The Power of the Tongue

Words are powerful.  What you say has the potential to influence an infinite number of people.  You could be the person who changes someone’s mind for the better, inspires someone to act, or makes someone feel unstoppable.  Or, you can be the opposite.  Negative words can tear someone down, make them feel weak, or even spur them to violence.  If you use your words for hate, you can cause serious damage.  If you use your words for good, you can cause some serious beauty.

As we saw last week, someone’s words can spur people to violence; just as they have been for years.  Promoting messages of hatred, ignorance, and lies can cause irreparable damage.  As you are aware, this happens everywhere – from small towns to big cities and small nations to large.  From rumors spread in a community, to those little digs at your friends that are disguised as jokes, words can be hurtful.  In the context of this proverb, death doesn’t have to mean literal death.  It can mean anything from making someone feel insecure to inciting violence.  

It is our duty to promote life with the power that our tongues possess.  It is our responsibility to speak truth and love and to build people up instead of tearing them down.  We are obligated to dispel lies we hear and to do our research to make sure we do not perpetuate misconceptions.  A favorite Jewish proverb of ours is, “What you do not see with your eyes, do not invent with your mouth.”  Base your opinions on facts, and do not base your facts on your opinions.  

It’s no secret that social media is a powerful tool.  Those of us who grew up with it (Millennials, Gen Z, etc.), understand the immense influence it has.  We have seen the reach and impact of social media do some pretty amazing things such as reuniting long-lost family members, sharing inspirational stories, and allowing people all over the world to connect over shared interests and build friendships.  However, it’s like Spider-Man once said, “With great power comes great responsibility.”  We have also seen the dark side of social media time and time again, and it’s this dark side that often gets the most attention from other news and media outlets.  People have always hurt others, but social media has helped that hurt go deeper and further. Bullying has evolved into cyberbullying, the spread of misinformation has increased, and the pressure to fit unrealistic and potentially harmful beauty standards has intensified

These last four years have really emphasized the power, both good and bad, of social media.  It is important to remember that what we put on the internet will stay there forever.  Even if we delete something, it’s so easy for another to have already saved it to save for future use or upload elsewhere.  Once it’s on the internet, it can be found forever.  Despite not being able to physically see who we are talking to when we post to social media, we aren’t talking to the void.  Whether you have tens, hundreds, thousands, or millions of followers, your voice matters.  We are taught as children to think before we speak, and this lesson goes for social media too.

Spreading lies and misinformation online is no harmless act.  On a smaller scale, you could hurt a person’s feelings which could be detrimental to their mental health and wellbeing.  On a larger scale, your spread of misinformation or lies could fuel bigotry and potentially lead to something violent (for example… maybe a violent riot at your nation’s capital).

We’ve been taught for our whole lives that words can hurt.  Social media has evolved and intensified that hurt to be more prolific.  Please, use your words for good.  Build others up, promote the causes that mean a lot to you, and spread love.  We could definitely use more of it.

Stay safe, wear a mask, and wash your hands!

Amanda & Marissa