How to respond to questions asked during a shiur. * For which questions do you need to prepare and what do you do when you don ’t know the answer? * What sort of learning hastens the Geula? * Principles, advice and examples to promote Mivtza Hakhel when giving shiurim in Chassidus to the “outside.” * Fifth article in a series
By Meir Arad
During a shiur, the audience often asks questions. The questions may be on the topic or even on unrelated topics. It’s important to know how to handle questions properly.
First, the questions people ask tell us what interests them and they direct us to talk about subjects they want to hear about.
At the same time, giving a shiur needs to be with thought and purpose, not just a way of supplying answers to their questions (you can have an “Ask the Rabbi” session for that). A shiur is for you to teach them important things. There are topics that the Rebbe chose to speak about in many sichos, to the Chassidim and the broader Jewish public, and there are subjects that hardly ever come up in sichos but are addressed many times in letters that were written in response to people’s questions.
When questions are asked, even though we did not initiate the topic, they should be answered. How should they be answered in the middle of a shiur without getting sidetracked?
The first rule is, even though someone asks something or makes a comment that seems superfluous or unrelated make sure not to respond disparagingly. Don’t say “that’s obvious” and don’t highlight the lack of basic knowledge exhibited by the question.
The Rebbe Rayatz writes in one of his letters that even an unthinking and foolish question needs to receive a serious response, which raises the questioner up and places him in an elevated state relative to his position, which is the beginning of the cure for his obtuseness. In contrast to that, if you make a snide remark in response, or don’t take it seriously, the person might stop asking questions altogether and remain ignorant.
In the same letter, the Rebbe Rayatz tells a story that brings out this idea:
One time, when R’ Avrohom Dovber and other young men his age were sitting before their teacher, R’ Yitzchok Isaac of Homil, a wagon driver walked in holding a whip. He said, “Rebbi, may I take a g’rusha-divorcee?” (The wagon driver was a Kohen and he learned that a Kohen is forbidden from taking a divorcee. The Torah prohibition actually refers to marriage, but the wagon driver thought the prohibition might refer to giving her a ride.)
R’ Yitzchok Isaac responded in all seriousness. “Which direction are you going in?”
(Homil is a central town surrounded by several other towns, large and small, and wagon drivers had rules about not trespassing on competing routes, with wagon drivers who went to one city not being allowed to go to another city, and they would bequeath this right to their children.)
The wagon driver said he was going to Yalapoli, about thirty miles from Homil. R’ Yitzchok Isaac told one of the young men to bring him a Shulchan Aruch, Even HaEzer and the Tur, both bound in old, wooden bindings, and he perused them.
He then asked the wagon driver whether he had an assistant and the wagon driver said yes, he had an assistant who always traveled with him. R’ Yitzchok Isaac continued to look into the s’farim and then he said to the wagon driver with the utmost gravity, “To travel to Yalapoli or from there, you may take a g’rusha in a wagon.” (The Rebbe Rayatz ends the story with: There is much to learn from this story, as it says, “Give to a wise man and he will become wiser.”)
Thus we see that even foolish questions asked out of ignorance need to be treated with due respect.
Sometimes the tone of the question or the way it is said can be seen by the one giving the shiur and the other participants as arguing about what was said and an unwillingness to accept it. The one giving the shiur can feel “attacked” by the question and feel the need to “defend” his position. The one asking the question senses this in the tone and way the question is addressed for there is a certain tension and lack of patience, and sometimes this causes him to be more sharp in his argumentativeness and to stand by his question with even greater intensity.
If you want your answer to be accepted, don’t get into power struggles or debates. On the contrary, validate the question and compliment it. The one giving the shiur should say something like, “That’s a good question you asked,” and sometimes it’s worth repeating the question and even embellishing it somewhat. When the questioner feels that you listened to him and treated him respectfully, he will be open to accepting your answer.
Even if there are too many questions which disturb the shiur, it is advisable to try and ignore that and continue without commenting about it. When necessary, you can gently say, “We will give time for questions at the end of the shiur,” and really give the time for it. You can also pleasantly say, “I would just like to finish the piece we are on,” or “I would like to complete this explanation so we don’t lose everyone’s train of thought, and then I’ll be happy to respond to your question.” A response like this reassures the questioner.
We can divide the questions asked in a Chassidus shiur into two general categories; questions on the material being taught and questions about customs and laws.
Although it’s a shiur on Chassidus, since the shiur is often the audience’s only connection with religion for the week, they see the lecturer as the one to ask all their questions in halacha, minhag, and any other Jewish topic. For this reason, it would be a good thing for those giving a shiur in Chassidus to be knowledgeable in practical Halacha, Hilchos Shabbos, Hilchos kashrus, etc. These questions tend to come up time and again and we must know how to answer them.
Before a holiday, people will have questions about that holiday. It is highly recommended that when a holiday is coming up that you review the halachos and those things having to do with how the holiday comes out that year, whether on Shabbos or not, and be ready to answer questions that come up time and again.
Sometimes the one giving the shiur is embarrassed to say he doesn’t know and makes up an answer on the spot based on what he might remember. Don’t be ashamed to say you don’t know, take the person’s phone number, and after the shiur ask a rav and call the person back.
In that same letter of the Rebbe Rayatz he notes the advantage in not responding to questions on the spot. He writes, “… to suggest to them that whoever has a seeming difficulty or question, should ask it, and the answers and clarification should be provided in the next shiur. For the question of the tam like that of the rasha or chacham, it is not necessary to respond immediately and this is for various reasons, including that the questioner should see that you are interested in his question and then he will have greater trust in the answer.”
Often, the one giving the shiur is well versed in the topic he’s supposed to give over, but he is lacking knowledge in related subjects. In his preparation, he should try to expand his knowledge of those subjects indirectly related to his subject matter but which are likely to come up in the shiur. For example, if in the course of giving a shiur, the topic of the time for Krias Shma comes up, it is not enough for him to say that it is forbidden to miss the time for Krias Shma. He should expand on the subject a little in order to enrich the knowledge of the listeners. From when until when can the Shma be recited? What is the difference between “amud ha’shachar” and “zerichas ha’chama?”
NOT FOR SELF ACTUALIZATION
In the maamer, “V’Dovid Avdi,” Parshas VaYigash 5732, the Rebbe speaks about the topic of influence. At the end of the maamer the Rebbe says, “The reason that Melech HaMoshiach is called by the name of Dovid is because the inyan of Dovid is humility and bittul. Although he was king, he still referred to himself as a poor man and pauper. The same is true for Melech HaMoshiach, that although he will be the epitome of greatness, as it says, ‘and the spirit of G-d will rest upon him,’ and he will learn Torah with the Avos and Moshe Rabbeinu a”h, he will still be the epitome of humility and bittul to also learn with simple people.
“As we know, all future revelations depend upon our actions and service now; obviously one of the things that brings closer and hastens the coming of Moshiach is learning and spreading Torah, the revealed part of Torah and the inner part of Torah, to everyone, even simple people. And it should be in a way of humility and bittul, i.e., that the learning and dissemination need to be not for the elevation that occurs thereby in the one teaching and disseminating (from my students more than everyone) but for the recipients.”
With these lines, the Rebbe establishes a very important principle on the topic of influence and teaching others.
Although it is a positive thing that a person feels satisfaction in giving shiurim, because when a person enjoys something he puts all his efforts into it and does it enthusiastically, there are some drawbacks: 1) the strong desire to teach others can blind him from objectively examining whether he is actually talented in this and whether he is actually doing it effectively and correctly, and 2) the nature of enthusiasm is that it wanes with time. At first a person is excited but as time goes by, the fire is dampened.
Therefore, although the shiurim given with zest and enthusiasm are more successful, this cannot be the basis for his teaching. A person has to tap into a much deeper and inward place inside himself which needs to be the motivator for influencing and teaching others. The ultimate is when the mashpia does not want nor seek to play the role of mashpia. On his part, he would not want to be involved, he would prefer sitting and learning on his own, but “shlichus” compels him to get involved. It is not that his involvement is unenthusiastic; on the contrary, after he concludes that this is what the Rebbe demands, and this is his shlichus, he will do it happily, but it comes from a sense of obligation rather than to satisfy himself.
Even someone who has a talent in giving shiurim needs to execute this shlichus not to express his talents, but with the awareness that since the Creator gave him the ability, his mission is to use these abilities to influence and direct others.
And that’s what it says in that maamer, because the default attitude which needs to be within the soul of the mashpia and teacher is bittul and humility, i.e., the awareness that he is merely a conduit to channel the powers that the Creator vested within him and his goal is not self-actualization.
In this way, he truly thinks of the good of the audience; his self-development is secondary to the main goal, which is shlichus.
Even when a person thinks he is not suited to this, if he thinks about the importance of the shlichus, he will discover abilities within himself, and sometimes, later on, he won’t be able to believe that he once thought he was unsuited to spreading the wellsprings of Chassidus outward.