermitted room adjacent to their apartment with his father's consent. Municipal inspectors ordered the immediate demolition of the structure and imposed a heavy fine. Distressed, Yisrael sought advice from the boy's father, who suggested that allocating money to charity would protect him from loss. Yisrael rejected the advice, blamed envious neighbors, and demanded a loan instead. Though impoverished, the father offered his entire savings of 2,500, which Yisrael disdainfully rejected.

The following day (the eve of Shabbat), the father instructed his wife to request basic Shabbat provisions from Yisrael's family, explicitly attempting to afford the wealthy neighbor the merit of giving charity. Although Yisrael's wife provided the food, Yisrael angrily forced her to retrieve every item.

Two weeks later, facing court summonses and potential imprisonment, Yisrael paid the fine and hired workers to demolish the room. At the trial, the judge unexpectedly announced that the municipality had retroactively approved the construction and waived the fine. However, because Yisrael had already destroyed the addition out of panic, he gained nothing. His wife noted that this outcome was exact divine retribution (mida k'neged mida): had he accepted the advice to give charity and assist his neighbors, the room would have remained standing and his money preserved. Following this realization, Yisrael accepted the rebuke, altered his behavior, and became a dedicated giver of charity.