Mishpatim: Can we "Voir Dire" Outside the Courtroom?

Earlier this week, I had the great privilege of participating in the American judicial system by spending a day in jury duty. I did not 

ultimately get picked to serve on a trial, but I did spend several hours in a court room, answering questions along with forty other potential jurors. I'll admit, the process was tedious at times, and I was glad I brought along a good book and some snacks. But I also found the whole process fascinating, and I really DID feel honored to participate and to gain some insight into our legal system. How appropriate it seems, then, that our Torah portion this week is called Mishpatim, meaning "laws," and it actually includes a similar voir dire process to the one I experienced in a Delaware County courthouse.

A word that jumps out at me in both scenarios is "trust." Without it, the systems break down. In Exodus, chapter 23, we see the following statements: "You must not carry false rumors; you shall not join hands with the guilty to act as a malicious witness: You shall neither side with 

the mighty to do wrong... nor shall you show deference to a poor person in his/her dispute" (Ex. 23:1-3). In the Ancient World, you had to trust people's word. They didn't have DNA evidence, they didn't have surveillance cameras; they were forced to rely on the testimony of witnesses and people's ability to look at "just the facts" and not the status of the person/people in the case. Despite all our technological advances and scientific forensics, the voir dire process I experienced still showed me that our legal system depends on our honesty. Certain details of the criminal case in question were explained to us, and we were asked, point blank, if we could be objective and fair. Could we ignore personal history, bias, race, gender, and stories we might have heard in the media, and exclusively judge based on the facts of the case?

Thousands of years have passed, and still society depends on the honesty of its individual members. We continue to be today, as the Torah was so long ago, distressed by the concepts of corruption, bribery, and legal systems where citizens CANNOT expect to get a fair 

trial. A few verses later in chapter 23, the Torah declares: "Do not take bribes, for bribes blind the clear-sighted and upset the pleas of those who are in the right" (v. 8). I often encourage congregants to view the Torah as if we were sociologists: It tells people not to take bribes... because they WERE doing it! This rule needs to be emphasized because people were breaking it. I hear the author of these verses pleading with the Israelites to pursue justice and fairness... unlike what they are currently doing. The author threatens God's wrath if these laws are not upheld, but were these ultimately anything more than intimidations?

Thousands of years ago, the leaders were essentially at the mercy of their constituents. If people didn't observe the laws, didn't participate honestly, kindly, and fully, they had no real recourse. Have things changed all that much? The term 

"voir dire" purportedly comes from a Latin oath that jurors would take, called "verum dicere," meaning "to say what is true." I wonder if voir dire could and should play a greater role in our lives, even OUTSIDE the courtroom. I don't think any of us would describe ourselves as liars, but there may still be room for more truth from time to time. An experience like serving jury duty really highlights how society relies on ME fulfilling MY role, and reminds me how important each individual is to the success of the whole. Perhaps we can all take the messages of "trust" and "truth" a bit more to heart, and live each day with a little more voir dire in our lives.

Photos in this blog post:
1. CC image courtesy of Beinecke Library on Wikimedia Commons
2. CC image courtesy of EFF-Graphics on Wikimedia Commons
3. CC image courtesy of Djembayz on Wikimedia Commons
4. CC image of John Morgan's painting "The Jury" courtesy of Swampyank on Wikimedia Commons