You have the Obligation to Remain Silent…

We all know our rights. We have the right to remain silent…

…but, do we have the right to remain speaking?

I haven’t written about the Malka Leifer episode for some time now. There hasn’t been much reason to. Here’s a quick update:

In late May, there was a court ruling that Mrs. Leifer is indeed mentally fit to be extradited. Not a big surprise to me. On July 20, there was a hearing on the legal merits of extradition itself. The hearing did not go on for very long and I have no idea what arguments were put out. The media reported that the defense argued that the Australian authorities haven’t proved that the alleged offenses were non-consensual. I am no legal expert, but it seems odd to me why this should matter if it means they are conceding that the alleged offenses actually occurred. I have previously written that the defense should argue that there is no proof that any offenses took place at all. I wonder why they did not go that route.

I work pro-bono.

In any case, it seems like this solitary court hearing is all the court activity there will be and a decision will be handed down on Sept. 21 (Tzom Gedaliah). If it’s in favor of extradition, there may yet be some appeals. After all this, there will be the issue of extraditing somebody during a world-wide pandemic. This is the current state of affairs and, with everything else that is going on these days, it is hardly news. So, there really hasn’t been much for me to write about on this topic…until last Wednesday.

Last Wednesday, there was an earth-shaking development in Victoria, the home state of the Sapper sisters (accusers of Mrs. Leifer). On August 26, it was disclosed that the State of Victoria “quietly” made some changes back in February to a law called the Judicial Proceedings Reports Act (JPRA) which only surfaced now. These changes effectively ban all victims of sexual abuse from identifying themselves by name when telling over their stories on public forums. Apparently, this is only applicable to cases where the offender has been convicted but perhaps even an arrest or indictment counts. 

Click HERE to see the article that was linked in Dassi's Facebook page.

It seems like there is nothing wrong with disclosing the name of the offender, only the name of the victim! As a result, all victims are silenced unless they hide their names. The only way to circumvent this requires a court order.

This means that, as of the current time, the Sapper sisters can no longer discuss the Malka Leifer episode or present updates on the case on their dedicated Facebook page since the Facebook page is under their name and is not anonymous. They are stunned, “aghast and bewildered” not to mention upset and angry.

I am also a bit "aghast and bewildered" because their Facebook page was my main source of information.

If you are wondering what is the underlying rationale and objective of these changes and what is the logic behind it, you are not alone. The media hasn’t revealed it and it doesn’t seem to make much sense. It is a very strange and obscure law that seems to fly in the face of all Western civil liberties of freedom of speech and right to protest. It seems to be protective of offenders though it’s not clear how. 

Some say it is the work of the sinister underworld that nurtures and protects offenders and some say it was a quirk in the language of the act and is not intentional. There is a tremendous outcry from victims’ advocates and quite a few politicians along with vows to right this wrong as soon as possible. Time will tell how it pans out. But, for the moment, it is in effect.

This situation looks to be exclusive to Victoria, Australia. Not to any other part of Australia and, certainly, not anywhere else in the Western world. The fact that the Leifer episode is alleged to have happened there and that these accusing sisters are residents of Victoria is just a stroke of bad luck. 

Or is it?

Personally, I am just as bewildered as everyone else and cannot see the rhyme and reason for this law. I don’t believe governments should silence anybody, especially legitimate victims of crimes. This is absurd if not draconian.

But, as a believing Jew, we must look for the yad Hashem. We all know the pasuk in Mishlei (21:1):

לב שרים ומלכים ביד השם.

The hearts of princes and kings (and politicians) are in the hands of G-d. 

Regular folks have free will (bechira), but when it comes to the big shots (think Pharaoh and Nevuchadnetzer), HKBH programs them to act like He wants. If an absurd, logic-defying law was implemented in Victoria, Australia, even – or especially – only temporarily, it’s because HKBH wants this law to be in effect in Victoria, Australia. If victims of sexual abuse need to keep their names out of the media in Victoria, it’s because HKBH wants them to keep their names out of the media in Victoria.

Is it possible that this fashla occurred primarily for its impact on the Sapper sisters and the Leifer case? 

Many of us know the gemara in Yevamos 63a:

אמר רב אלעזר בר אבינא אין פורענות באה לעולם אלא בשביל ישראל שנאמר ... וכתיב (צפניה ג:ה) "אמרתי אך תראי אותם תקחי מוסר".

Rav Elazar ben Avina says: Bad events in the world only occur for the sake of [the nation of] Israel (Rashi – To frighten them into doing teshuva) as it states (Tzephania 3:7): “I have said that if only you will see it you will accept rebuke”.

We definitely need to learn something from this. 

Before anything else, we must acknowledge that, from the perspective of Judaism, not all types of speech are legitimate. To follow, is a short list of some types of speech that are not legitimate and should not be allowed:

• Anything that promotes idolatry, heresy, and/or atheism (avoda zara).
• Anything that promotes bloodshed (shpichas damim)
• Anything that promotes immorality, promiscuity and homosexuality (giluy arayos)
• The four חברת חשמ"ל – Those who are not mekabel pnei haShechina (Sota 42a):

               Chanufa (ח) – Praising one who is wicked or undeserving

               Sheker (ש) – Falsehood

               Mesaper lashon hara or Motzi shem ra (מ) – Defamation

               Leitzanus (ל) – Scoffing

• Echad b’peh and echad b’lev – Conniver (דברנו דופי)

But after we rule out these and perhaps a few other varieties, we can consider everything else legitimate. Especially things that promote Torah, Halacha and yiras shamayim and things happening in the world that people should be aware of.

When it comes to legitimate speech, I don’t believe anyone should be silenced. If someone is a victim of a traumatic experience or of a known confirmed offender and wants to talk about themselves for the benefit of others (and not for the detriment of others), I don’t think they should be silenced. Also, if someone wants to preach the Word of G-d, I don’t think he should be silenced, either.

So, on the face of things, it may seem that the Sapper sisters and other victims are justified to complain about being silenced. Except for one thing that I noticed from many people who claim to be victims of sexual offenses. 

They only complain when they are being silenced.

They don’t seem to complain when the people they are accusing are being silenced. Or when those who speak up for them are being silenced. But it’s not just that. 

Often enough, they do everything in their power to ensure that the “other” people are being silenced. It doesn’t seem to bother them then. It’s okay to silence the opposition. The “other” people are criminals and supporters of criminals, anyway. We’re the good guys.

We all know, this is the new freedom of speech in the western world. If you are liberal, “PC”, atheist, gay, black, and/or a “victim”, you are entitled to extended (free) prime time in the media and on the campuses. If you are conservative, traditional, religious, straight, and/or “under indictment”, there’s no time left on the program.

This was the subject of my very first “preamble” post on the Malka Leifer episode. It was titled Midas HaDin and focused on how accused people cannot be heard over the “din” of the accusers. I repeated it again in the post about Victim Turned Predator. 

Of course, for my trouble, there was a drive to silence me. Firstly, there was the attempt by a group of liberal rabbis in Australia that call themselves RCANZ to disparage me. Not through debate, but blanket discreditation. I wrote about this HERE. 

About the same time, the Jewish Community Watch team – Meyer Seewald and Shana Aaronson – posted a malicious, defamatory article against me on their site. It can still be accessed, but I do not want to link to it. Their closing line was:

Our only goal is very clear- that he (Hirshman) cease all public writing that directly targets victims, and that he be removed from the platform with which to preach his dangerous and damaging beliefs.

They don’t acknowledge that the “victims” they refer to are currently playing the role of accusers. Also, they don’t bother to explain why the “beliefs” that I “preach” – i.e., the Halachic prohibitions of extradition and mesira as well as my contention that these girls should terminate their prosecution campaign for their own wellbeing – are “dangerous” and “damaging”.

Incidentally, the “Comments” button on this article has been disabled.

It goes without saying that my comments, which almost always consist of a link to a relevant blog post and nothing more, are not welcome on the Facebook pages of Dassi Erlich and Shana Aaronson. No question, they are perfectly entitled to block the links – it’s their FB pages, after all – but the pages are meant for the public and censoring out dissenting opinions, as opposed to allowing them and rebutting them, is still censorship. Also, it's a display of spinelessness.

In thirteen years, I have never disallowed or deleted a comment that anybody posted on my blog site unless it fell into one of the categories of illegitimate speech listed above.

I have noticed that I may not be the only person who is censored from Dassi Erlich’s Facebook page. Back in December 2019, Dassi posted a muse about how her blood pressure is affected by this roller coaster ride. As expected, all the well-wishers were wishing her well. But there was one commenter named Andrew Adams who felt that Dassi and her sisters really ought to rethink where all this is getting them. In the first of his three comments he wrote:

It's good that you don't know who I am. I can see that all three of you are unable to see what danger you are doing to your own lives by making this Leifer part of your lives and allowing her to take over your minds.

He does not seem to be hostile to their cause and he seems to be genuinely concerned for their welfare. Believe it or not, I also want what is best for them so I agree with him completely on this – but I have no voice. Amazingly, just as I would have been if they were my comments, Mr. Adams was summarily attacked by other commenters as well as by Dassi herself for daring to suggest that it is a good idea to stop this insanity.

Next time I looked, his three comments were gone. Did he remove them? 

All told, silencing people is a very popular pastime in today’s world…as long as it’s the “other” guy who is silenced. For those who make a hobby out of censoring other people for legitimate speech, it is very difficult to sympathize when they find themselves on the receiving end. What goes around, comes around.

התקוששו וקושו – קשוט עצמך ואחר כך קשוט אחרים. (בבא בתרא ס:)

Adorn yourself and, only then, adorn others!

Friends in High Places

אדם דואג על איבוד דמיו ואינו דואג על איבוד ימיו.

דמיו אינם עוזרים וימיו אינם חוזרים.

A man is concerned about losing a dime, but he is not concerned about passage of time 

None of his money will come to his aid, and a day that has passed cannot be replayed.

We all know that there are things that money can’t buy. It can’t buy us more time in this world, it can’t buy us genuine love or happiness or intelligence. And it can’t buy us genuine friends. 

When I was a kid, I used to watch the old Batman and Robin program. In one episode, the villain (the Riddler) is announcing his plan for a sudden [ill-gotten] acquisition of wealth. Batman attempts to give him mussar: “Money won’t buy you friends, Riddler!” The Riddler shot back a cynical look and said with a laugh, “If one has money, who needs friends?!”

For things money can buy, one may not need friends. But for things that money cannot buy, a friend in need is a friend indeed. When we set out to the next world, we know “we can’t take it with us”. We definitely will not be able to buy favorable accommodations. Of course, the spiritual credits and debits that we accrued in this world are going to be calculated, but we will be in a strange and perhaps, hostile place. It certainly helps to have some friends.

Who might our friends be?

The gemara in Eruvin 19a tells us that the Jewish sinners have a bit of proteksia over the non-Jewish ones on the day of reckoning. It quotes a statement from Reish Lakish that:

The fire of Gehinnom does not dominate over the Jewish sinners. This is learned from the golden mizbeach…If so, how are we to understand עובר בעמק הבכא  – those who transverse the “Valley of Tears” (Gehinnom)? This is for one who, at that moment, was sentenced to Gehinnom, whereupon Avrohom Avinu comes and pulls him out and receives him, with the exception of a son of Israel who had relations with a non-Jewish woman because his foreskin is stretched out and he (Avrohom Avinu) cannot recognize that he is Jewish.

So, our first friend (or, last friend, for those who will have no one else and reaches this “level”) will be Avrohom Avinu. Even if one has a whole portfolio of misdeeds, if he did not cross this line of misusing his “foreskin”, he will have one powerful defense attorney.

Of course, people who don’t want to rely on Avrohom Avinu can make sure to spend a Rosh Hashannah in Uman so that Rabi Nachman can pull him out of Gehinnom by his peyos. Still, it seems that in order to merit the intervention of Rabi Nachman, one needs to visit his kever. In other words, one needs to make friends with him. A friend needs to be earned.

Not every “friend” needs to be a prominent tzaddik (but it helps). Here is a first-hand account of a fellow named Nir who claims to have undergone a near-death experience.

(If you cannot see the embedded video, it can be seen HERE.)

Nir was a secular Jew at the time so he didn’t dress like this then. He says that for the most part, he did not have many “mitzvos” on his record and he was ready to take the dive. But then things changed. (Starting about 24:15).

Firstly, his deceased grandmother was able to summon the intervention of the Ben Ish Chai. Very good man to have in your corner. But the Ben Ish Chai wasn’t able to do it on his own. He was able to help Nir gather up a few well-earned “friends”. Friends that he did not know he has.

It seems that on one occasion, Nir and his cousin went to a cemetery in Israel to visit their grandfather’s kever. He brought along some water to rinse the kever from the accumulation of dust. While he did this, he noticed there were a number of other graves that has a substantial buildup of dust and clearly there was nobody to look after these graves. So he used the rest of his water to rinse a few other graves.

After this, he made a routine on Erev Rosh Hashannah and Erev Yom Kippur to go to some cemeteries and rinse neglected graves. At one place, he noticed two old graves of little children who never even had a matzeiva put there. Just a marker, for years. He decided to collect money for matzeivos for these two sisters. When he put in the matzeivos, he gathered ten men to make a “gilui matzeiva” (unveiling) and say kaddish.

The Ben Ish Chai escorted Nir from one world to the next to gather up the souls of those people whose graves he cleaned and, claims Nir, they waged a mighty war against the malachei chabala that wanted to bring him down. Nir says (about 41:00) that he still didn’t know where he was headed until these two sisters showed up and shouted on his behalf with shouts that shook “all of the worlds”. At this stage, the Ben Ish Chai got “clearance” to send Nir back to this world so that he can do teshuva.

Nir is living happily ever after.

We learn that one way of making “friends” is to do chessed. Chessed is one thing that one can do with money! And anyone who benefits from one’s chessed will be a friend for life and beyond. Incidentally, I have a hunch that the less you really know who your friends are, the better friends they will be when you need their help.

There is yet another way to make good long-lasting friends. And, very powerful friends, at that.

Over the past few weeks, people have been circulating the story of Rav Avraham Moshe Keller, ZT”L. The story was carried by Yeshiva World News and you can read the entire story HERE.

To condense the story, Rav Avrohom Moshe Keller grew up in Argentina when there were no Yeshivos there. There was a dedicated Jew named Rav Zeev Greenberg who helped educate young Jews. Upon reaching bar-mitzvah, Rav Greenberg gave the young Avraham Moshe a copy of Kitzur Shulchan Aruch and told his to let this sefer be his guide.

Avraham Moshe did just that and studied the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch cover to cover again and again for the rest of his life and faithfully followed the Halachos. He lived a life of Torah observance and raised a family in Argentina. Finally, three years ago, aged 79, he was zocheh to make aliya to Eretz Yisroel. Sadly, around Pesach time, at the height of the initial wave of Covid-19, Rav Keller, now 82, contracted the virus and succumbed.

The levaya was to be held at 1:00 am at a time of Corona curfew. Only family members could attend the levaya and, of those, some could not go to the kever because they are kohanim. After the hespedim in Shamgar there were only nine men who were available to go to Har HaZeisim including the Chevra Kadisha folks.

Suddenly a distinguished Jew about 70 years old appeared and claimed to be a relative and insisted on going along to the kevura. None of the family members knew who he was and they even told him he was making a mistake. He insisted that he is related, and he climbed into the car of a grandson-in-law. He participated in the kevura and took the same car back. At some point, the grandson-in-law asked him his name and his only answer was “Gantzfried”.

After they dropped him off at Shamgar he vanished. The grandson-in-law asked another relative who this “Gantzfried” relative is and the response of the relative was one of shock. They had no such relative. But “Gantzfried” (Shlomo) is the name of the author of Kitzur Shulchan Aruch – the sefer that Rav Keller studied and obeyed his entire adult life.

The story indicates that by learning Kitzur Shulchan Aruch and keeping it close to him, Rav Keller made a very special friend. Such a friend that he was willing to make a very, very long journey to be a “tzenter” (tenth man) at the kevura. This, at a time when a “tzenter” was very hard to come by.

Now we can say that Rav Keller, ZT”L had an extraordinary relationship with Rav Shlomo Gantzfried, ZT”L and for this he merited an extraordinary visit but I suspect that when it comes to the next world, even a more casual relationship will count. When the Day of Judgement comes (lo aleinu), the “prosecution” is going to call all their witnesses. The defense team is also going to want witnesses, and the more the better.

Those of us who have Torah in our lives, should be able to expect a full gallery of defense witnesses. Aside from the points that we get for the activity of studying Torah, we will also have quite a few advocates. And who will they be?

For starters, we get all the founding fathers.

We all learn Mishnayos. Certainly, we learn Mishnayos as a part of learning gemara and many of us learn Mishnayos by themselves or for the zechus of a niftar. And if we don’t do it now, we certainly did it in day school, cheder and summer camp. And who hasn’t learned Pirkei Avos many times over?

So, in the box seats, we’ll have all the Tanaim. The zugos, Hillel and Shammai, Rabi Eliezer ben Hyrkanus and Rabi Yehoshua, Rabi Akiva and Rabi Yishmael, Rabi Meir, Rabi Yehuda, Rabi Yosi, Rabi Shimon ben Yochai, Rabban Gamliel and Rebbi, Ben Azai, Ben Zoma, Ben Heh-Heh, Ben Bag-Bag, Ben Nannus, the whole lot. They will all be there to tell the Beis Din that you studied their words. Oh, and don’t forget Rav Ovadiah from Bartenura and/or Rav Kehati. They’ll be there, too.

In the next section there will be Rabi Yochanan and Reish Lakish, Rav and Shmuel, Rabba and Rav Yosef, Rav Huna, Rav Nachman, and Rav Chisda, Abaye and Rava, Rav Pappa and all his ten sons, and Ravina and Rav Ashi and hundreds more. If this fellow learned anything close to the way I learn, these Amoraim will dutifully report how many times their opinions were mentioned in his sleep! (I don’t mean at night.)

Now come the grandstands. And who will be sitting in the front row at the 50-yard line?

Well, from our early years we start to learn Chumash and the primary teacher of Chumash is Rabban Shel Israel – Rashi! And after Chumash, we learn gemara and there he is again – Rashi. Pasuk after pasuk and daf after daf, Rashi is the first authority we consult. Do you think he doesn’t appreciate it? Do you think he is going to just sit by and watch you (or me) get pummeled in the Beis Din Shel Maala?

Of course not. He is going to speak up. “This fellow learned this amount of Chumash and these many blatt of gemara and he always checked out what I had to say. I will not allow him to get a bad rap!”

If we learn Chumash with Ramban or other meforshim, they will all be there to put in a good word. For those of us who are “marbeh sidra” with Targum, there is no question we will meet Unkelos the Ger.

If we learn gemara with Tosefos, well, here comes Rabenu Tam and the Rivam, R”i, Ritzba, Rashbam along with plenty others who are not so common. If you learn b’iyun and learn Rishonim – Rif, Rosh, Ran, Rabenu Yona, Nemukei Yosef, Ramban, Rashba, Ritva, Tosefos Rid, Meiri…they’ll all be there. If you consulted them frequently, they will yell louder but even if you only looked them up once or twice, they will take their turn on the stand.

Do you look up the Maharsha, Maharam, Maharshal, Pnei Yehoshuah and the like? Check out a Ketzos and Nesivos? Birkas Shmuel, Chazon Ish, Kovetz Shiurim, Rav Shimon Shkop? Did you do it 20 years ago in Yeshiva? It won’t be forgotten.

Learn Rambam and Shulchan Aruch? With the Rema (of course)? Check out the Shach, Taz Magen Avraham? No? Do you ever learn Mishna Berura? So, right there you have the Mechaber, Rema and the Chofetz Chaim not to mention all of the authorities that the Mishna Berura quotes!

These are just the big players. There are certainly scores of Rishonim and Achronim and Poskim that we only learn on occasion or when we hear a shiur. We didn’t even know who they were when we heard their chiddushim but they’ll all be there in your corner.

How about if you learn Daf Yomi? I suppose we can expect an appearance from HRHG Meir Shapiro ZT”L. The Chofetz Chaim stood up for him. We can throw in all the ArtScroll editors and the entire Schottenstein family!

It may get a bit crowded up there!

To summarize, learning Shas and poskim or someone’s sefer and listening to their shiurim will certainly put these great people on your LifeBook “friend” list. But this is not where the real “money” is. It’s not where you score the biggest points.

It’s what you pass on to other folks.

It’s one thing to sit and learn. It’s another thing to get up and speak.

כל האומר דבר בשם אומרו, מביא גאולה לעולם.

When you say over Torah thoughts and chiddushim from other people in their name, you help out the entire world. Even better, you make a very close friend.

Some of us don’t have much time, patience or a “head” for learning. But it’s not so hard to look up a “vertel” in a Chumash sefer and say it over at the Shabbos table. One time it will be a Kli Yakar or an Ohr HaChaim. Next time it will be a Chizkuni or Alshich. A Meshech Chochma here and a Kol Eliyahu there. A random piece from Ma’ayana Shel Torah, a Netziv or Slutzker Rav. The Chassidim can quote Sfas Emes and Noam Elimelech and Shem M’Shmuel. Something from the Rav in your shul, a shiur you just heard, something you saw on Torah Anytime, something from those zillions of leaflets that are distributed in the shul. Things in the name of forgotten Rabbis that immigrated to America in the early 1900s and something you heard from your elter zeide or great uncle.

At a Shabbos or Yom Tov table, at a bar-mitzva, bris, sheva brachos. Or even if you write blogs and put them there. Over a lifetime, it sure adds up.

And, when it counts, they will all be there. Every single one of them. This one will say that “One time, 38 years ago, this fellow quoted a vordt I printed in my sefer…he’s not getting a bad judgement.” You won’t have any idea who he is or any recollection of when and what you said, but he won’t let it be forgotten. Of course, many of them will be able to say, “Lots of times he quoted me…” and some may even be able to say, “He used to quote my vertlach all the time…”. He can be your “Gantzfried”.

These people may be from the more recent generations. Perhaps they are not Hillel and Shammai and Abaye and Rava, but their testimony is going to be the most beneficial of all.

Why?

Because you didn’t only learn what they had to say, but you taught it, as well. You moved it on to other people. You spread it around. You gave their chiddushim life and longevity. You “reminded” HKBH about what they wrote. You raised their neshamos (assuming they are already on the other side). They will be more than happy to return the favor.

The more of these people you make friends with, the more they will fill up the Met After-Life Stadium and take the choicest seats. There won’t be much room left for anyone who is coming on the prosecution’s side. And whoever does show up will be shown to the back row of the upper balcony.

So, if you have money in this world, use it to make friends. The right kind of friends. And use it to help other people make these kinds of friends. Of course, even without money, you can still make a lot of friends. And these are not simple friends. They are friends in high places. And, it doesn’t pay to waste any time.

דמיו אינם עוזרים וימיו אינם חוזרים

Don’t be as foolish as the Riddler. Woe is to he who makes money and does not make friends.

ולא עוד, אלא שבשעת פטירתו של אדם אין מלוין לו לאדם לא כסף ולא זהב ולא אבנים טובות ומרגליות, אלא תורה ומעשים טובים בלבד, שנאמר (משלי ו כב): "בהתהלכך תנחה אותך בשכבך תשמור עליך והקיצות היא תשיחך":

"בהתהלכך תנחה אתך" – בעולם הזה;

"בשכבך תשמור עליך" – בקבר;

"והקיצות היא תשיחך" – לעולם הבא.

וכן כתוב בספר תהילים, על ידי דוד מלך ישראל: (תהלים קיט עב): "טוב לי תורת פיך מאלפי זהב וכסף".

תשובה ומעשים טובים כתריס בפני הפורעניות

Taryag Mitzvos - Part 4: The Final Word…of G-d

Note to email recipients - I have noticed that sometimes the Hebrew text gets scrambled in the email version, mostly on moblie phones. This is due to inconsistencies in HTML rendering. If this occurs, you can see the proper text at the main blog site HERE.

Welcome to the final installment of the Taryag Mitzvos series. If you have not seen the earlier installments, they can be found HERE, HERE and HERE.

Thus far, we have studied the passage in masechet Makkos with the pirush of the Maharsha to understand that the foundation of all of the mitzvos is a single commandment, Emunah (or Yichud Hashem), which is itself comprised of two complementary components, Anochi and Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. Thereupon we noted that this theme is reflected in certain specific mitzvos and, likewise, in the structure of human society (male and female).

We also said that it is represented in the term Hashem (YKVK) Elokenu-Hashem Echad, then contracted to Hashem (YKVK)-Echad, then we briefly mentioned it is represented in YK-VK and finally in the Yud and Heh of Y-H.

Firstly, I want to elaborate a little more on the idea I rushed through in the previous post – the four-letter shem YKVK where I said that the Y-H represents Anochi (the positive) and V-H represents Lo Yihiyeh Lecha (the negative).  To be a bit more precise, the name Y-H is associated with Bracha and the name V-H is associated with Kellala. How so?

The concept that the name Y-H is a reference to Bracha is fairly obvious based on how often Dovid Hamelech uses this name in praise to Hashem such as:

י-הברכי נפשי את השם, הללו-

And, as the concluding words of sefer Tehillim:

כל הנשמה תהלל י-ה, הללו-י-ה!

The name Y-H is worthy of praise.

Although the name V-H is also worthy of praise, it represents the midas haDin and the “dark side”. This comes from a Midrash in Vayikra Rabba 35:1:

ר' חייא בשם רבי יוחנן אמר חשבתי ברכות וחשבתי קללות. חשבתי ברכות מאלף עד תי"ו. וחשבתי קללות מן וא"ו ועד ה"א ולא עוד אלא שהן הפוכות

Rabi Chiya said in the name of Rabi Yochanan: "I calculated blessings and I calculated curses. I calculated blessings from Aleph to Tav. And I calculated curses from Vav to Heh. And not only this, but they are reversed (Vav before the Heh)."

The meaning of this Midrash is that the blessing part of Parshat Bechukosai begins with ם בחוקתי תלכוא– starts with an Aleph. It ends ואולך אתכם קוממיות  – ends with a Tav. This tells us that the Bracha is complete and all-encompassing from Aleph to Tav.

However, the Kelala part starts as follows: ואם לא תשמעו לי – starts with a Vav. It ends הבהר סיני ביד מש – it ends with the letter Heh. So the Kelala begins with Vav and ends with Heh (V-H). If we leave it this way, it goes around the entire aleph-bet. But, if we want to, we can reverse it so it only has space between Heh and Vav to take effect. Not much space at all – so not much Kelala.

This is also represented by the pasukim in Parshat Re’eh:

ראה אנכי נתן לפניכם היום ברכה וקללה. את הברכה אשר תשמעו... והקללה, אם לא תשמעו...

Bracha from Aleph to Tav (A-Z) and Kelala from Vav to Heh.

So the Y-H part of the name represents the Bracha that we get if we keep our faith in Hashem and fulfill the Mitzvos Aseh – Anochi Hashem.

The V-H part represents the Kelala that we may, chas v’shalom, get if we lose faith in Hashem and fall to idolatry and transgress all of the Mitzvos Lo Taaseh – Lo Yihiyeh Lecha.

Let us review the newly expanded list of Anochi/LoYihiyeh impersonators:

Emunah – Yichud Hashem
Anochi Hashem	Lo Yihiyeh Lecha
Positive mitzvos	Negative mitzvos
Aseh Tov	Sur MeRah
Hashem E-loheinu	Hashem Echad
Hashem	Echad
T’chelet	White
Zachor	Shamor
Weekday	Shabbat
Yud-Heh	Vav-heh
Bracha (Har Gerizim)	Kelala (Har Eval)
Yud	Heh
Man (ish)	Woman (isha)
(Acquiring) Olam Haba	(Preserving) Olam HaZeh

What is the chareidi Jews supposed to make of all this?

Want my opinion? (Don’t answer!) I think the lesson is that it applies to everything. I mean absolutely everything!

In the eyes – and heart – of a chareidi, every single activity or conscious inactivity can be characterized as a fulfillment of Anochi or a transgression of Lo Yihiyeh. This is not restricted to what is listed among the 248 positive mitzvos and the 365 negative mitzvos, it applies to anything that a Jew does or refrains from doing. If the activity serves to display loyalty to HKBH and to bring the individual closer to fulfilling his ultimate purpose, he is fulfilling Anochi. As we saw in Part I, any complete unmitigated fulfillment of Anochi is an Admit One ticket to Hashem’s world. If the activity is not one of loyalty, it is ipso facto one of disloyalty that serves to distance the individual from Hashem, thus, a transgression of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. It is an invitation to be shunned by HKBH and left to the forces of keri (chance).

Thus, HKBH says to us: Im b’chukotai teileichu – If you are to walk within my statutes, if you fulfill Anochi, then…And I will walk in your midst, and I will be for you for [a] G-d.

This is one of G‑d’s utterances for us all to hear. But He is not finished, He has a second utterance: V’im b’chukotai timaasu – And if in my statutes you will display loathing; and if your souls will repulse my judgments; to desist from performing all of my mitzvos for you to nullify my covenant.

What commandment did we learn is G-d’s version of all of my mitzvos?

That’s right, it’s Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. Only, to be a bit scarier, according to the Maharsha, any individual mitzvah, or even action, can be a transgression of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. Hence, to Hashem, that single transgression or undesirable activity can be deemed as not performing all of my mitzvos. Then what?

...I will likewise walk with you in happenstance (keri) and I will also smite you sevenfold in accordance to your sins.

Well, what do you know? We have come full circle to the credo of the chareidim, One Above and Seven Below.

The sincere chareidi takes all this very much to heart. Everything he does is either a fulfillment of Anochi or a transgression of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha.  This means that when a Jew eats, he is either fulfilling Anochi or transgressing Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. The distinction is based, not only on what he eats, but on where, when, how, and why he is eating it. Any of these prepositions can account for the distinction between fulfilling Anochi or transgressing Lo Yihiyeh Lecha; but he is doing one or the other, never is he doing neither.

The same applies to what comes out of the mouth. It is not only what he says but where, when, how, and why he says it. Both work and play must be either a fulfillment of Anochi or a transgression of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. There is no middle ground. Here again the factors are what he is doing together with where, when, how, and why. Every time he sleeps, every time he cohabitates, again, either Anochi or Lo Yihiyeh - one or the other.  And, yet again, every time a coin or bill comes out of his pocket – or goes into it.

This idea is liable to make someone a wee bit anxious (חרד לדבר השם), don’t you think?

That is why chareidim are chareidi.

Are we done, yet? Just about. I have one final correlation (heard from HRHG Rav Asher Weiss, Shlita).

Every chareidi Jew is taught from his youth that his actions throughout his life must engender one trait: ונקדשתי בתוך בני ישראל (And I will be sanctified among the Children of Israel – Vayikra 22:32). This is the great mitzvah of Kiddush Hashem. In general, it means that every Jew is a representative of the Creator of the universe and his commitment to embodying this role must be so resolute that he must guard the honor of Hashem’s great Name with his very life. This mitzvah also comes with a complementary counterpart: ולא תחללו את שם קדשי (You shall not desecrate My Holy Name). This is commonly referred to as Chillul Hashem. Any action that might besmirch the honor of G‑d’s name must be avoided at all costs, even under total duress. No price is too high.

In the initial description, this obligation is only enforced in specific extreme circumstances. One need only forfeit his life to refrain from transgressing the three cardinal sins of murder, idolatry (the literal Lo Yihiyeh Lecha), and immorality. At a second level, we are taught that during a time of heretical decrees one must forfeit his life to refrain from transgressing any law or even an established custom such as to alter the Jewish mode of dress. All of the particulars of these obligations are enumerated by Rambam in Hilchot Yesodei Torah 5:1-9. After composing nine articles of law that describe what, where, when, and how of the Jew’s obligation to offer the ultimate sacrifice (as well as when it is forbidden), Rambam adds a catch-all article (5:10):

Any person who willfully and without duress transgresses on any one of all the mitzvos that are stated in the Torah with a haughty disposition to provoke [G‑d], this is a desecration of His Name (mechalel et Hashem)… And, similarly, anyone who abstains from a transgression or who performs a [single] mitzvah not for any [personal] reason at all, not for fear, or for awe, or for the quest for [personal] honor, but rather, only for the honor of the Creator, Blessed is He, … this is one who is sanctifying the Name [of G‑d].

This assertion of Rambam seems to parallel the assertion he made in Pirush Mishnayos in Makkos. Any one mitzvah, when executed impeccably, is a complete manifestation of Yichud Hashem and carries the status of a Kiddush Hashem and ensures the individual of his share of Olam Habah. It is as if he performed all of the mitzvos of the Torah. Conversely, any single transgression is a strain of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. When it occurs due to carelessness or craving, it is viewed as a lost opportunity that can be rectified with teshuva. However, if it is performed wantonly and without duress, with the knowledge of its severity, it is a full-fledged commission of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha and a desecration of Hashem’s Name, a chillul Hashem. It is as if the individual has transgressed the entire Torah. A willful chillul Hashem cannot be fully atoned for in this world.

So now, once again, let us review the final cut of the parallel concepts to Anochi and Lo Yihiyeh Lecha:

Emunah – Yichud Hashem
Anochi Hashem	Lo Yihiyeh Lecha
Positive mitzvos	Negative mitzvos
Aseh Tov	Sur MeRah
Hashem E-loheinu	Hashem Echad
Hashem	Echad
T’chelet	White
Zachor	Shamor
Weekday	Shabbat
Yud-Heh	Vav-heh
Bracha (Har Gerizim)	Kelala (Har Eval)
Yud	Heh
Man (ish)	Woman (isha)
(Acquiring) Olam Haba	(Preserving) Olam HaZeh
Im B’Chukotai Teleichu	V’Im B’Chukotai Timaasu
V’ Nikdashti (Kiddush Hashem)	V’Lo TiChalilu (Chillul Hashem)

What a list!

In the Introductory chapter of One Above and Seven Below, I opened with the following question:

Hear the word of G-d, those who are anxious (chareidim) toward his word…(Yeshaya 66:5).

We asked: What should the chareidim hear? What is the word of G-d?

We now have a possible answer to this question. In true Jewish style, let us answer the question with a question:

How often has G-d ever spoken to all of us?

Just once.

And what did He say?

He said Anochi and Lo Yihiyeh Lecha.

וארשתיך לי באמונה - וידעת את השם