Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar, returning from a trip in Migdal Eder, from his teacher’s house met a certain man who was exceedingly ugly. Rabbi Shimon said to him, “Raka (simpleton), how ugly are the children of Abraham our father.” The other man replied, “What can I do for you? You may want to speak to the Craftsman Who made me.” Rabbi Shimon immediately alighted from his horse and bowed before the man and said, “I apologize to you, please forgive me.” He replied to him, “I will not forgive you until you go to the Craftsman Who made me and say, “How ugly is the vessel which You have made!”

Rabbi Shimon walked behind him for three miles. When the people in town heard of Rabbi Shimon’s arrival, they came out to meet him and greeted him with the words, “Peace be unto you, rabbi.” The other man said to them, “Who are you calling Rabbi?” They answered, “The man who is walking behind you.” Thereupon he exclaimed, “If this man is a rabbi, may there not be any more like him in Israel!” After telling the people the whole story, and the townspeople begged him to forgive the rabbi, and he agreed, only on the condition-that he never act in this manner toward anyone again. [2]

The story highlights an important truth: the willful mistreatment of another human being, in effect, devalues the image of God because we are all created in the Divine Image. The human face—regardless how disfigured it may be—commands that we respect the uniqueness of the human person; this respect for the Other transcends one’s physical attributes. If we truly believe that God made us in the Divine Image, then it is only apropos we show our respect toward the Creator by acting respectfully toward all people. Granted, this may not always be easy; in fact, it may be quite difficult but as Levinas argues, there is an asymmetrical aspect to ethics and morality. Just because one person acts rudely doesn’t entitle the recipient to act in kind. One of the best examples of this principle is Noah. Although he is surrounded by many bad people, he never ill-treats a soul. That is why he is called a “man of integrity,” for whom the pursuit of virtue is always an end in and of itself.

The art of Hellenistic culture reflects the great value the Greeks placed upon aesthetic beauty, namely, the idea of perfect symmetry exists in relation to proportion. Jewish tradition adopts a more critical view of beauty, which can be seen in the famous biblical poem The Woman of Valor that states, “charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting the woman who who has awe for the LORD is to be praised. Give her a reward of her labors, and let her works praise her at the city gates” (Prov 31:30-31). When expressed in more modern terms, character will always triumph over physical beauty.