EXOD507 Privacy is at the heart of mutual trust and friendship, tolerance and creativity. If you reveal things I tell you in confidence, I will think twice before trusting you as a business partner, a colleague, or a friend. Along the same lines, privacy is a prerequisite for a free and tolerant society, for each person has secrets that "concern weaknesses that we dare not reveal to a competitive world, dreams that others may ridicule, past deeds that bear no relevance to present conduct, or desires that a judgmental and hypocritical public may condemn" [citations omitted]. These moral concerns justify the protection of privacy in any society, but a religious tradition like Judaism adds yet other rationales for safeguarding an individual's privacy. First, since human beings, according to the Torah, are created in God's image, honoring them is a way to honor God and, conversely, degrading them is tantamount to dishonoring God. [Mekhilta Yitro on this verse; Sifra Kedoshim on Leviticus 19:18 (also in J. Nedarim 9:4 and Genesis Rabbah 24:7); and Deuteronomy Rabbah 4:4.]. One way we respect others is to safeguard their confidences. On the other hand, revealing people's secrets shows disrespect for them--and often downright shames them. But the Jewish tradition teaches us that when we reveal a person's secrets we not only defame that person but also we dishonor the image of God within that person and thus God Himself.