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Jewish World Review December 5, 2008 / 8 Kislev 5769 Truth — The Key to Gratitude By Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz Ironies and attitudes in the pursuit of perfection “And she [Leah] said, "This time I will praise G-d ...”                         —   Genesis 29:35 The Midrash (Bereishis Rabbah 71:5) teaches us that with the above declaration Leah practiced the art of giving thanks or praise, and therefore she became the progenitor of others who had the same characteristic — Judah and King David. Judah, the Midrash explains, exemplified this trait with his statement regarding Tamar, "She is more righteous than I" (ibid. 38:26). King David exclaimed, "Give thanks to G-d because He is good" (Psalms 138). While Leah and King David's statements clearly share a common thread of praise, Judah's admission of guilt appears to have no connection with this attribute. Tamar was being taken to be executed and Judah confessed that she was innocent — he was the father of Tamar's children. How does this have any bearing on Judah's characteristic of giving thanks? The ability to give thanks and the ability to confess one's wrongdoing stem from a common source — the recognition of truth. Indeed, the Hebrew word for praise derives from the same root as the Hebrew word for admitting. A person who is truthful will recognize and acknowledge the bountiful blessings the Divine bestows upon him. By the same token, he will recognize and admit his shortcomings. The same poison of haughtiness that drives a person to deny his dependency upon G-d, to blind himself to the constant goodness that sustains him, will also drive him to deny that he is fallible. Only a sincere and truthful heart can dispel this fog of arrogance, see through its falsehood, and recognize the sobering reality. Had Leah not excelled in the attribute of truth — had she not admitted how much gratitude she owed G-d, then she would not have had a descendant such as Judah, who excelled in truthfulness and was therefore able to confess his mistake. Even though the birth of a child was clearly a gift from G-d, still Leah could have attributed it to some extent to her own might and power had she not reached such perfection in the characteristic of truth. When we look at our own lives and see how fortunate we are, how comfortably we live with health and satisfaction, with family and friends, with freedom and security — we can fail to make the connection between these blessings and the Divine. Ironically, those same benefits that should motivate us to thank G-d can cause complacency and smug confidence in our own abilities. If, however, we focus the penetrating spotlight of truth on the situation, the truth will stare us in the face — we are helpless on our own, and only through G-d's infinite kindness do we enjoy all this goodness. This "confession" of truth will not only enable us to admit our indebtedness; it will bring about an equally crucial honesty in dealing with our errors and sins. The result — a healthy blend of gratitude and praise to G-d combined with a frank and candid view of our actions that will help us improve ourselves — will bring us eternal happiness both in this world and in the World-to-Come. Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes inspiring articles. Sign up for our daily update. It's free. Just click here. INSPIRED BY THIS ARTICLE? BUY THE BOOK ... at a discount by clicking HERE . Comment by clicking here. One of America's senior Torah sages, the late Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz was the dean of the Rabbinical Seminary of America, in Queens, New York for more than 50 years. The institution has branches and affiliates all across North America and Israel. This article was prepared by two of the sage's disciples, Rabbi Aryeh Striks and Rabbi Shimon Zehnwirth, and excerpted from the just released book, "Pinnacle of Creation: Torah insights into human nature". Previously: Money matters ... Or does it? Wise words to consider during trying times The Power of Spiritual Inertia Our Immutable Noble Essence The 'living dead' are all around us We have the power to alter another's destiny — use it well The Crowning Glory of Creation The Divine's eternal, unconditional love Perverting sincerity Do 'clothes make the man'? Divine vindictiveness? © 2007, Mesorah Publications, Ltd.