A Sermon based Upon Exodus 20: 16; James 3: 1-12
By Rev. Charles J. Tomlin,
D.Min.
Flat Rock-Zion Baptist
Partnership
Year C: Proper 12, 10th
Sunday After Pentecost, July 24th, 2016
During the hours BEFORE D-DAY, THREE
CHAPLAINS— Father Mike O’Connor, Reverend Paul Peterson, and Rabbi Henry
Birnbaum— sat together and solemnly discussed the possibility that one or more
of them might be killed in the next few hours.
“It
makes one feel the necessity of unburdening one’s soul and MAKING CONFESSION,”
said Father Mike. “I must own up to a
terrible IMPULSE TO DRINK. Oh, I fight
it, I do; but the temptation haunts me constantly, and sometimes I give in to
it.”
“Well,”
said Revered Paul. “I don’t have too
much trouble with liquor, but I must own up to the powerful URGES I feel toward
attractive women. I fight this
temptation desperately, but every once in a while, I fail to resist.”
After
that, there was a pause. Finally both
turned to the Jewish chaplain and one said, “And you, Henry, ARE YOU TROUBLED
by a besetting sin? What is your
persistent temptation?”
Rabbi
Birnbaum sighed and said, “I’m afraid I have a terrible, irresistible impulse
to gossip.”[1]
CONTROL
YOUR TONGUE
Commandment number 9 declares, “You shall not bear false witness
against your neighbor.” (Exodus
20:16). But what about when it’s true?
Here, we are taken BACK INTO A COURT scene
of the ancient world. There were NO
THOROUGH POLICE INVESTIGATIONS, no fingerprinting, no photographs or video
cameras, no DNA testing, no lie detectors, and most importantly, no jury trial
or trial lawyers. If there was a
dispute about the charges, it would be ONE PERSON’S WORD AGAINST ANOTHER and
the judge would have to decide the case.
If there was no other evidence, the case was usually thrown out of
court. However, IF THERE WERE TWO OR
MORE WITNESSES against the
class=WordSection2>
defendant, that person would be in serious
trouble, as we say, “up a creek without a paddle”. While one witness had little power alone,
two witnesses could prove guilt or innocence. This is why Deuteronomy 19:15 says: “Never
convict anyone of a crime on the testimony of just one witness”. Truth had to be established by the
testimony of two or three witnesses.
It doesn’t take much figuring to realize
HOW IMPORTANT “WITNESSES” WERE, nor does it take much to imagine HOW DEADLY a
“FALSE” WITNESS COULD BECOME. If two or
three people made a pact together against a neighbor, they COULD DESTROY him or
her. WITHOUT deterring “false” witnesses
from committing perjury, human community would be under a constant threat.
Jewish commentaries point out ANOTHER
INTERESTING FACT about this command. In
the Jewish Torah, the focus is upon a
false witness (eid) rather than on
false testimony (eidut). [2] In other words, THE ONLY TRUE WITNESS IS AN EYE WITNESS. According to ancient Jewish law, even if
everyone (including the great and pious)
knew that the facts stacked up against a certain person, and even it was
widely suspected that this person had committed the crime, people should NOT
TESTIFY regarding the event IF THEY DID NOT WITNESS it themselves. It is understood by Jewish Law that IF YOU
REPEAT WHAT YOU DO NOT KNOW to be true, if you PRESUME SOMETHING to be true, or
if you ONLY KNOW something to be true FROM HERESAY, that is still to be considered to be a “false
witness” because you did not actually see it.
In Exodus 23, Moses gave some clarification
underscoring the IMPORTANCE OF CONTROLLING FALSEHOOD in a community. “Do not pass along false reports. Do not cooperate with evil people by telling
lies on the witness stand. Do not join a crowd that intends to do
evil. When you are on the witness
stand, do not be swayed in your testimony by the opinion of the majority... Keep
far away from falsely charging anyone with evil. Never put an innocent or honest person to
death.... Take no bribes.... Do not oppress foreigners living among you. You know what it’s like to be a foreigner
when you were in Egypt....”
(Exodus 23:1-9). It is
especially important that the Law PROTECTED THE STRANGER or foreigner from
false reports. The law rightly assumed
that some people would spread false rumors and lies about people who are different. I remember how our most famous missionary,
Lottie Moon, was once called a “foreign
devil” by the Chinese with whom she was working. We all know HOW EASILY rumors, lies,
exaggerations and false stereotyping has been done against “strangers”. It has been often falsely reported that ALL
MEXICANS ARE DRUNKS (like Indians), all BLACKS ARE LAZY, all southerners are
rednecks, all Japanese are smart-alecks, all Jews are greedy, the British are
snobs, all poles are dumb, all Gays are promiscuous, all Germans are Nazis, all
moderates are liberals, or all conservatives are fundamentalists. We all know how much this kind of maliciously
false reporting is done in our world.
It once happened that LEO FRANK, A JEW
RAISED IN BROOKLYN, found himself managing his uncle’s pencil factory in
Atlanta, Georgia. When a
fourteen-year-old EMPLOYEE, Mary Phagan, was FOUND MURDERED in the factory
basement in 1913, Frank was arrested for the crime. THE KEY WITNESS for the prosecution was SUSPECTED
OF THE MURDER and there was NO REAL EVIDENCE against Frank, but he was
convicted and sentenced to death. While
many OBSERVERS REMAINED UNCONVINCED of his guilt, local sentiment ran against
this highly educated Northern Jew, and all legal appeals were denied. After the persistent pleas of Frank’s wife
Lucille, the GOVERNOR COMMUTED THE SENTENCE to life in prison. It cost Governor Slaton his political career,
but that still could not save Leo Frank’s life.
On August, 16th, 1915, A MOB BROKE INTO THE JAIL and lynched
him.[3]
We’ve all been tempted to take PART IN
BEING a FALSE WITNESS in some form or fashion.
By REPEATING a lie, HEARING a stereotypical comment gladly, or by NOT
SPEAKING UP AGAINST the lies that are told and for the truth that should be told, we bear ‘false witness’. If you remember your American history, the
SALEM WITCH TRIALS in 17th century New England sentenced 100
innocent people to death for being in “league with the devil”. The ONLY WAY those who were accused could
ESCAPE the hangman’s noose was to CONFESS TO SOMETHING they were NOT GUILTY
OF. When they refused to confess, they
were all legally murdered. WHY DID THIS
HAPPEN? All because of a group of
teenagers spreading gossip in the community.
REMEMBER THE MCCARTHY ERA when
everyone was afraid of Communism?
Because there was so much ACCUSING GOSSIP and lies going around about
communism, if you had ONE CRITICAL THING TO SAY ABOUT CAPITALISM or one good
thing to say about communism’s critique of capitalism (which was true), you
were considered a communist. THE
MALICIOUS SLOGAN of that time: “better
dead than red”.
The ORIGINAL INTENT of this commandment was
to PROTECT THE ACCUSED in the courtroom, but this commandment clearly APPLIES
TO Truth Telling in ALL HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS.
That is why the Contemporary
English Version is right to translate this commandment, “You shall not tell lies about others.” “ALL THE WORLD IS A COURTROOM”. J.
Ellsworth Kalas quotes and writes, “Everywhere
and always, reputations are on trial. It
is NOT ONLY BEFORE JUDGE AND JURY that you and I are called innocent or
guilty… Such DECISIONS ARE CONSTANTLY
BEING MADE at business luncheons, during telephone gossip, at parties,
during coffee breaks, in letters and in E-mails... When people stand before a judge, they (get nervous, have sweating hands, and may
stammer and slow in speech). But IN
LIGHTER SOCIAL OCCASIONS, (where there is no Hand on the Bible), INFORMALITY ENCOURAGES
EASY, THOUGHTLESS SPEECH. While in the
formal courtroom, the person on trial has a chance to hear the charges that are
made against him or her, but in daily life we rarely know what stories are
being told or what judgments passed, and rarely do we have a chance to set the
record straight...”[4]
Scripture says that GOD WILL HOLD US ALL
ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE WORDS WE SPEAK, not just lying words, but also the “idle”
or careless words (Matthew 12:36). In
addition, the BIBLE CONSTANTLY PUTS “LIARS”
ON NOTICE. “LIARS” WHO WILL NOT REPENT find their final resting place in A LAKE
BURNING WITH FIRE (Rev. 21:8). Gossip,
slander, flattery, or misleading speech is included in what the Bible calls “a lying tongue.” The book James COMPARES THE TONGUE to the bit in the horse’s mouth
or to the rudder of a ship—both of these items are relatively small compared to
the body but they can steer us into or out of trouble. The MOST ALARMING COMPARISON James makes is
between the tongue and A SMALL SPARK that causes a fire. His
point is that unless we are careful, we can BECOME ARSONISTS with our
tongues. What would it mean to you if I
said that you lived next door to an arsonist?
WE CAN MAKE LIFE HELL FOR OTHERS AND FOR OURSELVES unless we learn to
discipline our speech and control the tongue.
BE CARE
‘FULL’ WITH YOUR WORDS
There is A JEWISH FOLKTALE set in 19th
century Eastern Europe, which tells of man who went through the small community
slandering the rabbi. One day, feeling
suddenly remorseful, he went to the rabbi to beg for forgiveness. He offered to undergo any form of penance to
make amends. The rabbi told him to TAKE
A FEATHER PILLOW from his home, cut it open, and SCATTER THE FEATHERS to the
wind. The man did as he was told and
returned to the rabbi.
“Now
am I forgiven?” The man asked the rabbi.
“Almost”
the rabbi responded. “You have to
perform just one last task. Go and
GATHER ALL OF THE FEATHERS and the deed will be undone.
“But
that’s impossible,” the man protested, “for the wind has scattered them.
The
rabbi answered, “Precisely.” Now you
know HOW IMPOSSIBLE IT IS TO RESTORE what you have destroyed with your words.”[5]
Our human COMMUNICATION, both in the
courtroom and in daily life MUST BE CAREFUL, NOT CARELESS. No matter how high-tech our world gets—
moving from smoke signals to cell phones, from snail mail to e-mail, this
commandment is still direly needed and maybe more so. Now that we have more ways, faster ways, and
easier ways to communicate, we also have more ways TO SPREAD FALSEHOOD and
lies. Our high-tech communication
explosion makes it even more imperative that we understand that this commandment
and that we also understand that it is MORE THAN A COMMANDMENT ABOUT US.
Again, the key word here is “neighbor”
It says: You shall not bear false witness against
your neighbor.”
God is CONCERNED AS MUCH ABOUT how we treat our neighbor with our speech
as he is concerned about the harm that lying brings us. This is the strange way that God is God. HE IS ALWAYS CONCERNED ABOUT the other and us
as individuals. The truth, justice and dignity
we need to have community, will have A SLIM CHANCE in this increasingly complex,
less restrained, and now ‘global’ court in daily life WITHOUT ADHERENCE to this
ninth commandment calling us to love our neighbor by telling the truth.
There are MANY SIDES TO THIS RESPONSIBILITY
of truth-telling in regard to our neighbor.
While we have explained how falsehood can do a lot of damage to someone,
it is also important to realize that ‘false witness’ means more than telling
lies. That’s why the command is not expressed as, “Don’t lie about your neighbor”, but
uses the phrase, “Don’t bear FALSE
WITNESS AGAINST your
neighbor” WHEN WE REFUSE TO TELL, HONOR AND PROMOTE THE TRUTH that helps instead of
hurts, we are also in violation of God’s rule.
WHEN WE SPREAD RUMORS THROUGH GOSSIP—
that’s bearing false witness. When we
attempt to ruin another’s reputation— THAT’S SLANDER. We also bear false witness when we entertain
ourselves by participating in lies—that’s aiding and abetting. When Shakespeare described that “wicked web we weave… to deceive” or when
Mark Twain said there are “lies, damned
lies and then there are statisticians”, they meant you can even use TRUTH “AGAINST
a neighbor” by being SELECTIVE ABOUT What is REVEALED, aiming to use truth
destructively rather than responsibly.
Do you remember where you were WHEN THE
CHALLENGER SPACE SHUTTLE DISASTER took place 30 years ago last February? Teresa and I were in a restaurant in Chapel
Hill waiting an appointment with a doctor.
I can still remember it like yesterday.
Several years after the
Challenger Disaster, Bill Moyers reported in a PBS special, “The Truth About Lying”, that the “seven astronauts who died in
the Challenger disaster were NEVER TOLD OF THE DANGERS OF LAUNCHING IN COLD
TEMPERATURES. A behind-the-scenes
debate raged between the engineers of Morton Thiokol on one side and that
company’s mangers and NASA officials on the other. To bolster NASA’S public image, information
about the dangers of the launch was suppressed.
When Morton Thiokol’s engineers refused to give the go-ahead, THEY WERE
REMOVED from the decision making process.
In spite of their serious objections, CHALLENGER WAS LAUNCHED and
millions witnessed the disastrous consequences.
Once the private debate became public, the world learned of NASA’S
deception and cover-up.[6]
Unfortunately, some of WORST CASES OF FALSE
WITNESSING I’ve ever known happened at church.
Some folks in a particular congregation DISSAGREED with their pastor
over a mission project and wanted to FIND A REASON TO GET RID OF HIM. They went back to a community where he had
lived many years ago in order to FIND A SKELETON in his closet, and they
did. They discovered that the pastor
ONCE HAD BEEN INVOLVED AN EXTRAMARITIAL AFFAIR early in his life. The people came back FURIOUS THAT THE PASTOR
HAD HIDDEN this truth from them, EVEN THOUGH his marriage was saved, he had
been through counseling, and HAD BEEN A GENTLEMAN all during his
pastorate. Still, upon discovering his
past failure, as a man, not as a pastor, folks demanded that the deacons fire their
pastor. They were planning to have a
meeting with him, to discuss the issue, but out of fear, anger and hurt, the
pastor resigned before the deacons ever had a chance. This is a sad story— and what made it worse
is that it was a story that split that church.
Many felt that it was completely unchristian and unfair to USE THE TRUTH
in such a cruel way.
No VICE IS AS MUCH FUN THAN SLANDERING the
reputation of another person. Perhaps
part of the reason some enjoy tearing down another is because THEY ALREADY FEEL
SO LOW THEMSELVES, and don’t want to be by themselves. Or maybe, as James says, the worst weapon
available to us, WE ALL CARRY A WEAPON AROUND everywhere we go— our tongues. Damaging another person through our speech can
SEEM SO DECEPTIVELY HARMLESS AND INNOCENT.
People who would never think of slugging another person, wouldn’t think
twice about repeating an unverified or a destructive story. Someone who would faint at the sight of blood
may not at all be disturbed by battering a reputation.
A FAITHFUL
WITNESS
So, this ninth commandment is not only
about controlling our tongues, nor only
about being careful with our tongues,
but finally, and perhaps most importantly of all, it is about being a ‘faithful’ witness instead of a false
one.
When you read “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor”
don’t fail to UNDERLINE THE WORD WITNESS. This may shock some, truth telling is even
more about who you are and should be, than it is about the truth itself.
The Josephson Institute of Ethics has been
surveying the ethics of American youth every other year since 1992. In 2002 the survey included twelve thousand
high school students and found that almost 7 percent of them had cheated on a
test. More than 33 percent said they'd
stolen something from a store, and 93 percent said they'd lied to a parent,
relative, or teacher.
Most surprising of all, perhaps, was the
fact that students at religious high schools were more likely to cheat and lie.
In 2002, the cynicism factor — the
notion that “a person has to lie or cheat sometimes in order to succeed” — jumped
9 percent to 43 percent. What's more, as
the study indicates, the numbers in every category are increasing substantially
from year to year.
“The
scary thing,” said Michael Josephson, president of the Josephson Institute
of Ethics, said, “is that so many kids
are entering the work force to become corporate executives, politicians,
airplane mechanics and nuclear inspectors with the dispositions and skills of
cheaters and thieves.” The thought
of a corporate culture with a total disregard for truth turns upside down our
entire society. If we cannot trust one
another to make honest contracts, to provide honest information, to function
honestly in interpersonal relations, what can we trust about our society as a
whole — its professionals, its bankers, its politicians? (From Chittister, Joan (2012-08-01). The
Ten Commandments: Laws of the Heart (pp.
98-99). Orbis Books. Kindle Edition.
Again, the problem of ‘bearing false witness’ is not just about ‘truth telling’, but it’s
about the kind of people we become or don’t become. “Words
are godlike” (Chittister). We create
worlds with our words, just like God created the world with words. By being dishonest or destructive, we do not
bear the ‘true’ image of God within. So,
it is not only our ‘witness’ that is
false, but we have created a ‘false’ truth about ourselves. As
Nietzche wrote, “The most common
lie is the one we tell ourselves; lying to others is relatively an exception.”
Chittister,
Joan (2012-08-01). The Ten Commandments:
Laws of the Heart (pp. 107-108). Orbis Books. Kindle Edition.
When former heavyweight boxing champion
Floyd Patterson died, the New York Times published a long obituary, noting what
a sensitive person Patterson had been, easily embarrassed, quiet, not at all
the blustering, bragging boxer that is our stereotypical, and often accurate,
image of a boxing champion. Patterson once
said: “You can hit me and I won’t think much of it, but you can say something
to me and hurt me very much”. “Sticks
and stones” may break my bones, but words do hurt.” (Miller, Patrick D. The Ten Commandments:
Interpretation: Resources for the Use of Scripture in the Church (p. 345).
Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition).
There is no greater damage done with false words,
than the damage we do to ourselves when we tell or live a lie. This is why this commandment, like all the
commandments, is as much about who
we are, as what we should say. This law
is about the kind of people we must be as God’s ‘faithful’ people—to God, to
others, and to ourselves.
This is why the commentary on the Law, the
Talmud, made the point that all lies are not the same. Sometimes two truths have to be reckoned with. Which one do you go with then? To illustrate the Talmud (K'tubot 16b– 17a)
records an argument between the major theological schools of Hillel and Shammai.
The Talmud reads: “How does one praise a
bride while dancing before her at her wedding? “The school of Shammai says:
Describe the bride as she is, (ugly or beautiful). “The school of Hillel says:
Describe the bride as beautiful and full of grace. “The school of Shammai
retorted to the school of Hillel: But suppose she is lame or blind. Is one to
say, ‘O bride, full of grace,’ seeing that scripture declares ‘Keep away from
anything false’? (Exod. 23: 7). (Chittister,
Joan (2012-08-01). The Ten Commandments:
Laws of the Heart (pp. 103-104). Orbis Books. Kindle Edition.
Do you see the point the Talmud is making? We all have a responsibility to tell the
truth, but have an even greater responsibility to remain faithful with love,
and in this particular situation (like when you get an ugly tie from your
grandchild for Christmas), the most
faithful, loving truth means that you keep private thoughts private. Love is the supreme truth that even without
speaking, trumps the bear truth being the greatest truth all by itself. Some
call this speaking ‘white lies’, but I prefer to name it, ‘the truth in faithful
love’. It is the same kind of thing
that happens when God looks at us, seeing our ugly, brokenness, and sin; and
gives us grace. It’s not because we
deserve this as truth, but because God’s love trumps all.
The only way to overcome our human weakness
in truth telling is to focus on being
‘faithful’ to ‘this’ very truth we should be telling. God’s love in Jesus Christ is the truth we
should be telling so that we and others can be transformed into people of the truth, rather than people of the lie.
Amen.
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