The president of Migdal Ohr institutions and Rabbi of Migdal Haemek Rabbi Yitzhak David Grossman issued a special call this week to thousands of his students, in which he warned about the dangers of the road.
"Our Sages taught us about the duty to maintain caution on road," Rabbi Grossman began. "It is taught in Tractate Sanhedrin, one who sustains one soul from Israel is like one who sustains the whole world. The reason for this is that all of Israel is responsible for each other, and since we are concerned about saving and sustaining even one soul, we are rewarded as if we sustained the entire world.”
"And it is certainly imperative that each one protects his own life, as it is written, 'And you shall be very careful for your souls. Our sages have already determined that ‘all roads are presumed dangerous,’ and therefore everyone must be careful about the dangers of the roads.”
From here, Rabbi Grossman gave detailed instructions to youth: "Do not hitchhike at all, refrain from traveling by unfamiliar transport vehicles and prefer public transportation. Ideally, set travel times while it is still day, and refrain wherever possible from night travel.”
Rabbi Grossman also added an appeal to educators and teachers everywhere to convey these values to the students: "The obligation to be cautious on the roads must be instilled from early childhood. These are not games, but questions of life and death.”
Last Friday, a 19-year-old yeshiva student was killed after the vehicle in which he was traveling on his way back from Meron flipped over in unclear circumstances in the early hours of the morning, causing his death.