Halacha:

Kavod Habriyot 

Machshava:

Bein Adam L'Chaveiro 

Parsha:

Ki Tavo 

Collections: R' Brander 4 Minute Video Series

Description

“ארור מכה רעהו בסתר” / “Cursed is the person who damages his friend in secret”. Commentaries have struggled with this verse. Why is the word ‘בסתר’, ‘in secret’, necessary? Isn’t it just as wrong to hurt someone in public? Let’s look at this verse through the prism of today’s social media shaming culture, in which any individual can be damaged, defamed, even destroyed by nameless, faceless bullies. Whereas traditional bullying used to be face-to-face, today’s weapon of choice is the keyboard, with camouflage offered by a screen. The victims’ shame can be far greater, as with each ‘share’ and ‘like’ by people all over the world, their damage grows exponentially.