גניבה מאדם כדי למנועו מאיסור

A gutn Shabbes!

Is it permitted to steal from a person an object that causes him to transgress a prohibition?

And why did Rachel steal the terafim from Lavan?

The question:

Is it permitted to steal from a person an object that causes him to transgress a prohibition?
And why did Rachel steal the terafim from Lavan?
Explanation of the question: A person has in his possession an object that causes him to transgress prohibitions; is it permitted for another person to steal that object from him in order to prevent him from committing the sin?
Answer:
In the parasha it is stated (Bereishit 31:19): “And Rachel stole the terafim that belonged to her father.” And Rashi explains that she intended by this to separate her father from idolatry.
From Rashi’s words it is clear that one is permitted to steal from another an object that causes him to sin. And even though Lavan was not Jewish, idolatry was forbidden to him, for a non‑Jew is also forbidden to engage in idol worship.
This is difficult to understand: what permitted stealing another person’s property in order to prevent him from idolatry?
Several explanations have been given:

A.  In the sefer Shvut Yaakov (Responsa, part III, siman 38) it is written that since there is a mitzvah to eradicate idolatry from the world, it has no value or monetary worth, and therefore the prohibition of theft does not apply to it.

B.  The Avnei Nezer (Responsa, Yoreh De’ah, siman 121, sec. 4) explains that there is no prohibition of robbery in something that is for the benefit of the one being “robbed”. Since it was good for Lavan not to have terafim so that he would not transgress a prohibition, there was no prohibition of robbery here.
The gap between these two explanations is very large and has ramifications for many cases. According to the first explanation, there is no general permission to steal in order to prevent another from sinning; it applies only to something that there is a mitzvah to eradicate from the world. But according to the second explanation, any object that causes sin may be taken in order to save the other from transgression.

However, there is a difficulty according to both explanations: Rachel acted in accordance with the halacha, so why was she punished for stealing the terafim? As Yaakov said (Bereishit 31:32): “With whomever you find your gods, he shall not live.” And Rashi explains that due to this curse Rachel died on the way.

On this question an interesting answer is brought in the sefer Avnei Zikaron (p. 335) in the name of the Gaon Rabbi Nissim Karelitz zatzal. He writes that although the theft itself was permitted, since our forefather Yaakov was next to Rachel, she should not have taken such an action without consulting him.

In this context the sefer Otzar HaYahadut (part I) brings a striking story told by the Gaon Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Shorkin zatzal, a disciple of Maran the Chafetz Chaim:
When the heretical Haskalah movement spread, the maskilim in Radin, the town of the Chafetz Chaim, founded a cultural club where a theater hall was set up, and there they staged plays full of scorn and mockery toward those who study Torah and observe the mitzvot. At that time the daughter of the local blacksmith fell gravely ill, and the doctors despaired of her life. In his distress, the blacksmith turned to the Chafetz Chaim and tearfully begged: “Rebbe, save my child!” The Chafetz Chaim answered him: “If you desire that your daughter live, go and destroy the club of heresy, and I promise your daughter a complete recovery.” The blacksmith hurried home, took two huge hammers, went to the club, which, like the houses of the town, was built of wooden beams, raised his heavy hammers and began smashing and demolishing the building.
Soon the young members of the club gathered around him and protested loudly with threats and curses. But the blacksmith, like a bereaved bear, cried out: “Whoever comes near, I’ll hurl this heavy hammer at him!” The reckless youths retreated in fear, and he continued the work of destruction, smashing and breaking walls and partitions, beams and roof, doors and windows, benches and tables, turning the building into piles of wood. The club of heresy was destroyed and was never rebuilt.
After some time the irreligious youths organized again to establish a library, to which they would bring books of heresy and books scoffing at everything holy, in order to entice and turn readers away from the world of Judaism.
The yeshiva students, who had heard their rabbi the Chafetz Chaim’s directive regarding the club, gathered—without consulting their rabbi—snuck in during the dead of night and set the library on fire together with all the books of heresy and unbelief. But this time the freethinkers fought back fiercely: they called the police, raised a loud public outcry, launched a propaganda campaign against the “black‑clad sectarians” acting against the advocates of progress, and organized a fundraising drive to rebuild the burned‑down library. And within a short time they built a library greater and more advanced than the previous one.
“Then I understood,” concluded Rav Sorkin his story, “that even holy zeal will not succeed if it is not carried out under the instruction of the rabbi.”