The Ninth Commandment

The Ninth Commandment, like the previous Commandments, is one of those in which we often find ourselves confused.  We are torn between what is right and what is wrong.  We do not know what to do.

“If I tell her the truth, I will only hurt her feelings.”  “If I tell him the truth, he will never believe me.”

The Ninth Commandment says,

You shall not bear false witness.

The Ninth Commandment

The Ninth Commandment is short, but filled with many exhortations:

-  We cannot lie.
-  We cannot be deceitful.
-  We cannot speak anything but the truth.
-  We cannot say anything that is contrary to the truth.
-  We cannot spread rumors.
-  We cannot falsify.
-  We cannot misquote.
-  We cannot fabricate.
-  We cannot invent an untruth.
-  We cannot mislead.
-  We cannot misrepresent.
-  We cannot misinform.

In short, we cannot bear false witness.

St. John Chrysostom

St. John Chrysostom, a fourth century Archbishop, eloquent preacher and Church Father primarily responsible for the Divine Liturgy we celebrate each Sunday, gives advice that cuts across sixteen centuries.  In a sermon he delivered on fasting, he said,

“For what good is it to fast from meats, poultries and dairy products, and with the same teeth devour our fellow man; the same tongue to malign and destruct; and the same lips to utter all manner of falsehood.”

There is a saying in Greek, which goes something like this:  “The tongue has not bones, yet bones it breaks.”

The Ninth Commandment Today

You will often find yourself in the position where telling a lie is the easiest way out to avoid embarrassment, to impress others, to appear important, or to hide.  But what ultimately happens is the one lie brings another.  “Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.”

Sometimes you will find it easier lying to your parents than telling the truth.  You will find a host of good reasons (or so they appear at the time) to justify this action.  But deep, down inside, you realize that it is wrong.  What is even of more serious consequence, you deprive your parents and yourself of a beautiful opportunity to share experience and solutions which you will long cherish.  You may fight the whole idea of parental guidance, label it an interference and do many different things to deter it.  But a little voice inside craves for that guidance, even when it offends your sense of maturity.

Lying to friends and schoolmates for impressive reasons cheat you out of doing the thing you want to do the most: be yourself!  Lasting and meaningful relationships and friendships are built on honesty and sincerity.  Eventually people find us out.  People know when we are phonies; when we are for real!

Little White Lies

There is no such thing as a little white lie.  The Lord tells us a lie is a lie; a falsehood is a falsehood.

“What about those times when we will offend someone if we tell them the truth?”  “What about the person who is asked out on a date but does not really wish to go?”  “What about the person who asks for the truth but does not really want it?”

These are valid questions.  There are times and circumstances that perplex and confuse us.  There are no easy answers.  But lying is no answer either.  There are times when you will find it necessary to be evasive – not to lie; to be evasive!  But you must do it in a positive manner, that does not provoke animosity and is not offensive.  You can tactfully change the subject.  You can introduce something else.

A boy may ask a girl out and she may not wish to go out with him.  Should she tell him outright, “I do not wish to go out with you”?  Obviously, the answer is “no.”  At first she should tell him she is busy, or has other plans.  If a girl continues to give this answer, chances are the fellow will eventually get the message.  In any event, if the girl says she has other plans, she is not lying.  Her plans could be to stay home with her family, watch TV, read a book, etc.  She is not lying, because her plans do not include her going out.

“What do you do if someone asks you for an opinion about a dress, suit, report, etc.?”

Again, there are tactful and inoffensive ways of answering:  It is different.  It is unusual.  It is interesting.

If we try hard enough, there is always something good we can say about someone, something or some object.  We can do this quite adequately, without compromising our conscience and principles.  The only time a direct and concise answer should come from us is when our morals, principles and religious convictions are at stake.  Then, of course, we have a moral responsibility to be clear, precise and candid.

Conclusion

Like other Commandments, the Ninth Commandment deals with many dimensions in our life.  Because we are human beings, we are sensitive, emotional and have the ability to react in strange ways.  One of the most devastating reactions resulting from our emotions and sensitivities is to become revengeful, contemptible and pay back.  But Jesus tells us the “eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” retribution is wrong and un-Christian.  Protection, self-preservation and self-defense are not to be confused and distorted.  If they are, we bear false witness.

Another dimension of false witness is to be a constant complainer and malcontent.  We are our worst enemy.  When our family, our friends and acquaintances hear us constantly finding fault, we send them running in the opposite direction.  This disease has rightly been labeled spiritual halitosis!  No one likes to be around a griper because it is depressing and dehumanizing.

Louis XIV of France went to a great expense in the late seventeenth century to build the magnificent palace at Versailles.  The architecture, paintings and sculpture surpassed all beauty.  Its gardens were exquisitely planned and executed.  The fountains of Versailles were one of its most gracious charms.  Today the fountains are dry and filled with rubbish and trash.  No major calamity stopped the Fountains of Versailles.  No German bombs, either during the First or Second World Wars had fallen on them.  No alien and ruthless conqueror destroyed this beauty – only the slow insidious corrosion from within.  Just rusted pipes!

Bearing false witness is like rusted pipes; it corrodes and destroys from within.

You shall not bear false witness.
 

* adapted from Teenage Ten Commandments (Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, 1989)
by Rev. Fr. George Nicozisin