QUESTION:
Currently, there is a requirement to wear masks when we walk outside, according to the doctors and experts. I am trying to understand how to balance out the idea of taking care of health and keeping to boundaries versus having emunah and bitachon.
I see that there are some Torah observant people who go without masks even when the law requires it. I am talking even about intelligent people, not people who don’t think about what they are about to do. Are the accepted health guidelines like the “messengers of Hashem”? And, isn’t it forbidden to act careless when it is dangerous to do so? And even if we have Torah learning and mitzvos, don’t we need to be concerned that maybe our sins make us undeserving of special protection from Hashem, just as Yaakov Avinu was afraid that maybe he sinned and that he was unworthy of Hashem’s protection? Or do we need to just believe in Hashem’s Divine Providence over us? (I recently came across a Zohar that says that if a person learns Torah, he has nothing to fear, and he cannot be harmed by anything.)
So, I want to know: Does a person need to be on a certain madreigah in order to justify not wearing a mask in public? Does a person need to have a very high level of bitachon or be very connected to Hashem for this? Is such a person allowed to do differently than everyone else around him (and there’s no problem of being poresh min hatzibur, separating from the community)? Is the situation no longer dangerous and the approach now should be totally different? Or does wearing a mask not help at all, and therefore this whole question should not even be an issue?
I see that there are some Torah observant people who go without masks even when the law requires it. I am talking even about intelligent people, not people who don’t think about what they are about to do. Are the accepted health guidelines like the “messengers of Hashem”? And, isn’t it forbidden to act careless when it is dangerous to do so? And even if we have Torah learning and mitzvos, don’t we need to be concerned that maybe our sins make us undeserving of special protection from Hashem, just as Yaakov Avinu was afraid that maybe he sinned and that he was unworthy of Hashem’s protection? Or do we need to just believe in Hashem’s Divine Providence over us? (I recently came across a Zohar that says that if a person learns Torah, he has nothing to fear, and he cannot be harmed by anything.)
So, I want to know: Does a person need to be on a certain madreigah in order to justify not wearing a mask in public? Does a person need to have a very high level of bitachon or be very connected to Hashem for this? Is such a person allowed to do differently than everyone else around him (and there’s no problem of being poresh min hatzibur, separating from the community)? Is the situation no longer dangerous and the approach now should be totally different? Or does wearing a mask not help at all, and therefore this whole question should not even be an issue?
ANSWER:
Practically speaking, the health experts disagree if people should wear the masks, and even when wearing a mask, they disagree as to how much it should be worn. So if a person does not wear a mask, he is able to rely on the opinions of some of the experts who allowed certain countries to go without masks.
On an external level, one should wear a mask in public so that he shouldn’t do differently than everyone else in the community, and also because he shouldn’t pain others if they will be disturbed that he doesn’t wear a mask. This is especially the case where a person is amidst an entire section that is quarantined. Every place is different and every country is different, and one should act wisely.
It is true that wearing a mask or not depends on a person’s madreigah, especially when it comes to the issue of causing danger [to oneself or to others]. The Ramban says that a person needs to be more careful not to cause damage others than with being careful not to cause damage to himself. One needs to be more careful when it comes to something may cause damage to others, and for this, one would need to be on an even higher level of bitachon [that he won’t cause damage to others] than the one who has bitachon that nothing will happen to him [in order to refrain from wearing a mask in public].
As it seems, wearing a mask is both helpful and detrimental. If a person is careful when it comes to hygiene and he makes sure to keep changing the mask for a new one, then wearing a mask is very helpful, especially in a quarantined section.
On an external level, one should wear a mask in public so that he shouldn’t do differently than everyone else in the community, and also because he shouldn’t pain others if they will be disturbed that he doesn’t wear a mask. This is especially the case where a person is amidst an entire section that is quarantined. Every place is different and every country is different, and one should act wisely.
It is true that wearing a mask or not depends on a person’s madreigah, especially when it comes to the issue of causing danger [to oneself or to others]. The Ramban says that a person needs to be more careful not to cause damage others than with being careful not to cause damage to himself. One needs to be more careful when it comes to something may cause damage to others, and for this, one would need to be on an even higher level of bitachon [that he won’t cause damage to others] than the one who has bitachon that nothing will happen to him [in order to refrain from wearing a mask in public].
As it seems, wearing a mask is both helpful and detrimental. If a person is careful when it comes to hygiene and he makes sure to keep changing the mask for a new one, then wearing a mask is very helpful, especially in a quarantined section.
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