It wasn’t just abstract "sinfulness." It was a deep, ingrained cruelty that touched every part of their society.

Let me tell you a story about Paltit.

Paltit – her name itself has a poignant backstory. It means "deliverance," because she was born to Lot shortly after Abraham rescued him from captivity. Imagine that: born into a family touched by divine intervention, yet finding herself living in the heart of Sodom. She married and made her home there, but the wickedness of the city couldn't extinguish her inherent goodness.

Now, the people of Sodom were so heartless that they passed a law: no one was allowed to give food to beggars. They wanted them to starve to death. Can you imagine such a law? Such calculated inhumanity?

But Paltit couldn't stand by and watch someone suffer. A beggar came to town, and she, filled with compassion, decided to help him. Every day, as she went to the well to draw water, she hid a piece of bread in her pitcher and gave it to him. A small act of defiance, a quiet rebellion against the city's cruelty.

For a while, she got away with it. But the Sodomites, baffled by the beggar’s continued survival, grew suspicious. How was he still alive? They suspected someone was secretly helping him. So, they set a trap.

Three men hid near the beggar and waited. And sure enough, they caught Paltit in the act, offering him a piece of bread.

Her act of kindness, her chesed, her compassion… it was a death sentence.

Paltit paid the ultimate price for her humanity. She was burned alive on a pyre. According to the legends, her life was forfeit for daring to show compassion in a city that had outlawed it.

It's a chilling story, isn't it? It really brings home the depth of Sodom's depravity. It wasn't just about abstract wickedness; it was about a complete lack of basic human decency. And Paltit, whose name meant deliverance, became a victim of the very opposite.

What does it say about a society that punishes kindness? And what does it say about us, if we stand idly by when we see such cruelty in the world? Paltit's story, though tragic, reminds us of the importance of compassion, even in the face of overwhelming darkness. It reminds us that even a small act of kindness can be a powerful act of defiance against injustice.