The world feels like its spinning out of control.
Whereas war zones used to feel like faraway, dangerous regions, last week’s Paris massacre taught us that Jihadis see the entire world as a war zone, and anyone – including me and you – as their enemy. Now, perhaps more than ever, is a time for strong, nuanced leadership that can walk the tightrope between security and selfishness, protection and paranoia.
Do we impale ourselves on the flag of America’s openness to refugees? Or do we close our borders - and our hearts - to those who may be in genuine need? Do we suffocate our society by over-wrapping ourselves in the flag of American citizenship and privacy rights? Or do we become suspicious of our fellow Americans, wondering which neighbor may have come to our shores with evil intentions?
This is not a simple dilemma. It’s a struggle between maintaining the security of our shores and maintaining our moral soul. We don’t want to sacrifice either. At the same time, we can’t always have our cake and eat it too.
In the Torah, our Patriarchs and Matriarchs each emblemize a particular trait or strength. Our Patriarch Jacob exhibits the attribute of Truth. Truth doesn’t mean honesty, as in the opposite of fraud. Truth means staying true to one’s ultimate objective, and harnessing all of one’s tendencies in the service of that goal.
A simple example: A very giving person (like our Patriarch Abraham), can get so caught up in the ‘giving mode’ that he neglects himself, damaging his health and impeding his future capacity to give. He’s focused on the giving, not on the ‘big picture’ goal of maximizing his ability to give in the future; so he doesn't modulate his giving.
He pursues one value at the expense of another.
Jacob kept his eye on the goal. He protected himself against a murderous twin brother, and a cheating father-in-law, without sacrificing his morality. A person excelling in Truth always stays true to the final objective, knowing how to modulate his tendencies and ideological preferences so that they don’t lead him off the rails, to his ultimate detriment.
Perhaps more than ever, we need 'Truth Leadership'. Leadership that isn’t based on one’s personal ideology or one’s preferred image in future history books. Leadership that exhibits balanced focus on the big picture.
A nation’s body and soul are at stake.