How’s Your Gossip?

Being quarantined at home can lend itself to increased gossip with those in your immediate surrounding or over social media.

Conversely, you may also have less human interactions so there’s less fodder for gossip.

However it may be for you, the reality is that gossip is a challenge for many. To that end, this week’s Torah portion discusses the serious consequences for speaking ill of others known in Hebrew as Lashon Harah.

The Torah tells us the one who speaks ill of others brings upon themselves the affliction known as Tzaraas.  This was a miraculous form of leprosy that would afflict the persons clothing, body and walls of their home.

Is this instruction from the Torah simply a good ethical framework for healthy living between human kind?  It would seem from the miraculous nature of the affliction that there is a spiritual component here as well.

Hashem loves each one of His children, even the wayward child.  In fact the great Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev would find a positive angle in the wayward Jew to support the love and commitment of the Jew to Hashem.
Example: Rabbi Levi Yitzchak once saw a wayward Jew intentionally and provocatively smoking on Shabbos.  He said to him, “Reb Yid, do you know that today is Shabbos?” The Jew responds affirmatively.  He continues “Reb Yid do you know that smoking is prohibited on Shabbos?” Again the Jew answers affirmatively.  He then turns his eyes to heaven and says “G-d Almighty even when your children are violating the Shabbos, they won’t lie!”

When we speak ill of another we are basically telling Hashem that His love for His children is misplaced. 

 
Interfering with G-d’s pleasure and delight He takes in His children is provocative and brings about a natural consequence.

In Hebrew the letters for pleasure and affliction are exactly the same.  Pleasure is Oneg    and affliction is Negah.  When we interfere with G-d’s pleasure we bring upon ourselves a natural consequence of affliction.*

This is the spiritual meaning to the severity of speaking Lashon Harah.
So these days if you are feeling like you need to talk about other people, find nice things to say about people and just avoid the negative.  Don’t mess with Hashem’s children. He really doesn’t like it. 

*This idea is from the book known as Maor Aynayim written by Rabbi Menachem Nachum Twersky.