Lesson #19: Character Assassination
“Perception” is the way we perceive people or things. And the reality is that the way people view a particular individual may be entirely different from his true character. By insulting a person in front of other people – such as ridiculing his alleged lack of intelligence, lack of strength, or lack of wealth – we affect the way people perceive that individual. This is, essentially, character assassination, because we cause people to look upon him negatively, destroying his reputation.
Ridiculing someone when speaking with other people is strictly forbidden by force of the prohibition of Lashon Ha’ra. And if the ridicule is even in the slightest way exaggerated or imprecise, then it violates the far more grievous prohibition of Mosi Shem Ra – disseminating false negative information about somebody.
Questioning somebody’s intelligence in front of others is among the most severe violations of Lashon Ha’ra, because it amounts to character assassination. If the person is unmarried, it can ruin his prospects for a Shidduch; if he is a businessman, it can threaten his business, as people will be reluctant to engage with him.
One of the most egregious forms of character assassination – which is, unfortunately, also among the most common forms – is speaking disdainfully about a Rabbi. Ridiculing a Rabbi can easily undermine his standing among his congregants and in the community generally, and can cause him to lose his job. But additionally, insulting a Rabbi amounts to insulting the Torah itself, which he represents. When somebody ridicules a Rabbi, he in essence desecrates the Torah.
After all, why do we stand when a Torah scholar enters the room? The reason is that we stand just as we stand when a Sefer Torah is brought into the room. A scholar who has immersed himself in Torah and acquired Torah knowledge has absorbed the Torah into his being, such that he is, in a very real sense, a walking Sefer Torah. Naturally, then, we stand when a Torah scholar enters just as we do when a Sefer Torah enters. Let us now extend this idea one step further, and reflect upon the great care and reverence shown to a Sefer Torah when it is removed from the Hechal. We treat the scroll with the utmost concern, doing everything we can to ensure that it will not fall. This is how careful we must be to ensure that Rabbis do not “fall” in the eyes of other people. A Torah scholar is to be treated like the Sefer Torah which he represents. Just as nobody would ever think to throw a Sefer Torah on the floor, so must we never even consider insulting a Rabbi and lowering his esteem in people’s eyes.