entail an action, for when a person becomes immersed in these, it is very difficult to part from them (Hilkhot Teshuva 7:3).
Negative character traits are rampant in political discourse these days, in ways and to an extent never before seen. We are hearing a great deal of harsh judgments from our leaders, and people are just as harsh in judging those leaders. And as the leaders indulge in judging others, so do ordinary people take license to speak in just as judgmental terms. Everyone is shouting insults.
It seems that everyone has set themselves up to be judge, jury and executioner over other people, not just in their minds but also too often in reality. We need to acknowledge that there is a positive side to judging other people, which can help keep us far from people whose influences can be negative, or perhaps even harmful to us. But that positive side of judgment is often outweighed by the kind of hyper-critical judgment of other people that we hear so much of every day.
Muslims are judged. Women are judged. Black people are judged. Hispanics are judged. The police are judged. Republicans are judged. Liberals are judged. Jews are judged, and the Jews judge each other.
Few are making an effort to understand, or appreciate, or respect others. Everyone is judged.
This behavior is damaging. The damage encompasses both the one who is judged and the one who judges. We can expect to be judged on Rosh Hashana in direct relation to how we judge others. As the Talmud (Shabbat 127b) says so clearly: “Anyone who judges others favorably will be judged favorably in Heaven.” The promise is that God takes a cue from our behavior and judges us in the same manner as we judge others.
It is fundamental spiritual practice to become aware of the danger of being judgmental and to counter that tendency and thereby put ourselves in better stead come Rosh Hashana. Our work in this area is guided by two core Jewish notions.
There is a traditional Jewish value of kavod ha’briyot—respecting other people. Many teachings tell us that we should aspire to honoring others, starting with the fourth of the Ten Commandments,