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Being Careful With Other People's Money: Difference between revisions
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Being Careful With Other People's Money (view source)
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, 31 March 2019→Laws for a Store Owner
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==Laws for a Store Owner== | ==Laws for a Store Owner== | ||
# One may not mix good and bad fruit together in order to sell the bad fruit at the price of the good fruit. <ref> Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 62:5 </ref> However, one may mix two types of fruits even though one may be less preferable to his fellow as long as it is recognizable. <ref> Ben Ish Chai Ki Tetze, 11 </ref> | # One may not mix good and bad fruit together in order to sell the bad fruit at the price of the good fruit. <ref> Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 62:5 </ref> However, one may mix two types of fruits even though one may be less preferable to his fellow as long as it is recognizable. <ref> Ben Ish Chai Ki Tetze, 11 </ref> | ||
===Weights or Measures=== | |||
# One who cheats a customer with dishonest weights or measures violates two Torah prohibitions: injustice with weights and measures (Vayikra 19:35 - לא תעשו עול במדה במשקל ובמשורה), in addition to the regular prohibition of stealing<ref>Tur CM 231:1, Halachos of Other People's Money pg. 76. see Tur there and Ben Ish Chai Year 1 Parashat Ki Tetze who elaborate on the severity of this prohibition. </ref> Additionally, he is in violation of the positive Torah commandment to use honest scales and measures (Vayikra 19:36 - מאזני צדק אבני צדק איפת צדק והין צדק יהיה לכם).<ref>Halachos of Other People's Money pg. 76 based on Rambam Gezela 8:1</ref> | |||
# One who has dishonest measures cannot possibly do a complete teshuva, because he cannot know who he stole from and who he cheated. He can do a partial teshuva by donating money to public needs.<ref> Shulchan Aruch CM 331:19, Sma 331:34</ref> | |||
# This prohibition applies to dealings with non-Jews as well.<ref>Rambam Geneva 7:8, Shulchan Aruch 231:1, Shulchan Aruch Harav Midot 2, Aruch Hashulchan 231:1, Halachos of Other People's Money pg. 77. see Pitchei Teshuva 231:1 if this applies on a Torah level or only on a rabbinic level<br> | |||
* Tanna Divei Eliyahu 15 (brought by Kitzur SA 182:1) tells the following story: I once sold to a gentile four korin [28 bushels] of dates and I measured it out evenly for him in a dark room. He said to me: G-d rules over the heavens and you know how much you measured for me. However, since I measured in a dark room I [accidentally] gave him three seahs [0.7 bushels] too little. After he paid me I purchased a jar of oil and placed it in the same place where I sold the dates to the gentile. The jar burst and the oil spilled out [as a divine punishment]. I said to him: My son, it says [Leviticus 19:13] "You shall not cheat your fellow and you shall not steal…" Your fellow is like your brother and your brother is like your fellow. You learn from here that it is forbidden to steal from a gentile because it is theft, and it need not be said that theft from your brother is forbidden.</ref> | |||
# This prohibition applies even to very small percentages.<ref>Sefer Hachinuch 258, Bach 231:7, Halachos of Other People's Money pg. 77<br> | |||
see Halachos of Other People's Money pg. 77-78 who points out that every scale is really permitted to have a very small margin of error, plus or minus. Thus if one's scale is within this legal tolerance, it is not a transgression of this prohibition. Nevertheless, the seller should, if possible, add a tiny amount above the amount due to the buyer to compensate for this. Note 217 writes that this is based on the Gemara Baba Batra 88b which learns from the pasuk אבן שלמה וצדק that you should take some from your own gains and give it to the buyer. This is brought as halacha by 231:14. Maharam Shik CM 30 writes that nowadays this doesn't seem to be the practice and suggests that the buyers forgive this slight amount. Still, he recommends that somebody who fears Hashem should add a small amount.</ref> | |||
==Related Pages== | ==Related Pages== | ||
