Dear Rabbi; I live in a building where there are some tenants that are some kind of weird frumies? (or at least dress like that, I don’t). Yet these fellows very seldom say “thank you” or “please,” when you help and carry something for them and help them with their many children, or wait for them at the elevator or keep an eye on their kids, etc.

Is there no Torah obligation that one has to say at least thank you for a favour done? Actually I’m sure there is. Yet, where exactly is that is that mitzva written?

A. ‘Horav Shlomo Miller’s Shlit’a opinion is that there is a most basic mitzva and obligation in our Torah that establishes a number of times that one has to be and behave as a ‘Mentch’ or follow proper accepted behaviour and recognized human values.

The Rov maintains that the above is a Biblical mitzva based on the Posuk: “Vehalachta Bidrachav” (P. Eikev) or “Walk in His Ways. Thanking for a favour done is universally one of them.”