Before World War Two, there was a massive machlokes between two Chasidic courts in a Romanian city. Each kehillah had its shochet, and each community claimed that the meat of the other shochet was treif. A bitter machlokes broke out, lasting for two years, until the Nazis came, r'l, and the city was destroyed.
A righteous Jew, Reb Yitzchak Wertzberger zt'l, lived in this city but refused to participate in the machlokes. He ate from both shechitos because both shochtim were yirei Hashem. He told himself he would leave the town the day he became involved in the machlokes. One day, someone asked Reb Yitzchak, "Why doesn't your rebbe speak up in favor of our shochet?"
Reb Yitzchak replied, "It is because of machlokes that all the troubles began, and you want my rebbe to have a part in this?" (He was referring to the troubles of the Holocaust – attributing it to machlokes.) Suddenly, Reb Yitzchak put his hands to his head and shouted, "Oy. What did I just do? I just spoke about the machlokes!" He came home and told his wife that they must leave immediately. "We can't stay in this city anymore."
It was Thursday – not an easy day to pick up and leave. But she was a loyal wife (אשה בעלה רצון העושה כשרה), and they packed up and left the city that day. They moved to Arad, Romania. This move saved their lives. Soon afterward, the Germans entered the city where the machlokes reigned, and almost no one survived. Today, Reb Yitzchak has grandchildren who are erlicher Yidden, some of them poskim and magidei shiur. They all owe a debt of gratitude to Reb Yitzchak, who fled from the machlokes and saved their lives.
In Shechetz, Poland, there were two shochtim, and it was debated who was the main shochet, and this resulted in a machlokes. The Pilitzer Rav zt'l (author of Sifsei Tzaddik) wrote to one of the shochtim, "Machlokes is fire, and one must run away from fire. Pick yourself up and leave Shechetz immediately." Unfortunately, the shochet never received the letter. The letter came into the hands of someone who wanted him to remain the shochet in Shechetz, and he didn't deliver the letter. The shochet was niftar shortly afterward. The fire of the machlokes consumed him. The family never forgave the person who withheld the letter.
Rewards for Avoiding Machlokes
The rewards of avoiding machlokes are undoubtedly enormous. From the pasuk (Tehillim 147:14) ישביעך חטים חלב שלום גבולך השם, "Within your borders He makes peace; with the best of the wheat, He will sate you." The Chasam Sofer zt'l teaches that avoiding machlokes is mesugal for parnassah.
Peace and avoiding machlokes are immensely rewarded in this world and the next, but let us not forget that avoiding machlokes, in itself, is a reward. Living in tranquility, with no fights, peace with the neighbors, and peace within the family is a blessing. This, in itself, is the reward for those who avoid machlokes.
Chazal (Sanhedrin 7.) say, "Fortunate is the person who is accustomed to hearing his disgrace and remains silent. Remaining silent saves him from a hundred punishments that come from machlokes" (see Rashi).
The Iyun Yaakov on this Gemara explains that the court on earth punishes with forty lashes, and the court in heaven punishes with דנורא פולסי שישים, sixty whips of fire, as stated several times in Chazal (see Yuma 77). Forty plus sixty is one hundred. He is saved from troubles from above and below when he is cautious and avoids machlokes.
Reb Shmuel Wosner zt'l was once asked which good deed enabled him to live a long life. He answered that it was because he avoided machlokes.
He repeated the following mashal from the Imrei Noam: A lion asked a sheep to smell his breath and to tell him how it smelled. The sheep sniffed the lion's breath and told the lion the truth: "Your breath smells terrible." The lion angrily replied, "Where is your respect for the king of all animals?" and devoured the sheep.
Next, the lion asked a wolf for his opinion. Having witnessed the sheep’s fate, the wolf replied, "My master, your breath smells lovely." "How dare you lie to me!" the lion roared and devoured the wolf.
Then the king went to the fox and said, "Smell my breath and tell me how it is." The fox pointed to his nose and said, "My nose is stuffed. I can't smell anything."
The Imrei Noam says this is what one should do when a machlokes is brewing: Stay away because getting involved will only cause trouble.
Reb Wosner zt'l explained, "I have been a rav in Bnei Brak for the last seventy years, and I always avoided machlokes. Someone who has a stuffed nose and doesn't smell will live long. נפשו מצרות שומר ולשונו פיו שומר, by guarding your speech, you save yourself a lot of heartache and trouble."
