Hurting Someone's Feelings vs. Mitzvos

Some stories about prioritizing. Do you criticize someone who is making a mistake in doing a Mitzvah, if doing so will embarrass him?

Becoming a Triangle

Rav Kook writes that there is a fundamental disticntion between Torah study and the study of other topics. He explains that whereas Torah study has the ability to change the inner workings of a person, the study of other topics does not have the same effect.
This brings to mind a well known story about Bertrand Russell. Whereas he was a very famous professor of philosophy, in his private life his morals were quite corrupt. When questioned about this dichotomy he responded that if he was a geometry professor, would he be expected to look like a triangle?!
Clearly he did not expect his study and teaching to have an effect on who he was as a person. Why is Torah study different?
Rav Kook explains that this is because when one studies Torah one is connecting to the eternal wellsprings of life. The connection to the source brings new life to the person constantly and enables a person to undergo renewal regularly. This is not the case when one is engaged in the study of other topics.
Is this true from personal experience? I cannot say that Torah study has always, or even usually, had that effect on me, or from what I see, on others. At the same time I have seen people turn their lives around without the benefit of Torah. How does this work?

WWGD

There are times when righteous people have difficulty accepting those who are less righteous than they are. The result is that they end up dealing with such people in a way which ends up distancing them even more from the path of Torah. That is not what God wants. He wants the righteous to love others and accept them as they are. Even if God himself is angry with someone He wants the righteous to pray on their behalf and draw them close. Rabbi Nosson of Breslov