You shall not defraud one another. (Lev. 19:13, 25:14, 25:17)
It seems simple enough: though our selfishness may want us to maximize our own well-being at the expense of others, the Torah teaches us that we must limit our natural instincts and desires, and instead apply a system of ethics and morality.
So we are not allowed to have different weights and measures, or to apply a different law to strangers than we apply to our own flesh and blood. We cannot put a stumbling block in front of the poor, or leverage our economic or physical power over those who have less money or power than we have.
By looking around us today, we know that societies that celebrate libertine principles, that every person can decide for themselves what is right and good and desirable, is a recipe for chaos at best. That way leads to selfishness unbounded, and Might Makes Right. It leads to evil.
But is it really that simple? After all, the Torah surely does acknowledge our human failings and weaknesses and makes allowance for them… right? After all, a person may choose to remain a servant (awl in the ear, etc.). We bring offerings, in part, to help us move on from the past, which is a concession to our psychological weaknesses. In wartime, we can take a female captive, giving in to our physical desire. As a nation, the Torah even tells us that we can give in to our desire to keep up with the neighboring nations, and appoint a king to rule over us.
Similarly, the Torah allows us to prioritize our family over our community, our community over our tribe, our tribe over our nation, and our nation above all others. Tribalism, for its own sake, is also accepted in the Torah – perhaps even encouraged. Is this also giving in to instinct? Is pride in one’s tribe any more sacred or “correct” than being a fan of the Ravens instead of the Steelers?
Are these not all concessions to human nature and frailty? In a perfect world, don’t we think the Torah would have commanded us to simply rise above such pettiness?
But … no. G-d seems to accept that people are people. Which explains why we have a covenant of the Second Tablets (based on divine mercy) and not of the First Tablets (strict judgement).
Is it clear that G-d accepts that we have limitations? Is this not reflected in the Torah?
So here’s the question: where does G-d and His Torah draw the line? Is there a governing principle that explains why the Torah allows us to give in to our nature when it comes to certain things, but to resist that very same temptation when it comes to other matters?
There seems to be an equilibrium between conceding to our animal nature, and bringing G-d fully into our lives. But what defines it?
Here is a suggestion – and I welcome better answers!
1: We are allowed to accept our own failings when it comes to ourselves.
2: But we are not allowed to let those failings be leveraged against others.
Is this consistent with the examples I bring above? Is it consistent with the Torah as a whole – that we are allowed (or have the freedom) to fall short on our own accounts, but we must never harm someone else’s opportunity to reach their own potential?
Might this rule also be a guide for understanding the ideal extent – and limits – of human freedom and freewill?
Could it be this simple? Is there a better answer?
And if this is indeed correct, then why? Is it because ultimately G-d puts relationships first, ahead of whatever failures and limitations we each have in our own selves?