It Really Is So Simple To Be Good

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Thank you for joining me. I'm Rabbi David Lyon from
Congregation Beth Israel in Houston. When we opened the Torah
this week, we opened to the book of Leviticus in
a Torah portion called Tazria Metzura. Now those words might
not mean anything to you, but if they do, they
will tell you all about bodily emissions, skin afflictions, and

(00:26):
all kinds of bodily issues that concerned and in some
cases even terrified the people. Because in ancient times, all
that worked well was a sign of God's blessing, and
something that was eerie or strange or oozed was something
that was frightening and perhaps was even God's curse. So

(00:48):
in order to develop a sacred community, they paid close
attention to all that they could do to behave well,
to be well, and to enjoy good health. According to Torra,
the obligation of a person who was so affected was
to make himself known to the community, literally calling out unclean, unclean.

(01:10):
We find these words in Leviticus chapter thirteen, because this
person was isolated, feared, and repulsed. Later translators called the
malady that this person was announcing and calling other people
around him to be aware of it so they wouldn't
come in contact with him leprosy because lepers were treated
similarly long before it was better known as Hansen's disease

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and treated appropriately now in the Torah, which is written
in Hebrew. The rabbis who studied it long ago were
not English speakers, so a translation today is simply an
interpretation of what the rabbis were reading and understanding in
their language in Hebrew. The rabbis of the mid Rush

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the Rabbitic interpretations didn't know English either. They didn't know
the word leprosy. They only knew Hebrew, and their lesson
came from insights into how we should read the word mitsura.
They taught. As we hear the word mitsura, the mets
is short for motzi, a Hebrew word which means to

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bring forth, as in the blessing over the bread that
we recite daily, Thank you God for bringing forth bread
from the earth Mosi mets. Part of the word mitsura.
The ra at the end of the word mitsura means evil.
That's what ra is in Hebrew, and by bringing forth

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evil we desecrate God's entire name in Hebrew Shem. The
Rabis concluded that the masura. This person who's described in
the Tora portion but without necessarily understanding its meaning, is
the mozi shem ra, the one who gives currency to
an evil report and by doing so denies the entire Torah.

(03:01):
So the question they asked is what is the evil
that could do all this and render a person a
so called leper in his community. The only sin so
heinous that it could cause a person to be isolated
from the community, violate the entire Torah and desecrate God's
name is a deed that can't be taken back, a

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sin that can't be cleaned up, or an evil word
that cannot be resolved. To the rabbis, this was nothing
more than rumors, hearsay and gossip. I know that to
you and to mean, rumors, hearsay and gossip is nothing

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compared to other sins that we might be able to describe.
But at the core of it, the rabbis recognize that
while other deeds might also be labeled sins, they can
be resolved, They can be forgiven a person go on
and do better than one did in the past. But
here's the lesson they taught about rumors, hearsay and gossip

(04:08):
folk stories artistically illuminate their point. In one particular tale,
pretty famous one, the town Yenta, the town gossip, was
told to tear up open a feather pillow and watch
the feathers blow away in the wind. When the rabbi,
who instructed her to tear that feather pillow apart and

(04:30):
let the feathers blow in the wind, told the Yenda
to retrieve all those feathers and bring them back and
reassemble the pillow, she protested because she knew that it
was an impossible task to do, Aha said. The rabbi
were left to conclude then that the Yenta, the one
who produces all this gossip, learned her lesson about spreading

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evil reports that also can't be easily retrieved. It isn't
about what we do with our hands, because sometimes while
as bad as it can be, it can be overcome,
it can be repaired and forgiven. But the words of
our mouths, when we spread gossip, rumor and hearsay, is

(05:13):
out there in the wind and cannot always be easily
retrieved because it is so nefarious, It is so awful
that it implicates and stains and causes harm in ways
that we can't even begin to imagine. Today, the lesson
is still true. The mazura is still the one who

(05:35):
gives currency to an evil report and denies the whole
Torah on which we rely so. The mazura even today
is anyone who spreads conspiracy theories, promotes false information for
personal gain, contributes to the misunderstanding of innocent people, and
promotes fear instead of hope. The masura today should also

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be like he was in the past, marginalized, isolated, and
rebuked until such time that that person can demonstrate that
he or she has improved, made amends. And while the gossip,
rumor and hearsaying false reports conspiracy talk has done damage

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and can always be rectified and made whole again, we
can at least save the individual and save the individual
from himself or herself and from ever doing that sin again.
In Leviticus, when the matsura this individual returned from isolation
and returned to the community, that person brought what was

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called a guilt offering. It provided evidence of his remorse
and his ability to take up a new role in
the community. Presumably it would be a role that demonstrated honesty, trustworthiness,
and humility. And while it does take time for us
to restore that faith. It's also inspiring when a person

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turns the corner and makes amends, finds new ways to
speak gladness, hope, and prosperity to those who are caused
to suffer. We know it's true in our family and workplaces,
and in the community as well. The Torah and Talmud,
though do not give examples of people who were unable

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to overcome their evil instincts. In one lesson, we're taught,
the greater the passion, the greater the person that was
only in reference to one's inclination to use that passion
to accomplish good deeds. We also call mits vote. If
it were passion for passion's sake that served only oneself,

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then it was evil. To be purely selfish is just
no good. Even so, Judaism permits one to make tshuva,
to repent, to make atonement, even on one's deathbed, because
even one good deed can tip the scale in one's favor,
and God loves nothing more than a sinner who repents.

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But the evil instinct in Judaism is known by two words.
There's the good instinct and the evil instinct. We call
it yet sirharah and yetzerhatou. The passion the yet sir,
the good one is obvious. A person who is inclined
with a good yet Sir, a good passion does good things.

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The evil yet Sir, though, should be understood carefully. It
can lead us to do evil things, which is obvious,
but sometimes it also leads us to build a career,
a home, and a family. These can be self centered.
They can be self serving if we're not careful, and
so they fall into the category of the evil yet

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or the evil passion. But if we use our career
to do good and be generous in the community, then
we balance it. If our family we raise to be
good leaders in the community, to be participants in building
up a strong city, then we've done well with that passion.
And even our marriage, our partner in our life. If

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it is a source of love and goodness that we
extend to others, then that what began as a self
serving need grows into a giving and generous contribution. The
best way to proceed is to learn from Psalm thirty four.
There we read so simply. It says, keep your tongue

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from evil, depart from evil, and do good. It couldn't
be put more simply, because all of us, anybody, wants
a better life. Even if you're happy today, there's always
room for improvement, something better, something sweeter, something easier, something
more affordable. But it begins in our heart, our sol

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and continues with our words. As I said before, our
deeds sometimes can go awry, but they can be amended
and even forgiven. But if we just keep in mind
Psalm thirty four, keep your tongue from evil, depart from evil,
and do good. It is that simple. To be a
meaningful part of a community, even one that is hurting,

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requires nothing more than spending your days speaking helpful words
and doing good deeds. As I've said before, and on
many occasions, it begins at home, because the irony is
that oftentimes we go to extra lengths with our friends
to speak well of them, to support them, to reach

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out to them. Family, blood relatives we sometimes take for granted,
unfortunately and unnecessarily, But because their family, we actually have
a greater responsibility to be more respectful, more helpful, and
to be more careful about the words we use with them.

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Just because they're family and presumably they will never go away,
doesn't mean that there's unconditional ways that we can speak
to them. Friends, we're careful with family, we have to
be even more careful with So it's good to focus
on Psalm thirty form to keep your tongue from evil.

(11:28):
Start the day with good morning, and how are you?
Don't be triggered by words that they use because they
know you well and they push your buttons, and for
many reasons, don't push their buttons either. Depart from evil
and do good. Change your ways, turn the corner, find
a new way to do an old habit that brings

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pleasure to you that's okay, but also pleasure to others.
Be a pleasant presence in the house and among family,
so that they can be embraced by you and you
can embrace them. It works very well if we apply ourselves,
because at the core of all that we want for
ourselves in company with others, it all begins with our

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words our deeds. Yes, and they follow our words, but
it starts with our words. Refraining from rumor, gossip and hearsay,
because nobody wants to be the yenta, the gossiper with
a reputation. Then anything you say to the yenta will
be shared without discrimination to everybody around and without ever

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the possibility to bring it all back and put it
back where it began. That the Book of Leviticus is
ancient is just a rumor. You see. Leviticus is alive
and well, and we are living proof that it can
guide us even now. And though it is twenty twenty five.
The rabbis of old, even a thousand or more years ago,

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did not live in the ancient times in which Leviticus
was rich or observed. They too had to interpret it
for themselves, and I think they did well by teaching us.
I'm Rabbi David Lyon from Congregation Beth Israel and Houston.
To listen again or to share the s measures, please
find it at my podcast Heart to Heart with Rabbi

(13:17):
David Lyon at Sunny ninety nine dot com on the
iHeartRadio app. I'm very pleased that our lessons from our
sacred texts can guide us even in these days. For
some these are the best days, but for many others
we know well that these are not the best days.
They are uncertain days, and we need to find control

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where we can and use the power that is given
to us that begins in our heart and soul that
is spoken with our mouths, because it's a marvelous way
to begin with others, and then our deeds follow naturally.
So if there's any effort that we can make, let's
begin as the Psulm has said, to speak well, and
then from there we can depart from evil and do good.

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I have a feeling that the results will be remarkable.
Greater relationships at home, deeper friendships with those who are
been a part of our lives for years, and even
new opportunities to see with more optimistic eyes, more hopeful
hearts that the future will be okay and safe and good.

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That is God's hope for us. And even in a
world where blessings come from many places, let's hope that
by virtue of our good words and our good deeds,
that we might feel more fortunate in God's presence, and
maybe even from time to time or day to day,
to feel a little more blessed by God in the
company of our family, our friends, and those in the

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community around us. Thank you for joining me today. I
look forward to being with you again next time.