In parshas “Zachor”
literally “remember” (זכור), we remember the
action of Amalek. The nation of Amalek is the antithesis of the nation of
Israel. It is falls the Shabbos before Purim because the villain of Purim,
Haman, was from the nation of Amalek and its theme is the war between Amalek
and Israel.
The father of Amalek,
who bears the same name, was the illegitimate son of Esau. His essence was
Esau’s rejection of religion then clothed in the savagery of the Canaanites.
Often whatever the Jews are doing Amalek is doing the opposite. Amalek is
generally evil, however if Israel behaves badly, Amalek may behave well.
The nation of Amalek
is mentioned three times in the Chumash. The first time is during the fifty
days between the exodus from Egypt and the giving of the Ten Commandments.
While in the desert, Amalek chances upon Israel and without provocation
attacks. It is both a spiritual and physical battle with Moshe Rabenu standing
on a mountain with his hands raised to rally the people and Joshua on the
ground directing the war. Israel prevails, however the holy One blessed be He, swears
by his dominion that there will be a war with Amalek in for every generation
until his name is blotted out. To add emphasis the word for throne is written
defectively (see Exodus 17: 8-16).
The second time Amalek
is mentioned is in Balaam’s final prophecy. Amalek is described as the first
nation to go to war against Israel and who will continue to be an antagonist
until being totally destroyed by the Messiah in the war to end all wars.
The third time Amalek
is mentioned is at the end of parshas Ki Taytsey. In it Moshe Rabenu exhorts
the nation to never forget attack by Amalek. He recalls that it was when Amalek
chanced upon Israel, he attacked those that were “tailing” behind, and that it
was done without fear of heaven. When explaining the passage, Rashi sees
allusions to rejection of circumcision, wasteful emission of seed, and
homosexuality.
The picture of Amalek
that emerges is that of a nation which loves random violence and has no regard
for its consequences. This is alluded to in the story of Esther when Haman
casts lots to determine the day he will kill all of the Jews. To understand this
mentality it helps to understand a lottery. When the amounts are very high say
over a hundred million dollars it becomes quite humorous to think that these
little balls with numbers on them will determine who gets this huge sum of
money.
In ancient times
soldiers would derive cruel pleasure by deciding whether or not to kill a
prisoner based on the flip of a coin. For Haman the idea of genocide based on
lots may have been very funny. One can extend the concept to random muggings
and far more heinous crimes. The people who do these horrible things typically
are totally apathetic about any future punishments, often are perverts, and are
generally sleazy. A decent person, though, will be very distant from a criminal
mentality and such behavior will strike them as senseless and bizarre.
Among religious Jews
lotteries are used as fundraisers. However, most people do not buy the ticket
because they hope to win the big prize; rather it provides a pleasant way to
donate to a worthy cause. People will gamble with a dreidel on Hanukah but
nothing worth more than chocolate bar is riding on the outcome. In addition
there are some people who take the position to lose a dollar a week means
nothing, but to win a million dollars will change their life. Although the
statistical value of the ticket is nil, the dream at least has entertainment
value.
Randomness though has
a very high spark of holiness specifically the lettered jewels of the Urim and
Tumim on the high priest’s breastplate. In regards to a war to extend the
borders of the land of Israel, it was required to consult them. Even so, it was
only to approve an existing sentiment for such a war. In other words if such
actions did not find favor in the eyes of heaven, this random, projective
mechanism was the vehicle to reveal G-d’s will.
The Urim and Tummim (literally light and
integrity) were only effective for a very pure hearted high priest. There is a
legend that Eli the Cohen consulted them in regards to Hannah, the mother of
Shmuel the prophet, and saw the letters כ,
ר, and ש.
He misread them as שכר –
drunk, when he should have read them as כשר – kosher.
It comes out that the
Chumash has a death penalty for nations for the crime of frivolously making a
serious war. If it is a dirty, savage, nation that will not change, it must be
destroyed. There is a major difficulty in the Gemara with the mitzvah to annihilate
Amalek. Specifically that it says that the descendants of Haman, Shemaya and
Avtalyon, were teaching Torah in Bnei Brak. If the nation must be destroyed,
how can there be survivors? It seems that the message is that there is a little
bit of good in the soul of all men and that no matter how bad a person’s
lineage may be, he can rise above it.
