In connection with yesterday’s pro-monarchy article, a reader writes:
I know of a case whereby a pulpit Rav was found by an objective Beis Din to have been completely untrustworthy and of harming the livelihood and reputations of others; because his victims were few in number they covered up their findings, reasoning that being that most of his congregants still trusted him and looked up to him, if a communal debate over his ouster were to happen, perhaps the congregants would have to decide among themselves by a vote, and divulging the information they had would just result in Chillul Hashem, i.e., laymen losing their trust in him, and by extension, other Rabbinic figures.At the time, I thought that justice should win, but now I see their wisdom. Putting anything up for a public vote results in too much evil speech, slander, innuendo, and libel. Election season is mudslinging season, and could you imagine the destruction if the Davidic leader of the Jewish people had to win re-election, say, every decade? The results would be disastrous, even if only matters of truth were to come out.