Seforim from accused Talmid Chacham

Asked by Baruch · July 14, 2003 · Other

Question

There is a well-known Talmid Chacham who has recently been widely accused of sexually molesting Yeshiva students. To what extent, if at all, should we be afraid that these accusations may be legitimate? Also, should we continue to learn from his seforim? In general, is there any point at which we would refrain from learning a sefer due to the author's sexual (or other) misconduct?

Answer

Answered by Aaron Abadi

Any person who is a Rasha cannot be a Talmid Chacham. If the allegations are true, keep a million miles away from him and burn his Seforim. If you have a real Talmid Chacham who was not leading a double life, but happened to once give in to his Yetzer Harah and did a sin, you should not think bad of him, but rather assume that he did Teshuva. I'm sure that this is not the case with your man. But don't forget, innocent until proven guilty. If you know he's guilty keep away, otherwise be careful. AA