[Avodah] Aveira Lishmah

[kennethgmiller at juno.com]

I am bothered by a dvar Torah I recently read about Lech Lecha. It was written by a Rabbi Yaacov Haber of "TorahLab". You can read the full article at http://www.torahlab.org/calendar/article/soul_sacrifice/  Here's the second half of it:

> Avrohom gave up his spiritual growth for the spiritual growth of
> his nephew Lot. Avrohom’s kindness was not limited to his
> sacrificing his body comfort only. He was willing to sacrifice
> the fulfillment of his soul for the spiritual welfare of another
> human being.
>
> I once heard a story from the Mirrer Rosh Yeshivah, Rabbi Shmuel
> Berenbaum  ZTtl. (1920 -2008)
>
> There was a small town that needed a mikvah. The Rav of the town
> spoke to the people of the importance of the project and he
> finally persuaded the community to build the mikvah. There was
> only one catch. The community owned a piece of land where the old
> synagogue once stood. They had built a new synagogue down the
> street and the community leaders decided that the only place for
> the mikvah is where the Shul stands no more.
>
> The dilemma; there are many things that one can build on the plot
> that was once a shul. One of the things that can not be built
> there is a mikvah! If the rabbi allows for the building of the
> mikvah he is violating the halachah; if he doesn’t then the
> community will not have a mikvah at all. What should he do?
>
> The perplexed Rabbi decided to consult with the sagacious Chazon
> Ish. (Rabbi Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz, (1878-1953)
>
> The Chazon Ish answered, “If you build the mikvah you will be
> punished by G-d for violating the Halachah. However, as the Rabbi
> you should accept this punishment upon yourself so that the
> community will have a Mikvah!”
>
> The answer boggles the mind, but this is the teaching of Abraham.
>
> How far should one go? You have to even give up your soul in
> order to benefit the soul of your neighbor. Chesed L’Avrohom!

For the sake of discussion, let's presume that the story is accurate.

I certainly understand that there are times when one must sacrifice some of his ruchniyus for the sake of someone else. But that should be limited to choosing a less-important mitzvah over a more-important mitzvah. (As in our parsha, where Avraham would certainly have preferred not to remain in the company of Lot, but did so as a chessed to Lot.) What I DON'T understand is actually descending into forbidden territory for this purpose -- how can one actually commit an aveira lishmah?

Actually, I DO understand that. We are humans, and sometimes our emotions get the better of us, and our yetzer hara convinces us to do things that we ought not do. For example, in the story cited, suppose the rav of that town had said to himself, "I know it is assur to build a mikveh on the spot where a shul used to stand. But I'm just not strong enough. I want these people to have a mikveh, and I'm going to let them do it." -- I can understand that. Perhaps too well.

But that is an individual losing the fight with his own yetzer hara. How can the Gadol Hador take the side of the Yetzer Hara in that battle? How can the Chazon Ish tell the rav, "you should accept this punishment upon yourself so that the community will have a Mikvah!"

I do not think this discussion should debate the halacha that a mikveh may not be built on the spot where a shul used to be. Maybe there are extenuating circumstances where one may be lenient, but citing those opinions would take us away from the question which I'm asking. Besides, if the story is accurate, then the Chazon Ish did not cite those leniencies either. And he also didn't urge the rav to work harder on finding a different place to build the mikveh. He seems to have accepted the halacha that if the only place to build a mikveh is on the spot where a shul used to be, then the mikveh may NOT be built there. Yet he urged the rav to do so anyway.

So my question is: GIVEN that a certain action is assur, why on earth would the Gadol Hador advise someone to violate the halacha?

Akiva Miller


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