The Law of the Land part 3

Another factor in all of this is the concept of "Hillul HaShem" (Desecrating the Name of G-d). If a Jew does something wrong, or is even perceived as doing something wrong, it reflects badly upon the Jews in general, and ultimately upon the Torah. In reality, there is a gap between the approach of more left wing Orthodox and more right wing on the Dina D'Malchuta issue. The left-wing community, generally is scrupulous about civil law; considering it to be a real halachic issue.. Indeed, many classical authorities consider civil law as overriding halachah when it comes to economic issues. (Others consider this view to be heretical). Most right wing authorities see Shmuel's rule as a general guideline, not as.law. After all, he was a friend of the King, and wanted the Jews to be seen as loyal subjects.It would not do if Jews would be perceived as a threat to the stability of general society. To cross the street against the red light when there was no traffic would not brand a man as immoral. But acting like a hooligan, or vandalizing public property, certainly would. Jews cringe when a Jew is arrested for these sorts of things. It is not just against the law, but is a reflection on us, as well as on our religion. When a Jew returns a sum of money that was lost, we all take pride, and the name of G-d is sanctified. However, even in the Modern Orthodox community, there are issues. Although they maintain a firm stand against lawbreakers, there is the inevitable less-than-honest businessman. White-collar crime is not unknown in this community. A controversial editorial in a Jewish newspaper a few years ago pointed out that this phenomenon is bad enough, but convicted felons often have their names on Jewish schools and other institutions to which they have donated money. The editorial asked "what message does this send to our children, as well as to the non-Jewish community?" I certainly cringed when "60 Minutes" did an expose about a shady Jewish businessman, who was convicted of massive white-collar crimes, who nevertheless has a famous Orthodox women's college named for him. On the other hand, there is a story on the other extreme that I find most troubling. A book came out in the early '80s, in praise of a wealthy Orthodox Jewish businessman. He came on a visit to Eretz Yisrael while it was under British rule. He had with him a Torah scroll. When he arrived, he asked the customs official how much he needed to pay in import taxes. The official said "It's alright, no charge". The man said "Is that legal?" The official said "Not strictly speaking, but don't worry about it." The Jew said "I want to pay". Now let's analyze this. The British mandatory regime was imposed on the society from the outside (the League of Nations). Essentially, it was an occupying power. I can see no basis for calling it "Legal" in halachic terms. Even if it were legal, customs officials, and even police, do have discretionary powers. The official told him that he wasn't charging him for the Torah scroll. At that point, he had no obligation to pay; either from a halachic or civil perspective. But he paid anyway. At that time, there were many Jews living in Eretz Yisrael who were near starvation,.The money he put out for a dubious tariff could have fed several families for months, Perhaps his action was wicked, rather than righteous? On the other hand, the British official was telling this story even years later. Perhaps the Jew had sanctified G-d's Name? We have choices to make, every day. These choices leave us conflicted. Often, two values clash. From a Torah perspective, making the right choice is one major way in which we serve G-d. To be continued.