“Don’t go after the majority to do evil.”(Shemot 23:2)
Rabbi Bachya explains that the plain meaning of this verse is that if you see many people doing something wrong, you should not follow their example.
When many people do something that is morally and ethically wrong people begin to think that perhaps it’s not so bad. Today many things that are considered wrong by the Torah are perfectly accepted and implemented as law. For example, there are places in which euthanasia is not only allowed, but it’s seen as something compassionate to do for someone who is suffering. But the Torah 100% forbids this practice. We are no one to play G-d and decide in life and death matters. There is much more to the picture that we don’t know about. Life is sacred and it should be respected. Every second a person breaths is correcting and cleansing that soul so he can get rid of all the baggage acquired in life and maybe from previous incarnations. We never know if that suffering will spare a person from something else after he returns his soul to the creator.
This verse also tells us that each person is responsible for his own actions. Even when many do things that are improper, you have an obligation to be careful with your own behavior.
It takes much courage and strength of character to stand up to the truth and what is right. But anyone who appreciates that the most important thing in the world is to do the will of G-d, will not be manipulated by others no matter how many go the other way.
Some excerpts taken from “Growth Through Torah” by Rabbi Zelig Pliskin
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