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Whether the tree was specifically designated for idol worship, or  any  tree planted near the Bais Hamikdash, it is forbidden – as it was the custom of the pagans to landscape their temples.  The inside of the Mikdash  is important, not the edifice’s external beauty.  From the juxtaposition of the pasuk concerning the idolatrous tree on to the pesukim about appointing judges, Chazal derive the importance of appointing only those judges who are reputable, G-d-fearing, honest men.  It goes without saying that he must be erudite in all areas of Jewish law.  Indeed, Chazal say that one who appoints an…

Torah leadership expound da’as Torah, the perspective as seen by the Torah.  It is therefore imperative that we listen and follow their instructions.  These are people whose Torah scholarship is part of their essence.  They are imbued with a holiness and purity that emanates from them, a yiraas Shomayim, fear of Heaven, that permeates their every endeavor.  Their perspective is Torah perspective.  It is  the purpose of this thesis neither to validate the importance of listening to da’as Torah nor to confirm its Divine origin, but rather to indicate that a person who achieves the status of rendering da’as Torah…