The Crown of a Good Name

A number of commentators have found similarities between the unfolding scandal involving David Petraeus and the Biblical story of King David and Bathsheba (this is how religious geeks read the daily news–through a 3,000-year-old set of eyeglasses). The analogy makes some sense in that both were military leaders laid low by sexual indiscretions. But I came across this analysis by Rabbi A. James Rudin that takes the analysis one step further. You can find the entire essay here, but here’s the part I found thought-provoking:

Nathan personally confronted and criticized his ruler, King David, when the lustful monarch ordered one of his generals into mortal combat and certain death to clear the path for him to marry the general’s wife, Bathsheba.

The ancient rabbis used vivid language to warn about the need to be independent of any political party or candidate. “Be careful in your relations with the government; for they draw no person close to themselves except for their own special interests,” they cautioned. “They appear as friends when it is to their advantage, but they do not stand by people during their time of stress.”

The wise rabbis who composed the “Sayings of the Fathers” would not have been surprised by the scandal that has enveloped Petraeus, his biographer-mistress and others because they were hardly naive and were keenly aware of the sexual behavior and urges of human beings. It is no accident that one of the Ten Commandments declares: “You shall not commit adultery.”

But more than adultery is involved in the current scandal … We need to judge our military by the same moral and ethical standards as we judge all other members of our national community…Because of his actions, Petraeus lost his job as the head of the CIA, but he has lost something even more important. The rabbis taught that there are three crowns in a person’s life: the crown of the Torah (sincere religious commitment), the crown of the priesthood and the crown of kingship (the respect one gains by holding a high position in society). “But the crown of a good name,” the rabbis said, “surpasses them all.”

When the final curtain comes down on our lives, our wealth, learning, status, and even piety all melt away. The rabbis were right: the greatest gift we can leave behind is a “good name.”