Schlepping Elevating Bags | Rabbi Elazar Meisels

Rav Nota Greenblat zt”l was a legendary Rav and Posek in Memphis, Tennessee, for many years. Included in his many responsibilities, was overseeing the Kashrus in numerous manufacturing plants. Whenever he passed one of those plants, he would stop his car and pay an unannounced visit to the plant, just to ensure that everything was according to plan. One of his sons shared that whenever Rav Nota would go into the plants, he would take out of the car along with him two heavy bags, filled with items that had nothing to do with his visit. And as they walked their way through the plant and looked and spoke to people, Rav Nota held tightly onto those two bags, even though he never referred to the items that were within. Many years later, Rav Nota explained to his son why he did this. He was afraid that when he walked into that plant or met someone there, a woman might extend her hand in greeting to him. He wouldn't want to shame her by refusing to take her hand, but at the same time, he wanted to preserve his Middas HaKedushah in the most pristine fashion. Therefore, he lugged around two heavy bags throughout these massive plants, because that way, no one would wonder why he wasn't returning their handshake. When HaKadosh Baruch Hu took us out of Mitzrayim, the pasuk says, HaKadosh Baruch Hu did not take us the way of the Plishtim, which would have been so much more practical, so much faster, shorter, that's the way to go, because Hashem said, They may want to return and go back to Mitzrayim. R' Chaim Shmuelevitz asks, Is there even a hope, a chance, that they would want to go back to Mitzrayim? Nobody wants to go back to Mitzrayim, not after what they had endured over there. Why would Hashem be worried that they might want to go back to Mitzrayim? Says R' Chaim Shmuelevitz, From here you see that you should not place yourself into a situation where you may be tempted to do the wrong thing, even if there's not even a chance that you will actually act upon it. A Jew does not place himself into a temptation. This, my friends, was practically the first lesson we were taught, as we were becoming Klal Yisroel. A Jew does not put himself into a place where he may be tempted to do the wrong thing, even though he knows that he won't. Rav Nota, the great Posek that he was, knew every היתר, but Rav Nota didn't want to rely on a היתר. He preferred instead not to place himself into a situation where a temptation might exist. To a casual observer, it may look like by lugging those heavy bags around, Rav Nota was weighing himself down. But Rav Nota knew better. He was raising himself up, ever and ever higher.