Daily Chafetz Chaim – Day 251

Before you tell your friend he was cheated, is there a way to fix it without speaking rechilus at all?

Rabbi Klapper adds another rule of to'eles: whenever possible, go directly to the one who cheated rather than to the victim. Maybe the store owner doesn't even realize what he did or its halachic ramifications, and would return the money on his own — sparing you from speaking rechilus. More broadly, if there is any other way to reach the same goal without lashon hara, you must take it. The Chofetz Chaim brings the source from a Gemara in Sanhedrin: when Yehoshua asked Hashem who took from the cheirem of Yericho, Hashem essentially answered, am I a talebearer? Figure it out yourself — so Yehoshua used a goral instead.

Think out of the box before you speak — and join us again tomorrow.

Hosted by Rabbi Ari Klapper and produced by Eli Podcast Productions, this episode is part of the Real Judaism series, available on RealJudaism.org. Don't forget to subscribe and share to stay connected with our daily lessons and timeless Torah insights!