Do Not SLANDER: Teachings from the Medieval Rabbis, Rashi, Rambam, Ramban, Torah and the Talmud

Today we will learn and reflect on the commentaries of the
great medieval rabbis on the Torah, the first five books of the
Old Testament, and from rabbis in collections of sayings of the
Talmud, on the commandment, Do Not Slander. This, like the
commandment, Do Not Envy, is another gateway sin, once you
slander someone you are then tempted to do them harm, plus
you may find it easier to steal from someone whose
reputation you have damaged. Stated in its positive form, the
commandment, DO

Perhaps the prohibition against
slandering, or bearing false witness, is
also referred to in the Mitzvah
forbidding us to build a roof on a
house without a parapet (or fence):
Negative Mitzvah 298.
When you build a new home,
You are to make a fence for your roof;
And do not place blood liability in
your house,
For someone who should fall
May fall from it.
Deuteronomy 22:8-9
David sees BathSheba bathing, peering over his parapet, by James Tissot

We construct a parapet in our soul guarding against
slander when we obey the positive form of the
commandment, to guard the reputation of our neighbor,
to hesitate sharing even truths that may damage the
reputation of our neighbor.
At the end of our talk, we will discuss the sources used
for this video, and my blogs that also cover this topic.
Please, we welcome interesting questions in the
comments. Let us learn and reflect together!

YouTube Video: Medieval Rabbis: Do Not Slander
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YouTube Video: Medieval Rabbis: Do Not Slander
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The medieval Rabbis, Rashi, Ramban or Maimonides, and Ramban or Nachmanides,
lived in the 11th and 12th century in Europe in the Holy Land, we discuss them in the
beginning of our video on the Medieval Rabbis, Do Not Envy.
We also want to mention that in the Jewish translation, the word for the name of
the Lord is so holy that Jews cannot pronounce it, so they often translate it as
Adonoy, or the merciful aspect of the Lord, or Elohim, or the judgmental aspect of
the Lord.

We learn that is not enough to speak truthfully of another
person, but that we are commanded to speak kindly of them and
guard their reputation.
A common misconception is that this Commandment only forbids
us to lie. However, this Mitzvah goes deeper. Not only does this
Mitzvah forbid us to lie; this Mitzvah also forbids us from telling
the truth in a mean and heartless and cruel manner. Bitter
divorcees may want to avoid talking about their former spouses
to try to obey this Mitzvah, until the bitterness passes.

Negative Mitzvah 285
Do not testify as a false witness against your neighbor.
Exodus 20:13
Rashi and Rambam and Ramban do not say much about this
Mitzvah, although we have Rambam quoting the Mechilta: “He
who bears false witness against his fellow-man commits as
grave a sin as if he had borne false witness against G_d, saying
that He did not create the world.”
The Talmudic Rabbis in the Book of Legends teach us, “How
vicious is slander! It is more vicious than murder, unchastity,
and idolatry put together.”(66) “He who speaks slander is as
though he denied the existence of the Lord.”(62) “He who
speaks slander so enlarges his iniquities that they reach up to
heaven.”(68) The evil tongue slays thrice, it slays “the person
speaking, the person spoken to, and the person spoken of.”(85)
Jezebel, by Byam Shaw, circa 1896

The picture is of Queen Jezebel, perhaps the Bible’s most egregious slanderer, who
framed and murdered Naboth to steal his vineyard for her husband.
We who live in the modern world have difficulty imagining how serious a sin it was
to provide false testimony. Today the police can place a criminal at the scene of a
crime by combing the carpet for a single hair or a fingerprint on the furniture. We
can often tell who did what to whom by analyzing small stains in clothing. But in
the ancient world where science was ignorant about DNA and fingerprints,
eyewitness testimony was usually the only evidence available. False testimony
could destroy a person’s reputation, false testimony could cause the innocent to be
stoned and their families to starve.
Bearing false witness murders the reputation of another. We see this when our
relationships crumble, how quick we are to criticize our spouse, how easy it is for
criticisms of those whom we used to love to cross the line to slander, slanders the
other woman must believe so they don’t see the life of lies. How sad that when a
third wife pops up that often wives one and two become close friends when they
realize they both suffered a common fate.

Susanna and the Elders,
by Pompeo Batoni,
circa1751
This is from a scene from
the apocryphal addition
to the Book of Daniel,
where Susanna bathes
on the roof, as in the
story of King David and
Bathsheba.
Susanna is ogled by two
elders, she refuses their
advances, they then
accuse her of adultery,
But Daniel interrogates
them separately and
finds differences in their
stories.

It is impossible to divorce a
woman without breaking this
Mitzvah:
You should not divorce a
woman after falsely bringing
an evil name upon her. This is
derived from Deuteronomy
22:19 where it says a man
should be fined “because he
defamed a virgin of Israel.”
I have met few divorcees who
speak well of their former
spouse, so how can they not
break this Mitzvah?
Susanna and the Elders, by Cagnacci Susanna, 1600's

Rambam lists this Mitzvah:
We should not wrong one another by speech.
The scriptural reference is:
You shall not cheat one another,
And you shall fear your G_d,
For I am Adonoy, your G_d. (Leviticus 25:17)
This verse looks like it deals with cheating
rather than bearing false witness, but this does
not matter. Bearing false witness is cheating
the accused out of their reputation and good
name. One sin turns into another with ease.
Rambam elaborates that we should not utter
words that wound and humiliate, causing
unbearable pain. Potiphar’s wife pulls Joseph by his cloak naked, circa 1699

The painting depicts Potiphar’s wife who attempt to
seduce our young Joseph, pulling off his robe, and
when she does not succeed, she slanders Joseph,
falsely accusing him of attacking her.
Not only does the Torah forbid telling lies that
wound and humiliate, but the Torah also forbids
telling truthful things that wound and humiliate. The
Torah gives us an example with Noah after he lands
the ark on dry land:

Noah began to be a man of the soil
And he planted a vineyard.
He drank of the wine and was intoxicated.
He then uncovered himself in the tent.
Ham the father of Canaan saw
The nakedness of his father,
And told it to his brothers who were outside.
Shem and Japeth took the cloak,
Placed it on their shoulders,
And walked backwards,
Covering the nakedness of their father.
They faced away from him,
And did not see the nakedness of their father.
Noah awoke from his wine
And he realized what had been done to him
By his youngest son.
He said, “Cursed is Canaan.
A slave of slaves shall he be to his brothers.”
The Drunkenness of Noah by Michelangelo, 1509
Genesis 9:20-25

If you are divorced, be kind to the reputation of your spouse, they can ruin it
themselves quite sufficiently if they are foolish, they need no help from you. Give
your spouse compliments they do not deserve and your children will remember
your kindness. Be kind to your spouse and your sons and daughters will be kind to
their future spouses.
There are those of us who are compelled to be judges on earth, and there are
Mitzvah governing their behavior. We pray for all judges, for they are asked to judge
with the wisdom of Elohim although they are crippled by the failings and limited
awareness of men.
How sad it is when there is a divorce and both spouses seek to injure the reputation
of the other with their children. They are like the unrighteous judge in this Mitzvah:

A Judge should not listen to one of the
litigants in the absence of another.
This is derived from:
Do not accept a false report.
Do not join hands with a wicked man
To be a corrupt or be a false witness.
Exodus 23:1
As Rambam notes, “Slander, one of the
gravest offenses, is defined as ‘talking
disparagingly of anyone, even though what
one says is true.’”
Naboth in his Vineyard, by James Smetham, circa 1856

It is not enough to be in the right, you must be right
in the right way. It is better not to say anything than
to speak the truth hatefully. You must not be
maliciously righteous, lest your soul rot from the
mold spreading in your heart.

Joy of the Torah, Radość Tory, painted 1890's

We should not venture to judge others, lest we be
judged the many Mitzvoth, including that which is
violated by all those who judge but who should not:
You shall not commit injustice in judgment.
Leviticus 19:15
Whether you judge in your heart or by complaining
to your neighbor, you commit injustice because your
spouse cannot defend himself. It is impossible to
complain of your spouse to your neighbor and not
be guilty of this mitzvah:
Do not be a tale-bearer among your people.
Leviticus 19:16
The death of Jezebel, William Brassey Hole, 1900's

Likewise, when you complain, your side of the
dispute is all that is heard, so the hearer thinks
badly based solely on what you say, violating
this Mitzvah against convicting on the testimony
of a single witness:
One witness may not arise against a man
about any sin or for any transgression
or transgression that he transgresses;
Only by the word of two witnesses
or by the word of three witnesses
let a matter be established.
Leviticus 19:15

Among the Positive Mitzvah is
the command to inquire into the
testimony of witnesses:
Positive Mitzvah 179.
You must investigate, inquire,
and interrogate (them)
thoroughly.
Deuteronomy 13:15
This last passage is imbedded in
a command to slay the
inhabitants of ca ity accused of
following other gods only if the
accusations of the accusers have
been investigated
thoroughly. The lesson is you
just can’t believe damning
testimony just because you
heard it over coffee.
Jezebel devoured by the dogs, Luca Giordano, circa 1680

False testimony is so repugnant that this
Mitzvah condemns witnesses who testify
falsely to the same penalty as the crime they
accused their brother of committing:
Positive Mitzvah 180.
You are to do to each of them
as he conspired to do to his brother,
and eliminate the evil from among you.
Deuteronomy 19:19

The following Mitzvah our
culture breaks when it
causes us to lead ungodly
selfish lives:
Against giving misleading
advice, derived from:
You shall not curse a deaf
person,
And before a blind person
You shall not place a
stumbling block;
You shall fear G_d, I am
Adonoy.
Leviticus 19:14
Death of Absalom, by Colrrado Giaquinto, circa 1762

Rambam explains, “If someone asks your
advice on a matter which he does not fully
understand, you are forbidden to mislead
him or deceive him; you must give him what
you consider the right guidance.” Since this
Mitzvah condemning cruel deception is
followed by a reminder we should fear
Elohim, we know that this Mitzvah, when
violated, particularly angers Elohim.
When we have hard decisions in our lives,
do we ask advice from our rabbis? No, we
run to the godless psychologists, and they
counsel for us to do what feels good, what
makes us happy. Life is hard, but when we
make the easy choices, it only gets harder.
Absalom, by Albert Weisgerber, circa 1914

When all we seek is our own happiness, when we care little about the happiness of
others, when we only seek the counsel of those who want to heal us, to make us
happy, will we really find real happiness? Sometimes I participate in divorce
support groups where the participants are constantly told they need to love
themselves, to have more ME time, to give themselves time to heal, I wonder, what
are we doing? Are they telling being told what they ought to hear, or what they
want to hear? It is like these divorced people have spent their entire lives
sacrificing, thinking more of themselves than others, and now they need to
rest. For some this is true, particularly women, but for others, and we do not know
whom, their divorce is caused by selfishness, and we are telling them to continue
with their selfishness!

Two Jews Study
the Talmud,
Adolf Behrman,
early 1900's

This problem is deeper than most realize. In our godless culture most psychologists
and counselors and most everyone disdains religion entirely. In today’s culture
religion should not be discussed on weekdays. Torah is not for real problems, they
teach. Because they teach that Adonoy is dead on weekdays, they deceive
themselves into believing that what they give you is good advice. You too they will
deceive if you are not careful, if you do not ponder the words of the Torah.

Moses shows the
Tables of the Law,
Exodus, Marc
Chagall, 1966
Jew with Torah,
Marc Chagall, 1925

SOURCES:
Whether you are Christian or Jewish, the study of the Medieval and Talmudic
commentaries on the moral laws of the Decalogue will teach and exhort you to
renew your two-fold Love of God and your love of your neighbor. Indeed, the Book
of Deuteronomy restates the commandment, Love God with all of your heart and
with all of your soul and with all of your mind and all of your strength in over a
dozen differing formulations.
We have another video reflecting on the commentaries of the medieval rabbis,
Rashi, Rambam, and Ramban, plus many modern summaries of the modern
collections of the moral teachings from the Talmud and Torah, the Torah is the first
five books of the Old Testament.

To find the source of any direct
quotes in this blog, please type in
the phrase to the search box in
my blog to see the referenced
footnote.
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Do Not SLANDER: Teachings from the Medieval Rabbis, Rashi, Rambam, Ramban, Torah and the Talmud

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Do Not SLANDER: Teachings from the Medieval Rabbis, Rashi, Rambam, Ramban, Torah and the Talmud