So As Not to Swear

Once the Chavas Das, zt”l, was travelling incognito with a group of merchants. There was no way to tell that the man dressed as a poor wayfarer was one of the famous rabbinic personages of his time. As the coach neared the outskirts of a city one of the merchants discovered that he had been robbed. Everyone began talking at once, except the Chavas Das. One of the merchants accused him of the crime. “I bet the silent pauper stole it; he has sharp eyes like a fraud and is the only one who is silent.” Although the Chavas Das denied taking anything, the merchants brought him to the local Rabbi. Since he resembled a poor man, the Rabbi figured it likely that he took the money. “The halacha is that you must either produce the money or swear you didn't take it!” The Chavas Das considered his predicament. “I will pay half the money to avoid swearing,” he declared. The merchant figured that he must be the thief; otherwise why not swear? “Either pay the entire sum or swear!” The Chavas Das thought another moment and offered three quarters of the sum. When that was rejected, he offered to pay almost the entire amount, which the merchant also dismissed. “I can't pay more so I will have to swear,” the Chavas Das said. “But first I need time to prepare myself.” He went into the corner and began to cry, obviously doing intense teshuvah. After a few minutes of this, one of the merchants fainted. When he woke up he admitted that he had taken the money and rushed to return it. When the merchants left, the Rav demanded that the Chavas Das reveal who he was, which he eventually did, brushing aside the Rav's natural apologies. “Why apologize? You ruled according to halacha.” “Why did you first offer half, then more and finally almost the entire amount, before you agreed to swear?” the rabbi asked. “First I offered all my money; then my material goods. My final offer included all of my property. Since I can't raise more and do not have the strength to take on debts I agreed to swear.”

Nullifying Divine Anger

Our sages teach that as long as there are thieves in the world, Hashem’s anger will be in the world. Rav Yonasan Eibeschitz, zt”l, wonders why thieves are worse than anyone else. He explains, “One cannot deny that every wicked person brings Hashem’s anger into the world when he acts against the Divine will. But it is well known that that a thief who acts with care that he not be caught by mere people is worse than an armed ruffian who robs openly, fearing neither man nor Hashem.
“On the other hand, it is known that one who gives tzedakah in secret nullifies Hashem’s anger. We may well ask why this is so. The obvious reason is because the person giving does so solely for the sake of heaven, since he knows that Hashem sees even where others do not. Although the sinful deeds of most wicked people also are the result of willful ignoring Diving providence, nevertheless, thieves who act as though Hashem’s providence does not exist at all are the exact inverse of the kind actions of one who gives in secret. For this reason, the mitigation of Divine wrath their good deeds accomplish do not extend to the furtive pilfering of the burglar.”
“The ultimate teshuvah is when one repents from sins between man and his fellow man such as theft. This is why we say at the end of Yom Kippur, 'למען נחדל מעושק ידינו'—‘That we might refrain from oppression at our hands.’ The main thing in teshuvah is to erect fences and strict boundaries to ensure that one does not return to his sinful behavior.”

The Improbable Thief

Towards the end of his life, Rav Yisrael Salanter, zt”l, stayed at the home of one his supporters. To the shock of his host, Rav Yisrael ordered that if he was taken ill on Shabbos he was not to do any prohibited labor to save his life. When his host asked what possible rationale he had for this, Rav Yisrael explained, “Our sages tell us that a professional thief is not saved with prohibited labor on Shabbos. Since I am afraid that I may be in this category, I beseech you not to violate this halachah and save me.”
“But why do you say that you suspect you might be a professional thief?” the man stuttered.
Rav Yisrael’s reply was astounding. “I am supported by people because they think I am a holy tzaddik. But the sad truth is that I am not at all. This means that the money given is theft and you may not violate Shabbos even if my life is in danger...”
The host was very reluctant to follow Rav Yisrael’s instructions but was equally hesitant about disregarding his psak without consulting a renowned posek. He chose Rav Yitzchak Elchonon Spector, zt”l, who disagreed with Rav Yisrael. “Despite what he told you, you are obligated to violate Shabbos to save Rav Yisrael’s life.”
When Rav Yaakov Kaminetsky, zt”l, would recount this story he would comment, “Interestingly, Rav Yisrael was never in such a situation on Shabbos. His condition worsened on motzei Shabbos and he died on erev Shabbos. This is a prime example of a fulfillment of the verse, 'רצון יראיו יעשה'—‘Hashem does the will of those who fear Him.’”

Theft by Another Name

Our sages recount that a certain thief wished to do teshvuah but was discouraged when his wife said to him, “Empty one! If you repent, even the avneit, the fancy belt around your waist, will no longer be your own!”
The Brisker Rav, zt”l, commented on this, “We see from here that even a respectable person who wears an avneit may still be a thief!”
Of course most people do not steal in its more prosaic sense. Yet the Chazon Ish, zt”l, pointed out an area where even honest people are often “moreh heter” and withhold money belonging to another, G-d forbid. In the Chazon Ish’s words, “The most prevalent form of theft today is failure to pay shadchanus. A shadchan has the halachic status of a laborer, and one is obligated according to Torah law to pay him for his services the customary fee in one’s area.”
On many occasions the Chazon Ish refered to shadchanus as “kosher gelt”—well-deserved earnings.
A certain person approached the Chazon Ish with a very painful problem. Although several years had elapsed from the wedding, he and his wife still had no children.
“Did you pay the shadchan?” asked the Chazon Ish.
“It is virtually certain that he is halachically not entitled to a penny in our particular case.”
The Chazon Ish pushed this claim aside. “Even so, go and pay the customary fee.”
The very next year the couple had their first child!