לֹ֥א תִשָּׂ֖א שֵׁ֣מַע שָׁ֑וְא אַל־תָּ֤שֶׁת יָֽדְךָ֙ עִם־רָשָׁ֔ע לִהְיֹ֖ת עֵ֥ד חָמָֽס׃ You must not carry false rumors; you shall not join hands with the guilty to act as a malicious witness: (Exodus 23:1)
Rumors and gossip are often a social lubricant. We love to talk about other people. People are so willing to engage in it. It is unhealthy. It drags us down and it demeans ourselves. Clearly, we have the intellegence to find other topics to discuss. Obviously, we are capable of so much more but we still sink to this lowest common denominator. Here is my challenge, from today (Wednesday) through Shabbat (Saturday night at 6:15) try not to speak about another person. Just half a week - see if you can do it. See how it changes your mindest. See how it changes the way you feel about yourself. And when someone begins to take you down that path say, "my Rabbi asked me not to listen to gossip for one week - let's connect next week." I bet by then you will have found something better to talk about.
Greenburgh Hebrew Center rabbistein@ghcny.org 515 Broadway Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522 914-693-4260 office@ghcny.org www.ghcny.org
