Smile! You're on Camera!
I looked up and saw the thief. He was perhaps five feet away from where I was standing. I was able to watch the entire heist. First he walked by and casually took a few items. A few minutes later he slowly walked by again and nonchalantly pocketed a few more. Another couple minutes passed and I saw him come back. This time I saw him look around to see if anyone was watching and as he walked by he swiped another one. As he left the scene I saw from his face that he clearly thought he got away with taking everything.
Although under normal circumstances I would likely have called the police, in this case I did not, because the perpetrator was a 6-year-old boy taking extra lollipops from the synagogue candy man.
Watching the scene unfold I was amused by the goings-on. This little boy with a sweet tooth clearly was not satisfied with the one lollipop that the nice candy man was allotting to all of the other children. He was determined to get his hands on more and was successful in his efforts. What humored me was watching his actions and discerning his inner thoughts. Surely if I was able to hear his inner voice I would have heard him say, I got away with it! No one noticed! What he failed to realize was that I, together with the other adults standing around (including the candy man himself), saw everything and just let it go.
Giving it some further thought I came to the realization that many mature adults do the same thing. We are not content with what G-d has given us, and we feel we need more. We too like more candy, though ours comes in the form of a dollar bill – not a lollipop. People cut corners and do things that might be slightly less than ethical or perhaps even outright dishonest but they think as long as no one sees them they aren’t being observed.
This extends beyond the realm of illicit monetary gains. It applies to all of our actions and deeds. We are guilty of doing things at different times that we would not do if we knew someone was watching. We would be more careful of how we spoke to and about others, the types of foods we ate, the things we saw, the manner in which we tried (or did not try) to assist others etc.
When the great Talmudic sage Rabbi Yochanan was on his deathbed his students asked him for some parting words of advice. He told them, “May you have as much fear of G-d as you do of your fellow man.” When asked for a clarification he told them, “Many times a person does something that he would refrain from doing had another human being been watching. If he would have the same fear of G-d as he does of his fellow person and he will realize that G-d is all-seeing and all-knowing he will refrain from sin at all times.” Sage advice indeed!
So the next time we are faced with a decision that leaves room for the possibility that it might not be the proper course of action, let’s keep in mind that while there might not be a human being observing us (unless we are a 6-year-old pilfering candies at synagogue), we are under surveillance 24/7 by a Higher Being. We might THINK we are getting away with things but that could never be farther from the truth. It only leads to more “cavities” for our souls.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Yosef Koval
