[Avodah] Lifnei Iver/Kanaus

[Chana Luntz]

RDB writes:
> 
> In Derech Sicha (discussions with R' Chaim Kanievsky arranged 
> in the order of the Parshiyos) pg. 369 the following is brought:
> 
> "I told the Rav Shlit"a what I heard about one Talmid Chacham 
> zt"l, who once went to a certain Gvir, and in the waiting 
> room there was an immodest picture, and he immediately ripped 
> it. When he went into the Gvir, the Gvir told him: You should 
> have asked! He responded: "And when you hung up the picture 
> did you ask me?"
> 
> The Rav responded that he certainly did a good thing Al Pi 
> Din, since this is Lifnei Iver, but if it were a Goy he would 
> have to ask permission, since a Goy is not prohibited in Lifnei Iver."
> 
> On page 297, the following appears:
> "Question: A Bachur has a radio in his room in Yeshiva, and 
> his friend wants to break it and pay for it. Maran HaRav 
> Shach zt"l once said that it is allowed for a child in his 
> home to take his parents' radio and dispose of it.
> 
> Answer: He can break it, and not pay. I don't know if he is 
> obligated to do so but there is an Inyan to do this. The 
> Chazon Ish was once asked about a Bachur who saw heretical 
> material by his friend, and he told him to dispose of it, and 
> that he is absolved from having to pay."

I note that Rav Henkin in Benei Banim (chelek sheni siman 47) has a teshuva
on whether a school is permitted to take away objects from their talmidim
and only return them after a number of days or weeks or if they improve
their ways and he comes out very strongly against the practice, on the
grounds that it is a violation of lo signov.  And he holds that neither the
justification that a) it is done for the good of the talmid nor that b) the
object will be returned at the end of some days is a valid excuse.  

On the other hand all this is applied to objects which are not intrinsically
assur.  He goes on to distinguish (albeit in  a single paragraph, and this
paragraph, unlike the rest of the teshuva, is not sourced - on the rest of
the teshuva, there is extensive, particularly rishonic, material quoted)
between chaftezim which are intrisically assur (assurim b'etzim) for which
he gives the examples of sifrei toeva or destructive weapons where it is not
good that such an object is in the reshut of the student at all, and where
he seems to indicate that it is a mitzva to take such objects away, and
chafetzim which are not intrisically assur (and he states in a footnote that
a radio is not intrinsically assur and that those mashgichim in a few
institutions who throw the radios of their talmidim into the garbage will in
the future be called to judgement on gezela.)  The prime example (which
brings into focus the essence of his teshuva) is of a student who plays with
a ball and is late for shiur, where he holds that while he can be required
to stay late or punished in other ways, taking away the ball, which is not
an intrinsically assur object, is not permitted, even for a few days.

Of course a school would seem to be in a bit of a different position from
some stam individual, as it would a) appear to have been entrusted by the
father with his mitzvah of chinuch (even if the methods that the school
chooses to use might not necessarily be in accordance with the wishes of the
father - eg in this case of confiscation of property) and b) arguably might
be considered to be some sort of shaliach of beis din as well (and of course
beis din is specifically entrusted to separate a child from a vadai issur -
although  that is really about what is required when dealing with a minor,
who may or may not be capable of understanding, and not an adult who is
chayav in mitzvos).

I have some more thoughts on the subject, but I really need to check some
references before I post them, and it is very late, and I am tired and very
busy, so maybe more when I have a chance to open some more sforim.

Regards

Chana