Shabbat Shalom
In the Torah portion for this week, called Vayishlach, there is a puzzling repetition of words. As Jacob approaches his brother Esau, we are told
Jacob was greatly frightened and he was scared (Gen 32:8). Regular readers might remember that when the Torah repeats a word, a lesson is being taught. So why the repetition of “frightened” and “scared”? The ancient rabbis provide a beautiful answer; Jacob was frightened that he would be killed, but he was scared that he would be forced to kill, to take lives. This teaching of the rabbis sums up beautifully the Jewish ethical position regarding warfare: We avoid it as much as possible, fight if we must, and take no pleasure or joy in the death of our enemies. Unlike our foes, we do not celebrate nor hand out sweets when our enemies are defeated.
Our Torah would be a poor Torah indeed if its lessons did not cause us to reflect on our own behavior, or that of our society. This week, there is seemingly incontrovertible evidence that our armed forces committed acts contrary to the basic laws of war, also seemingly ordered and cheered on by some in positions of power.
In our fast paced world, such acts can be swallowed up by the next day’s news. But the Torah portion of this week reminds us that we are to approach lethal means only with caution and trepidation if we are to remain an ethical nation. If we ever approach war and lethality with a cavalier attitude towards others, then perhaps we might not lose a battle, but we might indeed lose our souls.
Rabbi Doug