Good evening, everybody. Tonight's Shemirat HaLashon broadcast is L'ilui Nishmat (for the elevation of the soul) Luzah Aliza Bat Henriette and her children who passed with her in the fire. Ruach (spirit) Hashem T'Nichenam B'Gan Eden (in the Garden of Eden). Amen (so be it). As well, Hashem will send a tremendous yeshuah (salvation) and Siyata Dishmaya (Heavenly assistance) to everyone who needs it, especially to a certain rabbi, a talmid chacham (Torah scholar), who needs it. So here's tonight's halacha (Jewish law). We're talking here about telling over that someone is very lax and lazy in fulfilling a certain mitzvah (commandment) that many other people don't fulfill as well. There are certain mitzvot which, unfortunately, are so neglected that failure to observe these mitzvot is generally not condemned and generally not looked down on. Nevertheless, it's considered absolute lashon hara (evil speech) to tell over that a person is lazy or neglects fulfilling this particular mitzvah.
Here's a great example. Recently I was sitting in a meeting, and there were a bunch of guys talking about why the rabbi is so rough and so tough about stopping people from talking in shul (synagogue) during tefillah (praying). And they were expressing: “What does the rabbi want from us? Look around: every other shul, any other shul we went to, they talk all the time. So why is the rabbi so tough about this point of talking during shul?” Well, for starters, saying that is already speaking lashon hara about every other shul. Nonetheless, here's a perfect example of something that became so common that people don't even know it's wrong anymore. And meanwhile, it's terrible. It's the greatest disrespect to God when we stand in his house; we're supposed to be praying to him, and instead we're talking to our friends in the middle of tefillah. If someone would turn around now and start mentioning or relating that somebody else talks during shul, that's absolute lashon hara. Even if the listener thinks, “What's the big deal? Everybody does it anyways,” it is a big deal. And it's not okay to talk during shul. And it's not okay to speak lashon hara.
If we can only inspire people to realize the incredible privilege it is that we're able to talk straight to Hashem without going through any middleman or any intermediary—literally, literally, we have the red phone, and we can speak straight to him one-on-one—those words suddenly would become precious. Those moments in shul would be realized as the most incredible moments of our day. The Shemirat HaLashon broadcast was also L'ilui Nishmat, the Chatan (groom) and Kallah (bride), the Levine family. Ruach Hashem T'Nichenam B'Gan Eden. And it also should be a great Zechut (merit) and a Shemirah me'uleh min ha'shamayim (excellent protection from Heaven) for all of Klal Yisrael, and especially for those in tzarot (troubles) who need it. Have a good night.