Once, in the early days of Chassidism, a learned Jew happened upon a farbrengen (a chassidic gathering). Taking in the sight of half-empty vodka bottles on the table, of Jews singing and dancing instead of studying Torah, he cried: "Jews! The Holy Temple is in ruins, Israel is in exile, and you dance and drink?!"
Present at the farbrengen was Rabbi Dovid Purkes, a senior disciple of the Baal Shem Tov. "I have a question for you," said Rabbi Dovid to the visitor. "In one place, Rashi writes that a nazir's vow to abstain from wine is an appropriate reaction for one who witnesses human susceptibility to corruption by physical appetites. But only a few verses later, Rashi quotes the Talmudic opinion which regards the nazir's abstinence as a sin. Which is it? Is drinking wine a positive or a negative thing to do?
"I'll tell you the difference between the two cases," continued Rabbi Dovid. "The first statement by Rashi is addressed to one who 'sees a sotah's ruin.' A person who is capable of seeing the negative in a fellow Jew had better not drink wine. Wine will agitate his heart, and he'll probably be roused to discover more failings and deficiencies in his fellows. But someone who is blessed with the ability to see only the good in his fellow—for him to avoid getting together with other Jews for a l'chaim is nothing less than sinful. An infusion of wine into his heart will stimulate it to uncover the hidden good in the hearts of his fellows."
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