Honor Turns with Frown Defiant

Question

Dear Rabbi, I recently received a local award and was invited to speak at a ceremony honoring me. I am wondering if the concept of honor is something positive in Jewish values or not. Thank you for your guidance.

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Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    First of all, congratulations!
    There is a difference between pursuing honor and accepting honor.

    It is true that we are taught that honor is something that “can remove a person from the world” (Ethics 4:28). Honor, as well as jealousy and lust, remove a person from this world by capturing his focus onto himself. By pursuing these ends, his aim eventually becomes the fulfillment of the jealously, lust, or honor. At that point, the person no longer is using this physical world for that which it was created — to come closer to God.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team