Rav Refoel of Bershad zy”a was a student of Rav Pinchos od Koretz zy”a. He placed special emphasis on the middah of emes and often said, “It is stated (Mishlei 23:23): ‘Buy truth and do not sell it.’ There are times when one is forced to ‘sell’ all other middos, meaning that one must occasionally forgo them in order to ‘purchase’ other middos. The exception to this rule is emes. One can never sell this middah. If one is not truthful at all times, he cannot obtain any other good middah, as whatever he does will not be truthful.”
Sefer Imrei Pinchos (Shaar 9) relates in the name of an elderly resident of Koritz named R’ Yitzchok Glazer, who remembered when Rav Refoel visited Rav Pinchos Koretz, that Rav Pinchos praised Rav Refoel greatly and said, “Look how great the middah of emes is! My Refoel was once traveling, and he had with him some tobacco that was not licensed by the government. Owning such contraband was considered a severe offense. When a policeman came over to him and asked where he got it from, he admitted right away that it was illicit tobacco. The officer told him, ‘Since you admitted on your own, I will not punish you.’”
Loving Even Wicked People:
Rav Pinchos once said, “My Refoel loves even the worst reshaim... (Chasidim Mesaprim, Chelek 3)
15 Av – The Yahrzeit of Rav Refoel of Bershad Zy”a
