I Was Fired for Being Honest

This question and answer were automatically translated using our trained AI and have not yet been reviewed by a qualified rabbi. Please treat this translation with caution.
go to original →

Question

Hello, I was fired from my job due to cutbacks (it wasn't related to me, they liked me and I did what was needed, but the project was closed). I had the opportunity to use some lie to prevent it, but I didn't do it (a religious woman on the team did it in the past and wasn't fired because of it). Several months have passed and I can't find a job, the market is very tough and I see no horizon. How to stay encouraged? I can no longer see that it's for the best, my husband is also not working and the overall situation is pressing, I'm stressed all day, and nothing is progressing. Is it for the best? How can one say that God did this for my benefit? And if I stood the test and didn't agree to lie a little, I believe that in the world to come God will reward me for it, but could it be that in this world it wasn't for my benefit? I'm very confused, feel like I need a lot of support and can't find it (my work experience isn't good, it's very hard to find something outside).

Answer

Hello,

First of all, I must express my great appreciation for the fact that it was clear to you that lying is forbidden, and you declared the truth as Halacha requires, and did not succumb to the temptation to transgress.

Regarding your question, it cannot be that a person does what is required of them, and because of this, they suffer a loss. God is the one who runs the world, and income and joy come from Him, and God promised (Devarim Rabbah Re'eh) that the Holy One, blessed be He, said: "Listen to Me, for no one listens to Me and loses."

However, sometimes a person faces a trial, where it seems to the eyes as if there is a loss, as if I would have gained if I had committed a sin, and this is the role of the evil inclination to show these illusions, and the role of a Jew is to tell themselves and strengthen themselves again and again in the simple truth, which we say in 'Ani Ma'amin', that God gives a good reward to those who do His will and punishes those who transgress His will.

Sometimes God shows with the eyes what the gain was, and sometimes He shows nothing. But this does not mean, God forbid, that there was no gain, but that God decided to continue the trial and leave the question open.

In the words of our sages, it can be seen that things were understood only after hundreds or thousands of years, and this does not change the truth that there is gain and good reward for those who do the will of God.

[A small example: Rachel was buried on the road by Jacob, so that more than 1000 years later, the Israelites would pass there on their way to exile and pray. And if in human considerations there is an explanation after 1000 years, then with the Almighty all the more so].

There are things that we will only understand in the future, as it is written 'Then our mouth will be filled with laughter'. But we strengthen ourselves in the clear knowledge that everything is calculated for our benefit alone.

I pray and bless that you will see the good and the benefit very soon, and hope that in the meantime you will stand the test and not regret the right thing you did.

Comments

Have an additional question on this topic or need clarification? Leave your comment below. (Please note that the comment will not be published but will be sent directly to the answering Rabbi for review and a private response)

Please sign up or log in to submit your comment

Become our patrners in supporting and spreading the Torah
Help us answer more questions faster and better
Join the mission
More questions in this category
This World and the World to Come
Jewish Worldview
Midrash and Aggadah
Jewish Worldview