While reading Leviticus 19 one commandment caught my eye, comandment 11. It said "You shall not steal. You shall not deny falsely. You shall not lie, one man to his fellow.". This was intreguing to me because I liked the main theme of honesty portayed in this commandment. First, it blatantly says “do not steal” which indicates that you shall not take from others. It also says to not deny falsely, to not lie, tell the truth and be honest. Personally, this is a mitzvah I can easily apply in my life. I live by the motto “honesty is the best policy” which I think has a very similar meaning to the 11th commandment. It is so much easier to be honest and upfront with people it also much healthier. When you lie not only do you get a groggy feeling in the pit of your stomach but lying is like a gateway drug, once you start its hard to stop and it usually leads to bigger lies. This is also applicable in the modern day life of Jews or anyone really who makes an effort to be truthful even when its hard.
I couldn’t choose just one picture that embodies honesty to me. So many things just came to my mind. The first thing I thought of was camp. Camp was where I learned so many lessons about many things, including truthfulness. It also reminds me a yashar kehillah, an honest community. There is no place where I feel comfortable enough to be straightforward with everyone.
Sophia, love your post. Being honest is both honorable and respectable. When we treat our words as something holy, then we are careful with what we say and how that impacts others. You referred to this as the "11th" commandment and I like how you think it's one of the most important ones of the 613. Thanks for sharing!
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