Perashat Ki Tabo 5776

Perashat Ki Tabo 5776

Friday, September 23, 2016 Author: Rabbi Elie Abadie

Over 10 days ago we commemorated the 15th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 9/11. We cannot, but remember the tragedy that was brought upon this country by a group of 19 Islamic terrorists who had no respect for the sanctity of life, including the lives of civilians; men, women and children. These terrorists plunged people to their death, burned, murdered and killed 2,977 innocent people; may their memory be of blessing. This country and the entire world, were shaken by such a tragedy. Unfortunately, the world today is not safer than 15 years ago; in fact it has become more dangerous and lawless. Just this past week New York and New Jersey witnessed several bombings perpetrated by an Islamic terrorist whose intention was to kill as many people as possible and wreak havoc upon the inhabitants of this city and the United States. The past year has seen many Islamic terrorist attacks throughout the world; in Europe, in the Americas, in the Middle East and, of course, in Israel. More and more diabolical and cruel villains have been rearing their ugly heads. We cannot tell anymore if reality is mimicking Hollywood or if Hollywood is mirroring realty. 

As humans, we always ask ourselves: why are these tragedies occurring?  Is there anything that we can do to prevent them? Can we hold the perpetrators and their facilitators accountable? A full analysis will require many pages, and of course, there will be many expert opinions and dissenters. I certainly, cannot answers these questions in these short lines that I dedicate weekly to the Perasha. However, there is always something that we can learn from the Torah’s weekly portion, and try to apply it to our daily lives. It is not, however, a complete answer to all our questions above.

Perashat Ki Tabo commits 68 verses out of 122 to what is called, “The Admonition.” These verses include a chilling prophecy of the horrors that would befall a nation that has forsaken its duty to its G-d, that has abandoned its morals and ethics, and has rejected its principles and values. The verses record: “G-d shall bring a people against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as an eagle will fly, a people whose language you will not understand; A brazen people, which will have no regard for the old persons, nor be compassionate to the young. It will overwhelm you in all your cities, until the collapse of your high structures and fortified walls come down, in which you trusted, throughout your land.”  These verses would not be as frightening, if they would have not described the events in such precise detail. 

Notwithstanding our belief and faith that such events cannot simply be random and haphazard, we still have a duty and responsibility to hold the perpetrators accountable; indeed that is also part of our faith and belief. 

It is axiomatic that, a nation that constantly blames the victim and protects the attacker, that claims ‘mea culpa’ by justifying the attacker’s action, a nation and people that do not identify the attackers by what and whom they are, but by using a euphemism in order not to offend the attacker, a nation that does not feel the responsibility to protect its inhabitants but protect the stranger at the expense of the inhabitant - will unfortunately, continue to be attacked. If the enemies of that nation see that they can attack time and again with impunity, they will never cease to attack. 

We have been hearing calls to be compassionate to the attackers and the foreign criminals. Yet, the verses from the Torah vividly describes to us the nature of the enemy: “A brazen people, which will have no regard for the old persons, nor be compassionate to the young.”  That is the enemy that we are facing and is attacking us. One has the responsibility and the duty to be compassionate first to his own people, before one can be compassionate to the stranger, let alone, to be compassionate to the enemy. If one is compassionate to the stranger first, one will not be able to be compassionate to his own later - for his own will no longer exist or trust in him! To be able to be compassionate and care for the stranger, one has to first be compassionate and care for his own, so he could later on, be compassionate and care for the stranger. As the famous statement of Religio Medici, from the year 1642 has it: “Charity begins at home.” This expression, is undoubtedly, based on the Talmudic statement, “The poor among your household take precedence.” The terms ‘poor’ and ‘charity’ do not necessarily mean strictly money-wise, but anyone who is need, whether concerning security, protection, compassion, education, jobs, etc.  In addition, our sages in the Talmud state: “He who is compassionate to the cruel, will end up being cruel [to the compassionate].”

As governments, the military, and law enforcement agencies continue to do their part in hunting the perpetrators of the recent terrorist attacks and prosecuting them, it is our responsibility as individuals and as a people, to do our part in not forsaking or abandoning our morals and ethics, but indeed reclaiming our duty to cherish our principles and values, by demanding from our leaders to fulfill their responsibilities and duties that they were sworn to uphold. 

May the A-mighty protect us and bless us, as the verse also found in our Perasha states: “G-d shall cause our enemies who rise up against us to be struck down before us; on one path they will come toward us but on seven paths they will flee before us.”