Hi,
"The practice of compelling people to follow Torah is a product of the principle that 'All Jews are responsible for each other'; one who would violate the law would harm others and the entity as a whole. Thus the court should compel and judge one who violates Gd's commands. Otherwise, it would be inappropriate to intervene in another's relationship with his Creator."
(R' Meir Simcha haKohen of Dvinsk, Meshech Chachmah to Shemot 24:3)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
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Does it really help "arvut hadadit" to compel Jews to do the mitzvot? It seems to me that such attempts at compulsion will have the opposite effect. Of course in the meantime we have no real battei din or dayyanim smuuchin so it is a hypothetical question. Still we can learn from modern attempts at religious coercion such as religious legislation in Israel that it just doesn't work.
ReplyDeleteI hear the "principle" commonly quoted and it comes through loud and clear in the Nefesh ha Chaim.
ReplyDeleteDo we know the source of this "principle"?
David-
ReplyDeleteI must admit that I tend to agree with your observation on this.
Michael-
Sanhedrin 27b deduces it from the warning in Vayyikra 26, "One will stumble in his brother." The idea is that one will stumble because of another's guilt.
Rav Soloveichik developed this as a broader theme, suggesting that my obligation regarding a mitzvah is incomplete so long as others have not fulfilled their obligation. This enables me to recite kiddush for others, and so on.
If Rav Soloveichik and the Meshech Chachmah present this principle as an obligation, it would seem to be a "mitzvah." What ought to be the impact of the "consequences" on our obligation to fulfill a mitzvah? In other words, does the possibility of " bad conquences" obviate our requirement to fulfill a religious obligation?
ReplyDeleteMichael-
ReplyDeleteI hear, but:
1. Those bad consequences could include non-fulfillment of the mitzvah itself, in which case nothing has been accomplished;
2. There are cases in which certain priorities, like darchei shalom, override others.