By Zsuzsa Fritz
Many whistles have 
been blown recently. Many everyday heroes stepped out of their comfort zone and did something to make this world a more just, a more livable place. People realized that if they do not act things might remain the same or get worse. In their departments, companies, countries. So, I am going on a trip down Jewish memory lane to search for our own whistleblowers.
He is standing in the crowd looking around, trying to see sympathetic eyes. Or is everyone here a Greek by now? Do they really not see what is happening there? His heart is trembling, his thoughts confused, he doesn’t even hear what the soldier commands. When he looks up, suddenly he sees his neighbour starting to bow in front of that despicable statue. He is not thinking straight anymore, a whistle is blowing in his head, it says it needs to stop here and now. You can’t let it happen. He is moved by an invisible force, jumps up, runs to the front and stabs the neighbour. There is no turning back.
This is how Matityahu stands up and changes the course of Jewish history. By not letting Jewish values and tradition disappear, be eaten up by the ruling power. By believing that truth can win against the odds. Was he a whistleblower or was he the example of a clear revolutionary who did not let the ruling power direct how history should go? I am not sure. I journey on.
She is standing there trembling. Her eyes are fixed on the huge black door, which seems bigger and more frightening than the first time she entered. It is dark and heavy, it looks impenetrable. Her heart is pounding, and her legs feel weak. Every moment, every split second she keeps reconsidering the step she is about to take. It could end here and now, she could turn and go back to her quarters, live in peace and quiet. She would probably be safe in the palace. The king loves her as she is, the girl from nowhere, the beautiful Queen of Persia with no identity, no belonging, no religion. But how could she face her people then, how could she look into her uncle’s pleading eyes, how could she stay quiet? The huge, heavy door opens, the frozen-looking motionless guard ushers her in…
This is how Queen Esther stepped on the path to blowing the whistle. She risked her life and saved her people. Her whistleblowing had an impact on her community and on the empire that they were part of. She saw and realized the danger, the injustice about to happen and she could have stayed quiet. But that is not the path she followed. She stepped up, she revealed herself and pointed out the injustice. She blew the whistle.
What she did and how she did it was as if she read the subsequent literature about how to stand up and let the forces of power know about injustice happening. She followed the Chafetz Chaim (Rabbi Yisrael Kagan,1838-1933) in taking the appropriate steps before revealing the truth.
According to the Chafetz Chaim (Shmirat Halashon 9:2) in a situation which deeply affects the lives of people you should give information and the usual rules against lashon hara (inappropriate talk) do not apply. However, you do need to follow these guidelines:
- the danger must be real and imminent,
- you should not exaggerate the information,
- your motive must be pure,
- the information must be important.
Esther was gentle, she avoided unnecessary publicity, she confronted face-to-face, she exposed only the essential. She reviewed her motives several times and only after two visits did she reveal the horrors of injustice about to happen to her and her people. She did not exaggerate, and the danger really was imminent and affected the relationship of the royal couple as well as those of the Jewish citizens of Persia and the empire as a whole.
On Chanukah as well as on Purim we Jews straighten ourselves up and show self-confidence. We are proud, we are strong. Powerful even. We fought and we won. The few against the many, we stood up, spoke the truth and did not let ourselves be bullied again. Our miracle holidays are all about this feeling of standing up for ourselves, our beliefs and even beyond that about standing up for the truth.
About blowing the whistle.