As millions of Israelis ran to bomb shelters after Hamas fired rockets at central Israel on Thursday for the first time in months, HaGaon HaRav Berel Povarsky was in the middle of delivering a shiur to a group of bochurim at his home.
Seemingly oblivious of the siren, he continued engaging in the sweet words of Torah.
The siren was the second one in less than 24 hours. The Houthis launched a missile in the pre-dawn hours of Thursday morning, triggering sirens in central Israel and Jerusalem. B’Chasdei Hashem, the missile was intercepted before it entered Israel.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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6 Responses
is pikuach nefesh mutar in order to learn torah? let’s be daan le’kav zechut that the siren was not heard.
@DrYidd – I asked your question to one of the Gedolim in Bnei Brak months ago when we had a siren in the middle of a shiur. Without going into details, the answer lies in how great a pikuch nefesh it really is. 1) With the iron dome, very few rockets actual reach their destination, 2) The Gedolim in Bnei Brak believe in the havtacha that the Chazon Ish gave that no bombs will land in Bnei Brak (so far, that’s never happened), 3) The study of Torah protects klal yisrael. There’s more to say and others may argue, but that is what they hold. In this case, אלו ואלו דברי אלוקים חיים
Those who prefer to risk themselves should sign release papers with Iron Dome commanders and provide their coordinates, so that Iron Done does not waste munitions to stop missiles that go into their coordinates.
Fear FOR one’s life and a threat TO one’s life are not the same.
One is subjective, the other objective.
One may be fearful when there is no threat, and one may feel no fear even when there is a real threat present.
VoiceofReason2005, The CI was not a navi. There were no Missiles of today’s caliber 80 years ago. The study of Torah did not protect Rabbe Akivah; we are commanded ushemarten et nafshosaichem
Here’s the answer:
A clear sakana + a clear-cut hishtadlus = a din to take action.
Since it is neither, it’s a sfek sfeka.
And since learning Torah is a vadai protection, the din to do hishtadlus is fully fulfilled by learning.