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To shame a person for a reason.

שו”תCategory: moralTo shame a person for a reason.
asked 6 years ago

Hello Rabbi!
I parked in a private parking lot belonging to a person I don’t know (for my sins). When I came to leave, I discovered that the person had blocked me with his car and left a phone number. I called and discovered that it was a man with a very inflated superego who found an opportunity to prove me wrong about the many problems he found in my terrible behavior. Although I answered him kindly and with good taste and knowledge and apologized, he continued his words and expected all kinds of clarifications from me regarding my future and why I was taking it upon myself to hold back my ugly actions so that he would agree to clear the way for me, which of course I did not agree to provide him, and I was also afraid, from a brief understanding of his personality type, that this would not solve the matter but would only cause the matter to drag on and on. Time passed and I was in a hurry, people gathered around, and I decided in a moment’s decision to shame him and humiliate him in front of everyone, which immediately caused him to get into his car in shame and clear the way for me.
Examining myself after the act, I saw that I had three options: 1. What I did. 2. Call the police. 3. Get in my car, say I have nothing more to say, and wait until it is convenient to clear the way for me. My question is, is it morally and halakhically permissible to use verbal violence against such a violent man?
I apologize if this is unnecessarily long.
Thank you very much!

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0 Answers
מיכי Staff answered 6 years ago

If you had no other way to get rid of him, it would be justified. Although, of course, you were fundamentally wrong to take his parking space.

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