My research advisor used to start his introductory lecture to freshman physics with a warning: "Some people say there is no such thing as a stupid question. They are wrong." I know without doubt that R' Fuerst has heard his share of stupid questions. In fact, I can testify (with some shame, to be sure) that I have added to that genre. I can also testify that R' Fuerst has always handled the questions with grace and patience with nary a trace of exasperation. (R' Fuerst has, in fact, only hung up on a caller once. He told us about it, so I know how far things have to go before the rabbi labels a queestion as stupid.)
Here's one very cool story that I heard from R' Schmelzer of Telshe, when he spent part of a summer at Camp Nageela Midwest some years ago along with R' Fuerst. Camp Nageela provides an Orthodox Jewish experience for Jewish kids who do not come from an Orthodox home. R' Schmelzer and R' Fuerst were walking to the lunchroom when a kid came running over to R' Fuerst yelling, "Hey, you! Look at this frog I found!" R' Schmelzer went pale at hearing someone talk to the dayan like that. R' Fuerst, however, carefully examined the frog and shared the young man's excitement. There is no question that the young man would have understood if someone had told him that there are better ways to talk to an important person like R' Fuerst. R' Fuerst, however -- without missing a beat -- handled the situation beautifully and acted clearly לפנים משורת הדין/beyond the letter of the law.
The gemara (Bava Metzia 30b) relates a story that involved R' Yishmael the son of R' Yosi handling another situation with grace where person making the request clearly also had no idea about how to talk to an important person. The gemara ends by quoting R' Yochanan as saying that Yerushalayim was only destroyed because people were not acting לפנים משורת הדין/beyond the letter of the law.
Hang on there! Haven't we heard loud and clear that Yerushalayim was destroyed because of שנאת חינם/baseless hatred?! Doesn't that make much more sense? I can certainly understand hatred among Jews causing us to lose our precious Beis HaMikdash. But not going beyond the letter of the law? Isn't that extra credit? Maybe I won't get the sixth aliyah on Shabbos; but I deserve to be kicked out of shul for because I didn't graciously give up my seat and offer the stranger my tallis?
As it turns out, Tosafos asks the question; right there on the page. One of those short, one line Tosafos that are either just a quick p'shat or something quite cryptic. This one is both. Tosafos asks that this contradicts the quote from R' Yochanan (Yoma 60b) that lays the blame squarely on שנאת חינם/baseless hatred. Tosafos gives a chilling answer: הא והא גרמא/they both caused it. Google translate, by the way, gives this very non-literal translation of that: This is a terrible thing. Well... I agree... this is a terrible thing!
On the other hand, maybe it's not such a terrible thing. As a good friend of mine says, I have absolutely no baseless hatred for anyone -- I have very good reasons for all of my hatred. So fixing שנאת חינם is not such an easy thing. On the other hand, working on acting לפנים משורת הדין/beyond the letter of the law is not so terrible. I can take little steps; like washing the spoon left in the sink by the last person, or putting even the books I didn't use back on shelf. And, besides, I can pat myself on the back for being such a big tzadik. So first I'll work on getting back the Beis HaMikdash and then I'll work on my arrogance.
Here's one very cool story that I heard from R' Schmelzer of Telshe, when he spent part of a summer at Camp Nageela Midwest some years ago along with R' Fuerst. Camp Nageela provides an Orthodox Jewish experience for Jewish kids who do not come from an Orthodox home. R' Schmelzer and R' Fuerst were walking to the lunchroom when a kid came running over to R' Fuerst yelling, "Hey, you! Look at this frog I found!" R' Schmelzer went pale at hearing someone talk to the dayan like that. R' Fuerst, however, carefully examined the frog and shared the young man's excitement. There is no question that the young man would have understood if someone had told him that there are better ways to talk to an important person like R' Fuerst. R' Fuerst, however -- without missing a beat -- handled the situation beautifully and acted clearly לפנים משורת הדין/beyond the letter of the law.
The gemara (Bava Metzia 30b) relates a story that involved R' Yishmael the son of R' Yosi handling another situation with grace where person making the request clearly also had no idea about how to talk to an important person. The gemara ends by quoting R' Yochanan as saying that Yerushalayim was only destroyed because people were not acting לפנים משורת הדין/beyond the letter of the law.
Hang on there! Haven't we heard loud and clear that Yerushalayim was destroyed because of שנאת חינם/baseless hatred?! Doesn't that make much more sense? I can certainly understand hatred among Jews causing us to lose our precious Beis HaMikdash. But not going beyond the letter of the law? Isn't that extra credit? Maybe I won't get the sixth aliyah on Shabbos; but I deserve to be kicked out of shul for because I didn't graciously give up my seat and offer the stranger my tallis?
As it turns out, Tosafos asks the question; right there on the page. One of those short, one line Tosafos that are either just a quick p'shat or something quite cryptic. This one is both. Tosafos asks that this contradicts the quote from R' Yochanan (Yoma 60b) that lays the blame squarely on שנאת חינם/baseless hatred. Tosafos gives a chilling answer: הא והא גרמא/they both caused it. Google translate, by the way, gives this very non-literal translation of that: This is a terrible thing. Well... I agree... this is a terrible thing!
On the other hand, maybe it's not such a terrible thing. As a good friend of mine says, I have absolutely no baseless hatred for anyone -- I have very good reasons for all of my hatred. So fixing שנאת חינם is not such an easy thing. On the other hand, working on acting לפנים משורת הדין/beyond the letter of the law is not so terrible. I can take little steps; like washing the spoon left in the sink by the last person, or putting even the books I didn't use back on shelf. And, besides, I can pat myself on the back for being such a big tzadik. So first I'll work on getting back the Beis HaMikdash and then I'll work on my arrogance.
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