The Opposite of Holy
By Rabbi Boaz D.
Heilman
When it comes to defining Evil, the Torah does not mince
words. It holds as the standard bearer
of evil the tribe of Amalek, which, according to Deuteronomy 25:17, attacked
the Israelites “when you were faint and weary,” having just escaped from the
tyranny and brutality of their Egyptian overlords. The Amalekites attacked the rear of the camp,
where the stragglers were, the weary, the discouraged, the old and the sick.
Judaism calls helping the weak a mitzvah. A holy deed. What the Amalekites did was the opposite of
that. They attacked the weak and defenseless. They killed women and children.
Ever since then, Amalek became symbolic of evil, and an
“eternal war” against the tribe was declared by God. Zachor
et asher asa l’cha Amalek, the commandment to “Remember that which Amalek
did unto you” became both a rallying cry and a holy commandment down to our own
day.
Amalek is long gone, but evil remains, and Jewish tradition
still defines evil by the standard the Torah set.
The kidnapping, abuse and murder of children is, by any
definition, evil.
Yet that is exactly what just took place in Israel.
Today, the world—both Jewish and non-Jewish—stood united
with bowed head, grieving as three teenage boys were buried side by side. They were friends from school, abducted and
killed by perpetrators so filled with hatred and evil that no moral or civil
law could stop them.
Thousands of Israelis came to the funeral of the three
boys. They came from all over Israel,
representing every political and religious stream. Thousands of young people came to show their
love and support to the grieving, bereaved families of Eyal Yifrach, Naphtali Frenkel
and Gil-Ad Shaar, of blessed memory.
Rallies and demonstrations are being organized all over the world to
show solidarity. Evil is recognized the
world over; the deliberate murder of innocent youths cannot be defended by any
political agenda or excuse . There is no
moral equivalence. There is no
justification. It is evil pure and
simple.
How Israel will react when the days of mourning are done is
subject to speculation. One thing is
certain however. Israel will not reciprocate
in kind. An eye for an eye is a primitive
concept of justice that the Torah and Judaism have no tolerance for. Revenge may be seductively sweet—but the
State of Israel will not resort to it.
But there will be justice.
For the next few days, however, there will be mourning. Jews value life as a sacred gift from
God. A life cut short by hatred is to be
mourned. Sadly, there is something about
human nature makes it possible for people to be cruel, hate-filled, and
evil. That is reason to be mournful too.
But when the days of mourning are done, there will be a
reckoning. Jewish blood is not for
free. Not any more. Justice will be served.
May God avenge the murder of our three boys.
May God comfort their sorrowing, bereaved families.
May God grant God’s people strength; may God bless us all
with peace.
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