Yesterday we spoke about the Bet Halevi pointing out the negative outcome of when someone has a personal agenda of competition, which can lead to disliking religion.
When the Pele Yoetz talks about loving your friend, he takes a positive spin. He says that a person should be happy when he sees other people fulfilling God’s will, and he should feel bad when he sees people sinning.
If he himself is lacking something or not doing well spiritually, he should not think that misery loves company, or hope that others are stuck behind with him, still eating in unkosher restaurants.
He gives a beautiful mashal to illustrate:
Imagine a king who asked each of his ten children to take turns caring for their mother, the queen.
When one of the princes was away, he forgot it was his day and did not take care of his mother. But even though he did not do the job, he loves his mother and feels bad that he forgot about her.
When he finds out that his brother took care of his mother that day, he is more than happy.
If they were to tell him that no one remembered his mother and that she starved that day, he would burst out crying.
The Pele Yoetz says that we have to look at religion as our mother. Of course we’d like to do it, but if we can’t, for whatever reason and we hear that somebody else is, we should say, “Baruch HaShem!
At least someone else is doing my job.”
We should be thankful and happy, because we are all on one team, with one goal.
So, in contrast to yesterday when we took the negative approach, today we look at the positive side:
Let us be happy and joyous over our friends’ religious success.
If your friend is more modest than you, Baruch Hashem! If your friend is more kosher than you, Baruch Hashem!
If your friend has more stringencies on Shabbat, Baruch Hashem!
While you wish that you could do it, be happy that somebody else is doing it.
Furthermore, he says that a person should also be happy with his friend’s physical successes, because that will bring more to the religion. If there is more money out there, then there is more charity, more donations and more good deeds. You will benefit from it too, because God deals with the community or city based on the majority.
Therefore, the more good deeds in the community, the more we each stand to gain, because we will have a more protected community.
We should not feel bad when people are doing better than us, because ultimately, it is better for us.
If I am a salesman in a company and my sales are not up, but the sales of the other men are, I might not be getting much commission, but the company is staying alive, so I’ll be getting my salary because of them. So Baruch Hashem that their sales are up, and I hope mine will improve as well.
We have to look at ourselves as one big company, and know that we benefit from the success of everybody else.