Greed
March 2, 2002

Human greed has figured prominently in the news since the Enron Corporation declared bankruptcy. The public has been astounded and disturbed that Ken Lay, Enron's chairman, to name but one culprit in this scandal, made 205 million dollars in stock profits in the past four years. All the while, many Enron employees lost a huge chunk of their retirement savings, having been kept in the dark about Enron's financial problems. Not only were they kept in the dark, but for two crucial months, they were prevented from selling their stock even as those in the know were cashing in while it was still worth something. Today that stock has lost 99% of its value.

What is especially galling is that a handful of executives and outsiders made millions investing in off-balance-sheet deals with Enron that played a large role in destroying the company. That is greed. One employee in Enron's business-development department said, "There is nothing wrong with ambition, but there was simply a warped culture at the top." The Biblical book of Ecclesiastes described that culture in a simple phrase, "The lover of money never has his fill."

I am certain that in the course of congressional investigations, fingers are going to point toward those who helped protect that greed. For example, when in 1997 Senator Barbara Boxer introduced a bill that would ban employees from investing more than 10 percent of their 401k plan in their employer's stock, which is the maximum that experts recommend, business lobbyist and conservative members of congress watered down the bill to where it offered little protection to those hapless Enron employees who misguidedly invested large percentages of their retirement plan in their company's now worthless stock.

Some of you may have seen the movie, Wall Street. In it, Michael Douglas plays a character based on the once prominent financier, Ivan Boesky. In 1985, Boesky delivered the commencement address at a prestigious business school in California. His message to the graduates - about to enter the business and finance world - was that "greed is healthy," that it is a virtue. Michael Douglas gives a similar speech in Wall Street. He says, "Greed is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies. Greed will save the United States." But greed in the 1980's did not save the United States. It brought about the collapse of banks and venerable Wall Street firms and led to the savings and loans debacle that cost tax payers a fortune. The same culture of greed brought down Enron.

It is unfortunate that Pirke Avot, the Ethics of the Fathers, is not taught in business school. It makes a statement that should be branded onto the minds of our nation's CEO's. It says, "Let your fellow's property be as dear to you as your own." Judaism teaches us that there is a moral obligation to be concerned about the financial well-being of the next person. It is immoral to enrich oneself by taking advantage of others. Yet, what we see today is the opposite. The late Rabbi Yaakov Perlow, addressing a conference of orthodox leaders, warned his audience that we live in a society where immorality has become commonplace, where unbridled ego seeks more and more gratification, where standards of right and wrong have withered away."

Judaism has a rich literature regarding business ethics. The Torah stresses the importance of having honest measures and honest weights as a way to prevent fraud and deception. The Talmud, elaborating on this principle, states that a shopkeeper must wipe his measures clean twice a week, his weights once a week and his scales after every weighing.

Judaism views promoting honesty as a crucial means to ensuring public trust. In fact the section of the torah we have been reading these past few weeks provides the paradigm for establishing this trust. God commands Moses to build a mishkan, called the Tabernacle, in English, as a place of worship. In compliance with God's command, Moses institutes a building fund drive. It is the first-ever capital funds campaign in Jewish history but certainly not the last, as members of this synagogue know well. However, what may be unique in Jewish history about this campaign is that the people responded so generously, the outpouring of gifts was so overwhelming, that Moses actually is forced to put a halt to the donations.

Next week's Torah portion tells of the final episode in the building of the mishkan. God calls upon Moses to give an accounting of the donated funds and materials. Moses readily complies. He gives a precise and honest report of the funds entrusted to him, providing a breakdown of the exact cost of each item that went into the mishkan's construction.

Later generations were amazed by God demanding a fiscal report from Moses, his trusted servant. Some of our sages suggest it was not God who was suspicious, but the people. Evidently, cynicism toward public leaders is not just a modern phenomenon. The midrash says that the people gossiped among themselves. One Israelite said to another, "Look at Moses's neck, at his thighs. See how thick they are. He eats what is ours and drinks what is ours. His friend replied, 'Fool, what do you expect. A person who is in charge of the Tabernacle, who has talents of silver, talents of gold, uncounted, un-weighed and unnumbered - what do you expect - that he should not be rich?'" Moses, upon hearing that the people harbor such distrust towards him, was deeply disturbed. Thereupon he said to the Israelites, "As soon as the work of the Tabernacle is finished, I shall render an account." We read in next week's torah portion that Moses carries out his promise. Addressing the people, he says: "Eleh Pekuday Ha'mishkan. These are the accounts of the Tabernacle."

As Moses understood so well, honesty is a matter of personal honor. Yes, bottom lines in business are important if a company is to compete and succeed. But even more important - if we are to succeed as human beings - our personal ethics need a bottom line. The people of Enron represented a different attitude toward life. They felt rules are for fools. They believed that whoever finished with the most toys wins.

What I hope we have learned from this latest business scandal is that what really counts in life is being able to stand before God with a clear conscience. What counts is not having violated the bottom line of integrity and honesty. Those of us who win at life know that our worth is not determined by our possessions. For at the final accounting, the value of our life is not judged by the money in our bank account. Our worth is measured by the good we have done in society and by the caring we have shown to our fellow human beings.

Shabbat Shalom to our fellow human beings.