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 is not an average person. His insight is piercing, and his outlook is visionary.
The following story, which is cited by Yalkut Lekach Tov, sends home this profound message: The Brisker Rav, Horav Yitzchok Zev Soloveitchik, zl, was a young man when he assumed the leadership of the community of Brisk. While he was young, he was an accomplished Torah scholar, widely respected for his erudition and Torah insight. The story takes place when the Rav was twenty-three years old. It was Rosh Hashanah. Two officers came to the shul to ask the Rav to come quickly with them to recite vidui, confessional, with a Jewish prisoner who had been condemned to death. Not wishing to disturb the Rav who was at the moment in middle of saying Shemonah Esrai, they said they would return a bit later. A few of the members of the congregation suggested asking another one of the rabbanim to meet with the prisoner. The officers responded that they had orders to bring the Rav of Brisk, not just any rabbi.
When the Brisker Rav concluded his tefillah, prayer, the people rushed over and told him what had occurred. They understandably encouraged him to go immediately. He gave the matter some thought, finally deciding that he was not going. Fearing reprisal from the authorities, they demanded that the Rav acquiesce and go with the officers. A number of committee members were insolent enough to tell the Rav that he was endangering the lives of the entire community. The Rav would not change his position. He was not going.
The officers returned during the Mussaf Shemonah Esrai. Sensing their presence, the Rav continued standing as if he was still praying. The congregation’s patience had reached a bursting point, when one of the older, more distinguished looking members of the shul, came forward to the officers and claimed that he was actually the Rav. They believed him and proceeded to go with him to the jail.
After davening, services, two policemen came to the Brisker Rav’s home. His family feared that they were coming to arrest him for refusing to go with the original messengers. They quickly discovered that these policemen were from a different community. They had been sent to stop the Rav from going to the jail. Apparently, the accused Jew was not guilty; it was a case of mistaken identity and he would not be executed. It was, however, too late. The “elder”, who was so clever and had “replaced” the Rav, had inadvertently caused the death of an innocent Jew. Had they only listened to the young rav, had they only accepted his da’as Torah, a Jew would be alive, a tragedy would have been averted.
We must ask ourselves; How often do we choose to ignore the instructions of our gedolim, Torah leadership? How often do we think we have all the answers, asserting that they are not attuned to the “times”? How often do we realize too late that our impulsiveness and arrogance have created situations that unfortunately have had tragic consequences?
