December 2001 Reluctant Pugilists By Rabbi Alvin Kass The Bible tells us that when Moses was a young man he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew slave mercilessly. Shocked by this brutality, Moses struck the Egyptian taskmaster. There is, however, a difference of opinion among our Sages about the manner in which Moses overpowered the Egyptian. According to Rabbi Evyatar, Moses hit him with his egrof, his fist. Other scholars say that Moses laid him low by uttering the Shem Hameforash, the ineffable name of God. This incident is often regarded as the prototype of the Jewish response to our enemies. Actually, both of these techniques cited in the Midrash are essential to assure the survival of the Jewish people. There are times when force is indispensable to our well-being, but there are other situations where spirituality is the most effective means to achieve our aspirations. Unfortunately, during many centuries of exile and dispersion, Jews forgot the importance of powerful fists as a means of self-defense. They yielded without resistance to the onslaughts and insults of vicious tyrants. When confronted by malevolent bullies, they either ran for their lives, begged for mercy, or covered their faces, to ward off the blows of their enemies. The famous Hebrew poet Hayyim Nachman Bialik in his classic poem, "The City of Slaughter," condemned such resignation and non-resistance. The Maccabees, whose courageous military exploits we will celebrate this month during the holiday of Chanukah, represent the acme of the Jewish capacity to respond boldly and forcefully to the malicious machinations of anti-Semitic scoundrels. The Israel Defense Forces, who are responsible for the protection of the modern Jewish State, are contemporary Maccabees. Their fearlessness and valor have not only protected Israel from annihilation by implacably hostile Arab neighbors for the last fifty-two years, but they infused Jews all over the world with a new self-respect and pride. We are all the beneficiaries of these peerless heroes, recognized by friend and foe alike, as one of the most effective military organizations in the entire world. The skill we have learned in using the egrof should not conceal the fact that the Shem Hameforash also has a necessary and legitimate role to play in the Middle East. It was the brilliant insight of the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin that exclusive reliance upon military force would generate naught but an endless cycle of violence and counter-violence, vengeance and counter-vengeance. Only the pursuit of shalom, the preeminent spiritual value which our tradition regarded as one of God's very names, can bring an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict. No one could have pursued this goal with greater passion or determination than the present Prime Minister Ehud Barak. At Camp David, he went far beyond any previous Israeli leader in manifesting a readiness to compromise with the Palestinians. Some feel he went too far in his willingness to accord the Arabs partial sovereignty over East Jerusalem. In any event, the truculent response of Yasir Arafat to these proposals, including an unwillingness to even make a counterproposal, as well as the growing violence that has erupted on the West Bank, raise serious questions regarding the possibility of resolving Israeli-Arab differences at the present time. No doubt the Palestinians have legitimate aspirations which must be respected and acknowledged. However, Israel has no obligation to acquiesce in its own liquidation. The first duty of any government is to protect the life and property of its citizens. That would require at the present juncture the use of whatever force is necessary to suppress Palestinian violence. In the end, however, we will need to strive once again for a peaceful solution. The alternative would be an Israeli society beseiged by perpetual violence and insecurity. That, incidentally, is also the message of Hanukah. If ever there was an occasion when physical power and military valor could have occupied a position of primacy, Hanukah is surely the one. Nevertheless, the message that our ancestors wanted to get across on Chanukah, was expressed in the haftorah recited in the synagogue on the Sabbath of the holiday, which proclaimed: "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts." Our Sages knew, what we also need to know, that Israel will be safe and secure only when all recognize that the genius of the Jewish faith is the indefatigable pursuit of peace.