All About Truth

This week’s Torah portion is the second in the Book of Exodus, Va’eira, which means, “and I appeared.” It contains an account of the first seven plagues. God speaks to Moses about the covenant previously established with the Patriarchs, and then goes on to make five more promises: “I will take you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their service; I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, and with great judgments; I will take you to me for a people, and I will be a God to you;… I will bring you in to the land, which I swore to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it to you for a heritage.” These promises establish an underlying principle of the Torah: that life and the Divine Presence work on the basis of a covenantal relationship: a relationship of integrity, honor, and truth, of promised made and kept. The promises of God are juxtaposed against the actions of Pharaoh. Pharaoh shows no compassion for his people when, during the first plague, their drinking water is turned to blood. After the fourth plague Pharaoh promised to allow the Israelites to leave Egypt to worship God, but he went back on his promise and did not permit the Israelites to go. Moses even warns Pharaoh, advising him not to mock by not sending out the people. Pharaoh continues to fail to protect the lives and property of his people, which is his sacred trust as their ruler, during the fifth through the tenth plagues. After the hail, plague seven, Pharaoh again breaks his word and goes back on his promise to allow the Israelites to leave.
Rashi comments that God’s name implies that God is faithful to give reward. The two names we use for God, Adonai, the God of Compassion and Elohim, the God of Justice, remind us: of love and mercy for Adonai, and integrity for Elohim. They tell us that the actions of the world occur through love and justice and integrity. These attributes not only describe God but describe God’s world as well, being embedded in the very fabric of cause and effect. When Moses admonishes Pharaoh not to mock, Moses is telling him that his lack of integrity goes against the natural laws of life, which will bring dire consequences. Mocking Moses and Aaron, or the Israelites commits a falsehood, being based on the idea that people are not a part of God and have no innate value or importance. Indeed, the Torah teaches just the opposite: that each widow, each orphan, each stranger: not the highest person, but the least noticeable, has worth, value, importance, and is known to God. Each time we demonstrate a lack of integrity we break faith with the Universe, alienating ourselves from the Divine Presence.
There is a parable in the modern Mussar literature by Rabbi Zvi Miller, taken from ancient sources. A lion once lay in wait to spring on a fox. At the last moment the fox said, I am nothing but skin and bones. Spare me and I will lead you to a fat man who will be a succulent and satisfying feast for you. The fox led the lion to a man sitting behind a pit that was covered with branches and leaves. The lion saw that the man was praying and he said to the fox, I am afraid to attack this man. The merit of his prayer may awaken judgment against me. Don’t worry, said the fox, Neither you nor your son will be held accountable for this offense. Rather, it is you grandson who will be punished. You are hungry now, so satisfy your desires! The lion was convinced by the fox’s clever words. It approached the man from behind, and as it started its leap, it fell helplessly into the deep pit. In the story the lion was lured by its own desire to believe that he would not be held accountable for his actions. But we know that this is not how our lives work. The voices that speak to us in our minds with the words, “oh, it will probably be okay,” are the fox-like voices: of prompt gratification over lasting integrity.
The S’fat Emet writes that there is much falsehood for every point of truth…every bit of truth is surrounded by falsehood on all sides. Nevertheless, by means of struggle that point of truth can be found in every place. Our struggle to live lives of integrity is a struggle to be in consonance with God and the universe. When we honor our commitments and fulfill our words, being honest with ourselves and conscious of our true intentions, life honors us and we feel at one with the harmony of existence. In the Torah, if God is careful to be faithful and scrupulous to fulfill each promise, so much more should we strive to emulate this behavior, because it is being modeled for us to teach us be able to keep our commitments to each other. The Torah is telling us how very important this is. An aphorism about truth was repeated at the EST training: When you always speak the truth your word becomes law in the Universe. The struggle for truth in an imperfect world leads us to holiness. It is a struggle worth caring about. Each promise kept, each fulfillment of a covenant, between us and others, and between us and God, is a tool toward self improvement. It’s a step upward on the ladder that leads to goodness, peace, honor, and dignity. The harmony we then feel is simply God’s approval and God’s blessing.