Description: Chapter 1 - 02
Ahavas Chesed
Chapter 1 – 02
The Chafetz Chaim goes on to explain, why the pasuk says, ‘higid lechah ha’adam mah tov,’ Michah Hanavi is coming to teach us something we don’t know, and what does he tell us? To do mishpat! Something we are quite familiar with from many sources in the Torah. But the pshat is, as we just demonstrated with this mashal, that having money which is not yours, which has been acquired dishonestly, which might be gezel – is bad for a person. If he is wearing a shirt which is stolen, it can cause him to lose all his money.
Therefore, the navi is saying, you might think that it is a good thing to make as much money as you possibly can, without being ultra-careful to be honest, and you might fudge over some people’s rights, or not pay them when you are obligated to them, or keep something which isn’t really yours, or use somebody’s things without permission, or damage something without paying for it, and so on and so forth. Fact is, you tell yourself, I am making a lot of money, and although I am not totally scrupulous, I will eventually be called to task in the world-to-come, but at least here and now – I’m rich! That’s good! Michah Hanavi tells us – no! It’s bad right here and right now. Stealing, being dishonest, not being uber-sensitive to other people’s money, will cause you to lose your money right now in this world! The only thing that is good in this world is if you do ‘mishpat,’ meaning you earn your money truthfully and honestly, keeping all the laws of Choshen Mishpat in the Torah.
The Chafetz Chaim made this one of the focal points of his life. I heard from his grandson, Rav Hillel Zaks alav hashalom, that when he was a baby, (his mother told him,) the Chafetz Chaim held him on his lap and stroked his hands, saying, ‘Ah! Hands which are clean from gezel!’ He told that the Chafetz Chaim once received ‘matnas kehunah’ from the neighborhood butcher. That means, the Torah obligates every butcher to give a significant portion of every cow or lamb he slaughters to the kohen. You have to give the cheek and the whole tongue, the foreleg, and the stomach to the kohen. We don’t observe this generally today, because its assumed that the kohanim don’t want to go through the trouble of collecting these parts and are mocheil. Nevertheless, if someone wants, they can definitely do this mitzvah, so the butcher gave these parts to the Chafetz Chaim who was a kohen. The rest of the day, he gazed at this gift and said, ‘I can’t believe it – money which is 100% honest and true – not a speck of gezel in it!’
The pasuk continues saying, ‘vi’ahavas chesed.’ Meaning, it’s not sufficient to just observe the halachos of Choshen Mishpat scrupulously, and think that your money will be protected. Every person has to keep the mitzvos of chesed which we can do with our money, which is giving tzedakah and lending our money to those who need, because only with the zchus of tzedakah and chesed is our money protected.
Now the Chafetz Chaim will explain why the pasuk terms this specifically as ‘loving chesed – Ahavas chesed!’ Unfortunately, many of us are don’t fulfill this obligation which the pasuk is teaching us. We do chesed as it comes our way. If someone impoverished is standing at our door, and he’s come by once or twice already, we simply can’t refuse him, so we help him out, and even then, not happily and with a full heart. But the Torah tells us – that’s not enough! You are not fulfilling your obligation of chesed with these chance encounters with people in need! You have to love chesed.
Ahavas Chesed
Chapter 1 – 02
The Chafetz Chaim goes on to explain, why the pasuk says, ‘higid lechah ha’adam mah tov,’ Michah Hanavi is coming to teach us something we don’t know, and what does he tell us? To do mishpat! Something we are quite familiar with from many sources in the Torah. But the pshat is, as we just demonstrated with this mashal, that having money which is not yours, which has been acquired dishonestly, which might be gezel – is bad for a person. If he is wearing a shirt which is stolen, it can cause him to lose all his money.
Therefore, the navi is saying, you might think that it is a good thing to make as much money as you possibly can, without being ultra-careful to be honest, and you might fudge over some people’s rights, or not pay them when you are obligated to them, or keep something which isn’t really yours, or use somebody’s things without permission, or damage something without paying for it, and so on and so forth. Fact is, you tell yourself, I am making a lot of money, and although I am not totally scrupulous, I will eventually be called to task in the world-to-come, but at least here and now – I’m rich! That’s good! Michah Hanavi tells us – no! It’s bad right here and right now. Stealing, being dishonest, not being uber-sensitive to other people’s money, will cause you to lose your money right now in this world! The only thing that is good in this world is if you do ‘mishpat,’ meaning you earn your money truthfully and honestly, keeping all the laws of Choshen Mishpat in the Torah.
The Chafetz Chaim made this one of the focal points of his life. I heard from his grandson, Rav Hillel Zaks alav hashalom, that when he was a baby, (his mother told him,) the Chafetz Chaim held him on his lap and stroked his hands, saying, ‘Ah! Hands which are clean from gezel!’ He told that the Chafetz Chaim once received ‘matnas kehunah’ from the neighborhood butcher. That means, the Torah obligates every butcher to give a significant portion of every cow or lamb he slaughters to the kohen. You have to give the cheek and the whole tongue, the foreleg, and the stomach to the kohen. We don’t observe this generally today, because its assumed that the kohanim don’t want to go through the trouble of collecting these parts and are mocheil. Nevertheless, if someone wants, they can definitely do this mitzvah, so the butcher gave these parts to the Chafetz Chaim who was a kohen. The rest of the day, he gazed at this gift and said, ‘I can’t believe it – money which is 100% honest and true – not a speck of gezel in it!’
The pasuk continues saying, ‘vi’ahavas chesed.’ Meaning, it’s not sufficient to just observe the halachos of Choshen Mishpat scrupulously, and think that your money will be protected. Every person has to keep the mitzvos of chesed which we can do with our money, which is giving tzedakah and lending our money to those who need, because only with the zchus of tzedakah and chesed is our money protected.
Now the Chafetz Chaim will explain why the pasuk terms this specifically as ‘loving chesed – Ahavas chesed!’ Unfortunately, many of us are don’t fulfill this obligation which the pasuk is teaching us. We do chesed as it comes our way. If someone impoverished is standing at our door, and he’s come by once or twice already, we simply can’t refuse him, so we help him out, and even then, not happily and with a full heart. But the Torah tells us – that’s not enough! You are not fulfilling your obligation of chesed with these chance encounters with people in need! You have to love chesed.