Operation Entebbe: 50 Years Ago
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<p>This week’s Torah portion highlights the centrality of character and speech. Recognizing human nature, the Torah provides an option to strengthen a person’s resolve to improve. When other efforts have failed, one is permitted to make a verbal vow to God. “If a person vows a vow to God or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.”
Judaism teaches that there is a spiritual parallel to the concepts of cause and effect. Sincere efforts to overcome our stumbling blocks can elicit Divine assistance. A well-intended vow can fortify inner will to achieve what otherwise would seem impossible. The Torah Sages, how- ever, caution us to avoid making vows. They reasoned that, under duress, someone could make a vow without first considering its consequences. Many people today are focused on keeping up with the times. They’re quick to embrace the latest trends and the next “big thing.” Although technological innovations keep catapulting us forward, has humanity as a whole progressed? In contrast to high-tech advancements, human character improvements lag far behind.
Keeping up with the times should include upgrading our character traits. As a goal-oriented society, we may assume that developing good character would be a primary goal. Yet in reality, it’s often overshadowed by the external pursuits of success. No matter how you define success, outer trappings can’t substitute for inner refinement. No amount of money can buy a sterling character. Its value never depreciates. Upgrading the status of our character traits is commensurate with human advancement. Good character, or lack thereof, should be significant.
Just as air pollution is toxic to the environment, so too are uncontrolled jealousy and anger. The human penchant for greed and power still drives some people to choose might over right. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been any innovation in these areas. Even with current social and economic infrastructures, crime and violence are pervasive. The unabated propensities for hatred and war continue to ravage our world. Where are the cutting-edge innovations to eradicate the inherent defects of humanity?
Our medications and gadgets come with instructions, and so do we. God provided us with the Torah so that humanity would internalize its Divine wisdom to function optimally.
How do we begin to get it right? Let’s start with what comes out of our mouths. The Torah places great emphasis on the value and integrity of people’s words. The ability to verbally express deep feelings and complex concepts distinguishes humanity from all other species. Speech is an essential component in the human toolbox. What we say affects our perception of reality. Words influence us.
Case in point: Hitler unleashed wanton hatred through the power of his speech. His vitriolic words became lethal weapons for mass destruction. Conversely, positive speech influences us to bring out the best versions of ourselves and others. Words that motivate and encourage others can inspire positive results. A pre-game pep talk by a coach can bring out the best in his players. Martin Luther King, Jr. forever inspired the civil rights movement through his words. Do your words express or betray who you really are inside? Does your manner of speech manifest the best version of who you’d like to be?
It’s interesting to note that Creation came about because of Divine speech. “And God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” Pirkei Avos (Ethics of the Fathers) states: “With ten Divine utterances the world was created.” God imbues us with the same Divine mode of expression through which Creation was, and continues to be actualized.
We create the world around us through our speech. When we use our power of speech properly, we’re emulating our Creator. It’s been said that “actions speak louder than words,” but speech itself is a powerful action that causes consequences. We can partner with God by using our speech as a Divinely given tool.
Being mindful of our words intensifies our awareness of their innate power. When we choose to upgrade our mode of speech, we’re also upgrading the quality of our lives and the lives of those with whom we interact. Every effort that we make to eradicate negative speech has value. Shlomo Hamelech said: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” World history attests to the enduring relevance of these ancient words. The Torah emphasized the correlations among thought, speech, and actions millennia before modern psychology even recognized the under-lying connections.
Our thoughts are expressed through speech. Words affect others. Telling someone, “You’re stupid and incapable,” as opposed to “Keep trying; you can do it,” can produce a vastly different outcome.
The harm of negative speech is magnified when disparaging words are aimed at groups. Invectives such as, “They’re all no good,” or, “They are inferior to us,” can gain momentum and morph into harmful actions. The ramifications of maligning words are alarming.
A Jewish “court” of three men, or even a single Torah scholar, can annul a verbal vow that a person made to God. The lasting harm and pain of one’s words, however, can’t be annulled. We must be accountable for what we say and do.
Many assume that we’re defined by our appearance, possessions, or job title. Undoubtedly, none of these genuinely define us. More than anything else, our speech and behavior are what define us. At the end of the day, character counts and words matter.
