With Passover just around the corner, Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) is warning community members to be careful regarding who they trust with their shaimos (books or other sacred objects which can no longer be used but may not be destroyed).
“Does anyone ever question what happens to their shaimos after they’ve paid someone to put it in the back of a truck?,” asked Assemblyman Hikind. “They should. Every year we encounter disasters in Boro Park, upstate New York, and in other communities where box upon box of shaimos are discovered abandoned and or otherwise treated with utter disrespect.
“Between the holidays of Purim and Passover, trucks are found all over the community conducting a lucrative business by accepting shaimos. Our community members diligently keep their shaimos safe all year long and I strongly urge that before they say goodbye to this shamos, they take the time to find out where it’s going. Ask lots of questions. Leave the shaimos in your basement until you know with certainty where it’s headed.
“Last year, our research led to the discovery that precious shaimos had been dumped in a landfill among garbage and dirty diapers. That’s certainly not where I want my shaimos to end up. After our discovery, I received many calls from community members who were heartbroken to learn that their shaimos was being treated disrespectfully or worse, left abandoned along the road.
“We’ve seen enough horror stories. So take the time to follow up before you trust just anyone with your shaimos.”
(YWN Desk – NYC)
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5 Responses
That is why my Buba will only use the Rov’s sheimos
I don’t think anyone has to be worried. If a person says he’ll take it off your hands, you have no more responsibility to care for the shaimos. Are you going crazy if some random person throws their own shaimos on the street? No. So in the same spirit, if he accepts it from you, it now becomes his and he has the obligation. You have no responsibility to follow up. This is not shlichus.
My point is not that this is good. But it’s between the scammer and God. This isn’t stealing from the public. People are paying essentially to hand over the responsibility and that transfer actually happens. I could hear lifnei iver and bizayon ldvarim shebekedusha but only if you knew for a fact this what was going to be done.
Hikind is right; “Shimon” is wrong. If you have good reason to suspect that someone will abandon the Shaimos you give him, then your obligation to honor the shaimos prohibits your entrusting your shaimos to that person. A bit of common sense.
Shimon, would you eat from a hechsher if you saw violations happening? Can you say its between the mashgiach and Hashem. Or would you opt to find a reliable person who has proven to adhere to the rules? I think the author of the article was letting people who are meticulous to take care of their shaimos, and want to treat them with the utmostncare to be aware that there are some unscrupulous people .