By the Grace of G-d 8th of Elul, 5734 Brooklyn, N.Y.

Greeting and Blessing:

I am in receipt of your letter and I hasten to reply to it, ahead of a great deal of previous mail.

I must state at the outset that generally I do not engage in Rabbinic rulings which are the province of such Rabbinic bodies as the Agudas Harabonim and the like.

However, since the matter is so simple, and it has caused deep concern, I am making an exception in this case and will state some very basic rules of our Torah:

a) Any falsehood, whether by word of mouth or in writing or otherwise, is expressly forbidden by the Torah, as it is written, “midvar sheker tirchak.”

b) Needless to say, any wrong (such as falsehood), even if it is widely practiced, does not cease to be wrong and certainly does not become a virtue thereby.

c) The principle that the end does not justify the means is also a basic rule in Shulchan Aruch, where it is formulated in the words - mitzvo habo’oh ba’aveiro.

Finally, may I add a further point, that where there is a difference of opinion between Jews, the Torah requires that the dispute be brought before Torah authorities, i.e. Rabbonim, to rule on it.

In these auspicious days of Elul, I take this opportunity of concluding on a pleasant note of extending to you and all your family prayerful wishes for a kesivo vachasimo tovo for a shono tovo um’suko, including goodwill and harmony among Jews.

With esteem and blessing,