During the process of creation, a midrash suggests that God consulted with the angels in order to determine whether or not to create human beings.
Each angel argues their case: The angel of Lovingkindness says yes, let them be created, because they will do acts of love. The angel of Truth says, no, don't create human beings, because they will lie. Justice argues yes, because people will performs acts of righteousness. Finally, Peace thinks that people shouldn't exist, because they will bring about strife.
After hearing the arguments, God hurtles Truth to the Earth. The angels are shocked, as Truth is God's seal, the one attribute that is above all others. They ask, Do you disgrace your own seal?! God responds: Truth will sprout forth from the Earth. Following that, God creates Adam and Eve.
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Wednesday's events were painful for so many reasons. It's one thing when America's battles are due to foreign disputes. It's something else entirely when sinat hinam, hatred amongst our own people, leads to civil unrest and violence.
On one hand, it is absolutely unbelievable that this happened, and on the other, it follows unsurprisingly as a disastrous consequence of what we have seen and experienced for the last few years. Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the ADL, issued this statement: More than anything, what is happening right now at the Capitol is a direct result of the fear and disinformation that has been spewed consistently from the Oval Office. President Trump has a responsibility to call for an end to this violence and unrest that he has sowed. His campaign of disinformation is a clear and present danger to our democracy.
Many of these domestic terrorists walked proudly through the people's house with symbols of racism, hate, and anti-semitism, including confederate flags and Nazi swastikas. Some wore shirts with the slogan, 6MWE, an acronym for the phrase, 6 Million Wasn't Wnough.
But as alluded to earlier, Truth is God's seal - not justice, or compassion, or lovingkindness, or any other quality. And whereas the desecration of our capital certainly was a perversion of justice, compassion and kindness, it is truth that has suffered the most.
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When Congress re-convened to resume the certification of votes, Senator Mitt Romney said, The best way that we can show respect to the voters who have lost is to tell them the truth.
Sometimes, we glibly tell people that the truth hurts. Well, the truth does often hurt. That's why it's difficult. Easiness and truthfulness are often on opposite ends of the same spectrum. Truth is easy when it syncs up with our own self-interests and desires. But truth matters most when it does not.
Our tradition understands this, and it is why Judaism places such stringent ethical and behavioral demands upon its judges and magistrates and leaders.
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Like many of you, I'm angry. I did not want to give this sermon tonight. I was planning on talking about Debbie Friedman and her life, sharing how her melodies and lyrics continue to teach and inspire Jews of all ages and backgrounds. But I can't give that sermon tonight.
I am angry because of the all-too-easy and painful comparisons made between the Black Lives Matter marches from the summer, and the riot on Wednesday. Rabbi Jonah Pesner, head of our own Religious Action Center, writes: The difference between this summer’s events and the response to yesterday’s violent, seditious attack on the Capitol building is a shocking but unsurprising example of systemic, hypocritical racism, antisemitism, and white supremacy.
And I am angry because violence interrupted the very process of democracy itself. All the more so, I'm angry that the violence was incited by someone who should be the exemplar for leading the democratic process, and not the one subverting it.
But in our anger, I want to caution myself and all of us against the same 'us and them' mentality that has brought our country to this point. None of us stormed the capital, or assaulted reporters and police officers. Unlike the president, none of us incited violence against our own citizenry. But, nonetheless, we all have work to do.
We can not let racism, antisemitism, or hatred get to the point where a violent riot is even possible, or god forbid, an actuality. We must speak the truth. To ourselves and to each other. This is at times painful, upsetting and difficult, but it is necessary.
God's seal of truth is part of our creation, and it can sprout forth. But it requires constant effort, and humility. Each of us, myself included, consciously or subconsciously, occasionally elevates half-truths and speculation to the level of fact and reality to suit our own perspective, and we need to be able to be wrong. We need to be able to lose sometimes. Whether it's an argument, a policy, or a presidential election, it doesn't matter. Humility is the water that fosters truth to sprout forth.
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I want to share one more thing about the Jewish concept of truth. The Hebrew word for truth, emet, is interesting as it is constructed from the exact first, middle, and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet. A teaching suggests that to be truthful means being entirely truthful, from the beginning to the end. Each of our lives are only a piece of the Truth, capital T, because we are limited beings with limited perspective. And so, all of us need to work together to discern truth, and then live by it. This is what Judaism demands, and it is also the foundation of America's democratic experiment. This is what God wishes for all of us, so that truth will indeed sprout forth once again.
Thank you for this thought provoking sermon. Your words of wisdom are much needed at this very difficult time.