Some Gossip on the Gossip Columnists

Gossip: a person who will never tell a lie if the truth will do more damage

***

Family politics are as old as the world itself. Adam blamed his wife for his wrongdoing, and Cain “took care” of his brother in history’s first murder. Abraham’s father allows him to be thrown into a furnace; Jacob and Esau don’t seem to see eye to eye in anything.

This week, we read of a perhaps less dramatic issue: sibling gossip. Moshe’s sister, Miriam, passed judgment on him for separating from his righteous wife Tzippora. She then shared her opinion of the story with their brother, Aharon:

“Does he think he’s holier than any of us?” she criticized. “G-d speaks to all of us; only he decides that a prophet can’t be married?”

G-d quickly let them know of His disapproval and punished Miriam with Tzaraat (a skin disease). The fact that her opinion was wrong was not the point; she may not have known that G-d had so instructed him. Yet jumping to conclusions, casting aspersions and passing them on were inappropriate.

For seven days, according to law, Miriam remained secluded outside the Israelite camp. The Jewish nation waited for that full week until she was pure; only then did they continue the journey through the desert.

Think about it:

For four hundred years, the Jewish nation had breathlessly awaited their redemption, and now, finally redeemed, they were counting down the days to the completion of the journey – minute by minute, step be step. And now, six hundred thousand people had to delay their trip to the Holy land for an entire week, due to some minor, personal have-you-heard issues!

What does that tell us?

Snide remarks, casual gossip and vicious slander have become societal norms. Millions are made by gossip magazines and articles. Saying what’s on one’s mind is considered “freedom of speech” and is just something we “gotta live with.”

Not so for the Holy One. In G-d’s eyes, it is a sin. And because it is such an easy slip, G-d took extreme measures with Miriam, teaching a lesson for generations: no slander is acceptable. Celebrity tabloids, politics, racial and family slander – these are absolutely wrong. There is no justification for blabbering.

As the saying goes, “Big people speak of ideas; average people speak about things; small people speak of other people.”

Please do not forward this thought to gossip columnists; they might pick on me next time…

Do something about it:

Think and think again before jumping into your friend’s dirty laundry.