Shoftim

The greater part of this sidra deals with laws intended to implement Torah standards in the society the Jews will ‎establish in the land of Israel. The first requirement is to establish a court system, to administer justice and protect the interests of all segments of the community. (Torah treasury)

One of the key qualifications of the judges of this new court system is to be of high moral standards, not accepting bribes. ‎כי השחד יעור עיני חכמים ויסלף דברי צדיקים, for the bribe will blind the eyes of the wise and make just words crooked. Earlier in the Torah when it talks about bribery, it says that it will blind the eyes of the shrewd, while here it says that it will blind the eyes of the wise. The Vilna Goan ‎explains that a judge must master two talents. First he must know all the halachic laws that apply to the case & second he must possess enough practical knowledge to understand the nuances of the case. He must be wise & shrewd. 

There was once a young man who came before an old rabbi to get tested for semicha. After testing him on all four parts of halacha and finding him very knowledgeable, the rabbi asked him if he knew the fifth part. The young man looked at him puzzled, "I only know of four parts; what's the fifth?" The rabbi answered, common sense. Without that, you can't put the other four parts to use.  

Right after telling us about the judges, the Torah ‎says not to plant a tree that will be used for idol worship. Reish lakish says that the relationship between these two laws tells us that whoever appoints a judge that isn't up to par is as if he planted a tree for idol worship. Now, what's the connection between the two? An idolatrous tree is worse than a regular idol because a regular idol, you see it & know what it is, so one will stay away from it. However, the idol tree just looks like a regular tree from the outside; there is no way to tell that it's an idol. So, too, a judge that's not qualified; from the outside he might look like a respected rabbi but on the inside he's contaminated & will corrupt the people. 

Then the Torah tells us not to erect a single stone as an altar even if he intends to use it to sacrifice to Hashem. Even though, during the times of our forefathers, this type of worship was beloved by Hashem, once it was taken up by idol worshipers, it became detestable to Hashem. Another reason this type of alter is forbidden says the Igra D'kalla, is because a monolith is a symbol of immovable strength. While strength & unbending commitment are generally positive traits, they can sometimes be counterproductive. Life's challenges are constantly changing & each generation has its own challenges that weren't there before. One must translate the timeless lessons of the Torah into effective strategies for one’s own time & not render oneself a spiritual monolith, unable to adapt to the unique challenges of his life & time. 

In the early days of the state of Israel, the Chazon Ish suggested changing the language used to teach in the schools from Yiddish to Hebrew. Although he generally encouraged Yiddish speaking in the schools, he felt that if they taught in Yiddish, many of the children who didn't understand the language would be lost. Some die hard traditionalists questioned his decision. He replied with a story. There was once a great general who won a major victory by devising a brilliant strategy. As could be expected, he became a national hero. Years later, the country was again at war & they brought back the aging general to lead the troops to war. However, this time his strategy failed miserably & he was stripped of his old glory. 

 Shocked by his defeat, he attempted to understand what happened. A close friend explained, your strategy is brilliant but the battlefield has changed. The new situation demands a new strategy. 

The Chazon Ish‎ concluded, there was a time when Yiddish was our protective shield against the outside world. However, today the battle is different which demands a new strategy. Today the challenge is to ward off ignorance; therefore, we must teach in the common tongue, which is Hebrew.    

‎How much more so is this true in our time when the world has changed so much.  We can't be fooled by those who masquerade as rabbis & give us all a bad name. Rather we must devise a strategy that works in our time to instill in ourselves & our children a love for yiddishkeit!