העורך Editor

Ryan McMaken on Mises.org:

This is all a helpful reminder that the true divide in society is not between the “private sector” and the “government sector.” Since at least the days of mercantilism, the private sector has often been eager to assist the regime in imposing more controls on the public. Rather, the true divide is between the exploiter class and the productive class. The productive are the true entrepreneurs, the net taxpayers, and those who receive no special favors from the regime. The exploiter class is the FBI, the bureaucracy, the tax collectors, and the other enforcers of the state’s regulatory apparatus. But the exploiter class also includes those “private sector” entities that seek to help the exploiters carry out their mission. Clearly, this includes a sizable portion of today’s corporate class, especially in Silicon Valley.

רמב”ם הל’ ברכות פרק ב’ ד’:

ברכה שלישית פותח בה רחם יי’ אלהינו עלינו ועל ישראל עמך ועל ירושלים עירך ועל ציון משכן כבודך. או נחמנו יי’ אלהינו בירושלים עירך וחותם בה בונה ירושלים או מנחם עמו ישראל בבנין ירושלים. ולפיכך נקראת ברכה זו נחמה. וכל מי שלא אמר מלכות בית דוד בברכה זו לא יצא ידי חובתו מפני שהיא ענין הברכה שאין נחמה גמורה אלא בחזרת מלכות בית דוד.

Listen on EconTalk here (I assume it’s as good as the original article)…

A certain God-fearing Torah scholar who doesn’t shy away from controversy when there is no choice (acting truly for the sake of heaven) once related to me that he tried hard to marry his daughter into an illustrious rabbinic family (in his thinking, anyway), but the shidduch failed.

Why? Because someone whispered to the potential mechutan about the father’s controversial actions. “Not that there’s anything wrong with him, chalilah! He is (probably) doing the good and proper thing. And the family (may) have great qualities. But still, what does that have to do with you? Find a different kosher family, minus the baggage. What do you need a headache for?!”

The non-mechutan is quite famous. I’m sure you heard of him: the “Ploni Almoni” Rebbe!

From the book of Ruth (thinking along the lines of the famous explanation of the Brisker Rav):

…

And he said, “Who are you? ” And she said, “I am Ruth, your handmaid, and you shall spread your skirt over your handmaid, for you are a near kinsman.”

And he said, “May you be blessed of the Lord, my daughter; your latest act of kindness is greater than the first, not to follow the young men, whether poor or rich.

It wasn’t just Boaz who realized her nobility:

And now, my daughter, do not fear, all that you say I will do for you, for the entire gate of my people know that you are a valiant woman.

And now, indeed, I am a near kinsman, but there is a kinsman closer than I.

Stay over tonight, and it will come to pass in the morning, that if he redeems you, well, let him redeem you, but if he does not wish to redeem you, I will redeem you, as the Lord lives; lie down until morning.”

…

And Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz had spoken was passing, and he said, “Turn aside, sit down here, Ploni Almoni,” and he turned aside and sat down.

Why is his name erased?

…

And Boaz said, “On the day that you buy the field from the hand of Naomi and from Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the deceased, you have bought [it], to preserve the name of the deceased on his heritage.”

And the near kinsman said, “I cannot redeem [it] for myself, lest I mar my heritage. You redeem my redemption for yourself for I cannot redeem [it].”

Or, as the expression goes in Yiddish: “Don’t lie down with a healthy head in a sick bed.”

… And Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David.

That David, huh? Must be chance.

No, I don’t want to believe it either! If even the venerable can change for the better, such is the extent of Free Will, then so can I, so my excuses for shortcomings are all gone…

This report deeply offends and radically upsets my strong beliefs and emotions toward “Chadash assur min hatorah” types like Rabbi Moshe Sternbuch shlita.

The venerable head of the Eidah Charedis (!), ultra-conservative Posek (not in lomdus, albeit in practice), a strong follower of the Brisker Rav (and supposedly of the Chazon Ish too (?!), which is far from the truth) and a clericalist, Rabbi Sternbuch has long written verbose haskamos to anti-Techeiles works and wrote one or two (nonsensical) Teshuvos in his “Teshuvos Vehanhagos” responsa series against Techeiles, as well. Rabbi Sternbuch even wrote haskamos to various outrageous hack jobs, such as “Tichla Dechilazon” by Rabbi Eliezer Alexander Hool shlita.

A completely non-observant Jew doing Teshuvah is nothing next to this (sure, hyperbole).

I recall about five times impious Jews brushed me off saying in a mocking tone: “Know what, when Rabbi Moshe Sternbuch (!) starts wearing Techeiles, I will too, OK??? (giggle\titter)”.

Regardless, the importance of this cannot be overstated.

What’s next, Rabbi Sternbuch ascending Har Habayis in private (Hebrew link)?!

(Out of sheer boredom, I returned to some of these folks with the newly uncovered tentative evidence herein regarding Rabbi Sternbuch. Needless to say, they promptly retracted their righteousness or couldn’t care less.)

So, to business.

Why do I say the rabbi maybe now wears it privately himself? First and foremost, Rabbi Yechezkel Toporovitch (who earlier testifies he got Rabbi Sternbuch to lessen his opposition) says so.

And I quote (I don’t need Rabbi Chaim Ozer Sternbuch’s permission, since he clearly doesn’t mind):

בס”ד

אני עצמי סיפקתי להגאון ר’ משה שטרנבוך שליט”א פתילי תכלת עבור טלית קטן על ידי הבעל תוקע שלו הרב מיכאל לוי שליט”א וכן על ידי הבן של הראב”ד הרה”ג ר’ חיים עוזר שליט”א

למיטב ידיעתי הוא לובש מידי פעם שמעתי שיש תקופות שהוא לובש כל יום לפני התפילה

כמו כן שמעתי מבנו הגר”חע שאביו הראב”ד שליט”א אמר לו שאפשר לפרסם בשמו שהוא כבר לא נגד כמו שהיה פעם

לגבי שיטות מספר החוטים הנה בתחילה סבר לעשות כהתוס’ וכך גם שלחתי לו אח”כ אחרי שעיין בזה שוב החליף לשיטת הראב”ד

לגבי פרסום הדבר שיש אצלו ציצית עם תכלת ושהוא לובש מידי פעם, אפשר לשאול את בנו הנ”ל אם אפשר לפרסם

בכל הכבוד הראוי
יחזקאל משה הלוי טופורוביץ
פעיה”ק ירושלים תובב”א

Reb Mirnik then writes as follows (I got permission to record this):

למדתי אצל ר’ משה ג’ שנים בישיבה ושאלתי אותו 3 פעמים על התכלת

Things are looking up⇑⇑⇑ (?)

Can any of our readers help confirm\disconfirm this shocking scandal, I mean story?

UPDATES: Rabbi Daniel Yaakov Travis testified Rabbi Sternbuch told him he wears it sometimes. BlueFringes.com has an article (borrowing from this one!) with additional testimonies.

P.S., Someone commented he thinks Rabbi Sternbuch is “opening up” lately, whatever that means (Goloventzitz graves, and the volte-face on artificial insemination for the infertile from prohibition (like Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky zatzal) to outright encouragement, אכמ”ל).