Parshat
Pinchas - 5760 "Kanaut,"
Zealotry, for War and for Peace The Talmud, in Masechet Gittin (56a), in its description of the fearful conditions in Yerushalayim immediately before the Destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans, seems to be opposed to the idea of "kanaut," zealotry, for war. This seems to be the case because the Jewish "freedom fighters" of the time, called the "Biryonim," who wanted the Jewish People to fight against the Romans, clearly went beyond the bounds of reason when they forced the issue by destroying the stocks of wood, oil and wheat that would have enabled the City to withstand a siege for twenty one years. In
this week's Parshah, Parshat Pinchas, at first glance the Torah seems to
give approval to the actions of Pinchas, after he kills the Israelite Prince
Zimri ben Salu and the Midianite Princess Kuzbi bat Zur who were acting
immorally together in public.
HaShem rewards Pinchas by
including him in the family of "Kohanim," though he had
been in the world already before the
designation of those born into the family of Aharon as the Kohanim,
and by granting him the "Brit Shalom," the Covenant of Peace
which, whatever it means exactly, sounds good. But
Rav Yissacher Yaakovson, in his "Binah BaMikra," cites several
proofs that this is not
necessarily the case, including the Talmudic statement that "Pinchas
acted against the will of the
Sages," and the comment of Rabbi Pazi that Pinchas would
actually have been excommunicated were it not for the intervention by HaShem
on his behalf (Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 9:7). Thus,
there appears to be a great deal of ambiguity with regard to zealotry; it is
very much dependent on the specific case, the individual zealot and his or
her motivation, which is known only to the One Who knows our thoughts. When
David, immediately upon hearing the taunts of the Philistine giant, Galyat,
against Israel and its G-d, unable to tolerate for a moment the "Chilul
Hashem," the Desecration of G-d's Name,
charged out against the giant without any attempt to measure his
physical strength versus his
opponent's, relying only upon a few stones, his slingshot, and his
indomitable faith in G-d (Shmuel 1:23-58), the future King of Israel
probably qualified as a legitimate "zealot." What
of Kanaut for Peace? This
seems to be the mirror-image of zealotry for war.
There are times when the possibility of peace, the turning around of
a seemingly fixed enmity, which can only be expressed in bloodshed, is worth
the risk.
But only when there is at least a glimmer of hope for the project. Perhaps
in our time, the great Prime Minister Menachem Begin, Z"L, of Israel,
who had proved
himself a "Kanai" in battle for the honor of his People,
his Land and his G-d, can be classified also as a legitimate zealot for
peace, for his negotiations with the late President Anwar al Sadat of
Egypt, though the latter had never shown previously any love for the
Jewish People, and there was
much reason to doubt his ultimate intentions.
But the possibility of saving lives was worth the risk. Even
Prime Minister Golda Meir, Z"L, had said that while she could forgive
the Arabs for killing Jewish boys, she could not forgive them for making
Jewish boys killers. But
the Oslo Agreement, the basis of the so-called "Peace Process,"
negotiated by Zealots-for- Peace PM Yitzchak Rabin, Z"L, PM Shimon
Peres and PM Ehud Barak (though his credentials as a member of the "ZFP"
Club aren't, as of this moment, quite clear), would seem to be on the
illegitimate side of zealotry.
For here there was and is absolutely zero cause for hope of peace
with Israel's present negotiating partners (sic), the so-called
Palestinians. And
there seems, tragically, no motivation here for the honor of HaShem's Name,
but rather a desire to be "like all the nations," a weariness with
the idea of the "Chosen People," and a desire to blend into the
perceived "melting pot" of the Middle East.
Which is also farcical, because the other side isn't the slightest
bit interested in blending with the Jews. Their
Educational System … How
do we know that there's no one on the other side really interested at all in
peace?
Aside from their merciless and bloody actions, it's clear from the
way they are "educating" their children.
Examples abound, on all educational levels - elementary school, high
school and above.
Essay
and discussion topics appear such as " 'How to Recover our
Stolen (sic) Land' - Use ideas such as
Jihad, the oil weapon, use of modern weaponry, etc.," alleged
Talmudic quotes such as "The non- Jews are really pigs created in the
image of human beings to better serve the Jews," and songs addressed to
Israel, with lines like: "Your
time is near, …
And Ours Their
educational system is "exceeded" in harmfulness only by ours; that
is, the one installed in Israel's schools by the Educational
"Experts" and historical revisionists, uniformly in league with
the "Zealots for Peace."
These pseudo-scholars ignore the Jewish claim to the Holy Land, even
deny any holiness to the Land, based on the Bible, which is taught, if it is
taught at all, as just another example of a nation's mythology. Jewish
bravery in the War of Independence is downplayed, Jews are somehow pictured
as outnumbering their Arab foes in the various wars, Jewish forces are
accused of afflicting various atrocities upon innocent Arab civilians, there
was no difference in brutality between Hamas and the Irgun; etc., etc.
A
Biblical Example The
Book of Shmuel I recounts the following incident: "And
Nachash the Amonite encamped opposite Yavesh Gilad, and all the People of
Yavesh said to Nachash, 'Make a Peace Treaty with us, and we will serve
you.'
Nachash the Amonite answered, 'Under this condition will I make peace
with you, that everyone of you pierce his right eye, and I will make this a
disgrace for all Israel.'
And the elders of Yavesh Gilad said, 'Give us seven days; we will
send messengers throughout the borders of Israel, and if there is none to
help us, we will accept your terms.' "
(Shmuel I, 11:1-3) This
is reminiscent of the "negotiating" tactics of the Palestinians.
"Give us your right eye," "Give us Yerushalayim!"
And the Zealots for Peace might have accepted their terms; after all, they
would say, "we would still have our left eyes."
But the account continues: "And
the messengers came to Givat Shaul, and they related the incident to the
People, and all the People wept.
And behold Shaul returned after the cattle from the field, and Shaul
asked, 'Why are the People weeping?'
And they told him the story of Yavesh Gilad."
(Shmuel 1, 11:4-5) Here
Shaul appears to take upon himself the mantle of "Kanai," Zealot
for the sake of G-d and Israel. "And
the Spirit of the L-rd alighted upon Shaul when he heard these matters, and
he became very furious."
(Shmuel 1, 11:6) The
narrative continues with Shaul administering a crushing defeat upon the
forces of Nachash; thereby winning the confidence and support of all the
People of Israel. Back
to the Future At
this point, with our "friends," the Palestinians, we seem to have
arrived at the point described by King David in "Tehilim"/Psalms
120: 5-7, "Woe
unto me for I have dwelt with Meshech, The
17th of Tammuz The
17th of Tammuz, the beginning of the period of time known as
"Bain Ha-Metzarim," "Between the Straits," when we
commemorate the innumerable tragedies that have befallen our People, falls
this week.
Let us stay focused on the main lesson to be drawn from this history:
that HaShem, the "Oseh Shalom Bi'Meromav," "the One Who makes
Peace in Heaven," is our Protector, and He will give us Peace on Earth,
if we remain loyal to Him. If
we remain steadfast in our faith and in our observance of the Torah, we hope
to say, as the Prophet Yeshayahu pictured the Jewish People saying at the
beginning of the Seventh, and final, Haftarah of Consolation, "I
will surely delight in the L-rd,
Rabbi Pinchas Frankel |
