It is a commandment that you shouldn't lie but is it okay to lie if you don't want to hurt someone's feelings?

Question

Like when someone says "Do I look fat" and yes they do but you dont want to say yes because it would hurt them.

Answer 1

It depends but over all I think it is OK.

you do want to be as honest and truthful as you can. But face it, truth can hurt and being too honest can get you into trouble. You have a perfectly good point, what do you say? Be honest and hurt their feeling, or lie and keep it to yourself. Unfortunately it really depends on a lot of things as to which way is right. For instance (in this case), are they serious, or fishing for a complement? How can you tell which one?

Religiously, yes a Lie is a sin; but, of course, so is killing (an extreme). But as we can see in the bible, even that can be justifiable in certain aspects.

Good luck

Answer 2

I prefer the truth be told to me...yet I'll tell a little white lie to spare another's feelings. That's a hard one. You really need to determine if any harm will come from the lie. Boosting a friend's ego is not harmful, in my opinion, so I can justify lying under those circumstances.

What I try to do is find something good to say about the particular question at hand without telling an outright lie. For instance, if I am asked if a dress makes a friend look fat, I might say that I like the way it lays on her hips, which may actually be true. I have boosted her ego without a blatant lie. It works for both of us.

Answer 3

A lie is a lie but I understand your dilemna, just remember that the person asking the question already knows that she is fat, what she or he probably mean is does this outfit make me look fatter.

I think it would hurt me more to find out a friend couldn't be honest with me and I would question or re-evaluate our friendship, you don't have to say yes you look fat you could say you know a darker color may work better for you. I have had friends that are over weight and value their friendship and they share with me how they wish they could lose weight and so on, I usually refuse to let them talk themselves down though I tell them that they are a beautiful human being and that is what counts not how many lbs they are.

Answer 4

The trust someone has in you is valuable! If, however, you practice situation ethics, the level of trust someone has in you will be deminished.

Do we only tell truth when it benefits us, or is truth always truth and valuable. Jesus said "let your yes be yes and let your no be no."

But, telling the truth does not have to be harsh. For instance, if someone asks if an outfit makes them look fat, you might answer a different question instead, like "Oh that is a great color and it highlights your eyes!" (Change the subject.)

I find you can almost always find something good to say without compromising the truth! Tact goes a long way!

Answer 5

It's not okay to lie, period.

And answering these types of questions with something that isn't true isn't helping the person deal with reality. If a person needs to lose weight, they generally already know it. So why lie and validate something that they already know isn't a good or healthy way to be? Lies in situations like these only perpetuate a problem. People who get offended by a truthful answer usually find out pretty quickly that I'm not the person to ask questions like these. I refuse to be manipulted into lying.

Answer 6

You don't have to lie. You can say. "That is a silly question." I think you are beautiful. Most people know when they look fat. Basically, a lie is a lie. Since lies are forgiven if you ask for forgiveness, then just use your own judgment.

I think you are sweet about not wanting to hurt your friend's feelings. I don't think your friend should ask a question like that if she knows she is fat because that is practically forcing you to lie. Everyone lies, honey.

Answer 7

Honesty is always the best policy. My motto is, "you dont know wanna know the truth? Then dont ask!!!"

Do realize though that commandment is talking about false testimony. Remeber that you could get a death sentence based on 2 witnesses! It was imperative that people tell the truth especially when it came to legal proceedings. But as Im sure you know smaller lies can hurt people too and cause lots of trouble. God hates dishonesty in general because it is opposite the truth and God IS truth.

Answer 8

It is never okay to lie but you don't have to divulge what you are thinking either. You can say when a person asks if they look fat? You could say that you think that their outfit is very flattering or if not you could say you think their hair is especially slimming today or think of something you can say that sneaks around the fact. Most people who are fat already know it and will not ask.

Answer 9

I guess u shd always say the truth but in a nice way...

In ur example: if u say no u're not fat! U lied & she got a wrong answer & will not diet to be better...

But you can be nice, "I think you wd look better if you lost some pounds" or any other diplomatic answer...

Remember also, we don;t have to answer EVERY Q we are asked.. if u think u can;t answer a Q unless u lie.. Don;t answer it!

Good luck!

Answer 10

A lie is a lie. The way I look at it is, the truth is always best. If they don't want to know the truth then they shouldn't ask. Sometimes the truth hurts. At least people will know to expect the truth from you!