Parshat Kedoshim: Only the Tzaddik knows how to rebuke
Translated and abridged from Esh Moharan, a collection of Rav Eliezer Berland’s teachings on the parsha of the week
Rebbe Nachman gave over Likutey Moharan 2:8, as his ‘last will and testament’ before his passing. He says: “Even though rebuke is a very big thing,” etc, despite this, not every person is suitable to give rebuke. Only the Tzaddik can give rebuke, because only the Tzaddik can see the good that’s inside the other person.
Don’t look at other people’s faults
The idea that a person ‘shouldn’t look’ was commonly found by the Steipler.[1] The meaning of this is that a person shouldn’t look at other people in order to find some sort or deficiency, or fault. Because rebuke comes because a person ‘looks’.
For example, when a person is praying, if he starts looking around at his friends, or at his surroundings, so then he’ll start to see his friends doing something in a faulty way. And from this, comes rebuke. So the Steipler’s Torah was – don’t look! Focus on your own prayers, focus on your siddur, without even glancing around you.
If you do this, you won’t have anything to rebuke others about.
There is no-one in our generation who can rebuke others appropriately
Rabbi Akiva says (Arachin, 16): “I wonder if in our generation there is anyone who can give rebuke.” Rabbi Akiva said this to Rabbi Tarfon, at period of time when the Second Temple was destroyed. Rabbenu says: “And if Rabbi Akiva said this about his generation, how much more so [does it apply] does it apply to this generation, now.”
The people who rebuke others, they are [from the aspect of] ‘an end to all flesh’, who don’t have kedusha (holiness) and who don’t have prayer, so then they go and seek out ‘evil’ in other people, in order to quiet their own consciences.
Only a parent can rebuke their own child. But even so, there is danger in rebuking.
We have to be very careful about rebuking our children
Yaakov Avinu was scared to rebuke Reuven, in case Reuven would end up going to worship avoda zara (foreign idols) with Esav, as a result. Or that Reuven would go and desecrate the Shabbat.
And so, Moshe Rabbenu only rebuked the nation of Israel just before his death, in order that they wouldn’t go and worship idols, because of his rebuke.
A TRUE STORY ABOUT REBUKE
The following story occurred in the Gur Yeshiva of Bnei Brak. One of the avreichim (Torah students) there set up a television in his home, and the community there wanted to kick him out. The matter was brought before the Gur Rosh Yeshiva, and the Rosh Yeshiva asked them what sort of television the fellow had in his home, was it a color set, or black and white?
They told him that he had a color television. He judged the matter favorably, and told them that the written halacha only mentioned black and white televisions.
He was looking for a pretext to start breaking Shabbat
This Gerrer Rabbi explained to them that this avreich was simply looking for a pretext, whereby he’d be thrown out of their community, so that he could start travelling around on Shabbat. So they agreed to do the following, to not pay any attention to it, and hopefully everything would sort itself out.
And so it was. In the end, this student threw the television out of his home himself, and all of his descendants continued to stay holy and pure, and so the whole family was saved for future generations.
If a person is rebuked, then ‘backwards’ results can occur. Only the Tzaddik can rebuke. When a person isn’t properly suited to rebuking others, it can happen that ultimately a person could start breaking Shabbat because of his rebuke.
It’s forbidden to speak badly about another person
This is what happened with Elisha, who sent away Yeravam ben Nevat, who in the end started worshipping avoda zara, and set up the [golden] calves, two calves by the entrance to the city, and to avoda zara calves by the exit out of the city.
It’s forbidden for a person to speak about another person, or to slander another person.
There were a number of Breslovers who were studying in a non-chassidic yeshiva, and these Breslovers influenced others to come closer [to Breslov teachings]. They kicked them all out, except for one sole Breslover who was extremely diligent in learning.
In the end, everyone will be a Breslover.
[1] The Steipler Gaon, Rav Yaakov Yisrael Kanievsky, z’tl, was one of the undisputed Torah leaders of the previous generation. While he was still a young man living in Bnei Brak, Rav Berland was the Steipler’s regular chavruta for a number of years.
