[Avodah] Ona'as D'varim re: the Departed

[rabbirichwolpoe at gmail.com]

[For Background see 
Chofetz Chaim Daily Companion P. 29]

Given:
If ploni [say R Akiva] had a past as an "am ho'oretz", and then did
Teshuva, it is ona'ah to remind him of who he USED to be.

Same with any BT or Ger.

Question:
What about now? Is it OK to talk disparangingly about R Akiva's former
life before his teshuvah?

The following below came up in teaching history lessons.

Let's say "R. Pinchas" was a kanai against the Rambam and led the charge
against his books. This led to the "eino-yehudim" burning those books
[EG the Moreh]

Later "R. Pinchas" has harata and did Teshuva and became a defender
of the Rambam's right to write what he wrote, and "self-flagelated"
himself over his role in arousing the book-burnings.

Questions:
1 May historians note R. Pinchas' misdeeds at all?

2 I'm timzei lomar that it's OK to recall his former attitude, is it OK
to omit his later Harata?

3 Is it OK to STILL lump R. Pinchas amongst the anti-Maimonideans -
given his subsequent change-of-heart?

Gutn Hanukkah
RRW
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