I am not ashamed – Emor
Chillul HaShem – profaning the name of God – is one of the worst things a Jew can do. It is spelt out in the sidra: “You shall not profane My holy name, but I shall be hallowed among the children of Israel” (Lev. 22:32).
Any time a Jew does something which brings God and Judaism into disrepute, that is Chillul HaShem. Of course there are those who object if, when reporting someone’s misdeeds, the media identify the person as a Jew. “If anyone else does something questionable,” the argument runs, “would the media say that person was Catholic, or Anglican, or Presbyterian? If a person’s faith is irrelevant when they belong to a different community, why should it be relevant to state that someone is a Jew?”
The argument is valid; it is blatant discrimination to single out Jews in such circumstances.
But the question I ask is a different one. People generally know you are Jewish anyhow. And if you do something wrong, don’t others feel surprised that a Jew has acted in this way – a Jew, a member of the people that has God-given standards that should never be besmirched or compromised?
A Jew who is tempted to act wrongly should summon up the strength to resist the temptation, for two reasons – because the act is wrong in itself; and because if a person succumbs their whole Jewishness is called into question.
The best thing is to be able to say, “I am not ashamed to be a Jew, and I do my best to ensure that Judaism will never be ashamed of me.”
