LEV613 The respect demanded by the Jewish tradition for each and every human being does not mean that we must accept everything that anyone does. After all, the Torah is filled with laws that categorize certain forms of human behavior as prohibited and others as required, and if Jews fail to abide by those laws, the Torah demands, “Reprove your kinsman and no guilt because of him” (Leviticus 19:17). But that reproof must be given in private so as not to disgrace the person in public, and it must be done constructively and with respect for the ultimate human dignity inherent in each of us. The Torah applies this even to someone who is to be flogged for violating a negative commandment: “He may be given forty lashes, but not more, lest being flogged further, to excess, your brother be degraded before your eyes” (Deuteronomy 25:3). Certainly, then, in everyday speech we must respect the dignity of each person by avoiding defamatory speech, even if the negative information is true, and all the more if it is false. When, though, may one say something negative about someone else? Indeed, when should one do so? One may share negative information with someone else--and one should do so--when the hearer will be making practical decisions based on that information. If, for example, A has asked you to write a letter of recommendation for him or her to be sent to B, a potential employer, you have a duty to be honest about A’s qualifications for the job as you see them. … (Continued at [[DEUT623]] Deuteronomy 13:7 entices DORFFWITO 84-5)