Parshas Beshalach: The New York Times and its’ Amalekite Connection

Amalek came and battled Israel in Rephidim. G-d said to Moses, “Write this as a remembrance in the Book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, because I shall surely wipe out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens.” Moses built an altar and he called its name “G-d is my Miracle.”; and he said, “For there is a hand on the throne of G-d: G-d maintains a war against Amalek, from generation to generation.” (Exodus 8, 14-16)
“Remember what Amalek did to you, on the way when you were leaving Egypt, that he happened upon you on the way, and he killed among you, all the weaklings at your rear, when you were faint and exhausted, and he (Amalek) did not fear G-d… you shall wipe out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heaven – you shall not forget!” (Deuteronomy 25:17-19)

The Torah relates how the Jews were riding high and all the nations trembled before them. Only Amalek wasn’t affected and decided to stage an unprovoked attack on the budding nation. Although they were defeated, they tempered the world’s view of the Jewish invincibility. The Midrash compares Amalek to a group of people staring at a boiling hot spring with fear of entering it. One person entered, and despite his getting burnt, he set the path for others to attempt entry as well.
Although many people shy away from the topic of Amalek, let’s tackle it head on!
What was so unique about Amalek that they achieved the nefarious status of being slated for total obliteration?
Why does G-d specify to Moses to write this in the Torah if everything is recorded in the Torah?
Why the emphasis of reciting it in Joshua’s ears?
What’s the point of remembering Amalek if they were eradicated as a nation?
How could we be commanded to wipe out the remembrance of Amalek if they are written in the eternal Torah?
Perhaps if we examine this commandment in a different light, we could begin to understand its meaning. The Netziv (Rabbi Naphtali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin, 1817-1893) explains that Amalek isn’t slated for obliteration due to a single act on their part. Rather it’s their core belief system that did them in. Amalek represents the denial of G-d and the Divine Providence. While every other nation was affected by experiencing the miracles in Egypt which climaxed with the splitting of the sea, these people were totally untouched. That is why the verse emphasizes their impiety and lack of belief in G-d. Nothing could move them. They were intrinsic unbelievers. They had no place in a G-dly world. The main gist of the commandment is not talking about physical destruction. Amalek as a nation was eradicated much earlier on in time. (See Daas Torah from Rabbi Yerucham Levovitz) The totality of the commandment to eradicate Amalek is one for all generations. G-d therefore was emphasizing the importance of totally OBLITERATING AMALEKITE VALUES from this world. That will only fully transpire in the Messianic Era, but we must do our part. This message is of such importance that G-d deemed it fit to emphasize to Moses that it must be transcribed and transmitted to Joshua and to all generations. Amaleks’ moral impact must be wiped out, but the lesson learnt shall never be forgotten.

Similarly Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler (1892-1953) in his work “Michtav Mei’Eliyahu” (Chelek 5, p.332) writes that today the main mitzvah of eradication of the memory of Amalek is to extirpate their ethical teachings from our hearts. Amalek are called thorns (yalkut esther remez 1059), which seek to uproot everything. Amalekite influences attempt to sever our connection with the world of spirituality and our job is to resist those influences.

Jewish belief is that the world is run by the system of tit-for-tat reciprocity. What sin did the Jews commit through which G-d allowed Amalek to wage war against the Jews, and what was the quid pro quo? The Rabbis explain that the Jews weren't diligent in Torah commitment (which they learnt prior to Sinai).That means that the Jews didn't appreciate its value, thereby causing a degradation of Torah. Therefore Amalek who represented the ultimate callousness toward any matter of holiness, and which sought to uproot all foundational values, became the Divine conduit for harming the Jews. (See Sifsei Chaim moadim cheilek 2,pp.165-172)

The mitzvah of eradicating the memory of Amalek is applicable today more than ever, as the moral bankruptcy of contemporary society has reached new heights. Although I had planned on writing about a different topic this week, after reading the following article I was compelled to switch the topic to the eradication of Amalekite values.

In last weeks New York Times Magazine (Jan.13, 2008), Steven Pinker, a Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, and one of the most renowned proponents of evolutionary psychology, penned a lengthy article titled “The Moral Instinct.” His basic premise was that morality is entirely subjective, though he quotes extensively from studies that showed a correlation in five basic values throughout the world. His dismissal of the possibility that G-d has a role in determining morality merited a mere five sentences. In his words “Putting God in charge of morality is one way to solve the problem, of course, but Plato made short work of it 2,400 years ago. Does God have a good reason for designating certain acts as moral and others as immoral? If not — if his dictates are divine whims — why should we take them seriously? …
This throws us back to wondering where those reasons could come from, if they are more than just figments of our brains.”
He does conclude however, “Far from debunking morality, then, the science of the moral sense (Pinker’s theory based on evolution) can advance it, by allowing us to see through the illusions that evolution and culture have saddled us with and to focus on goals we can share and defend. As Anton Chekhov wrote, “Man will become better when you show him what he is like.”

The lack of any serious thought given by Pinker to a Divine purpose in this world would be comical if not for his secular conclusion. He is in fact a member of the tribe, and Canadian at that. Steven Pinker grew up in Montreal’s English-speaking Jewish community. "I was never religious in the theological sense," he said in a 1999 interview, "I never outgrew my conversion to atheism at 13, but at various times was a serious cultural Jew.” Interestingly, when his mentor committed suicide in 1997, Steven wrote in his obituary, "For he chose to leave us with one last set of observations of the human species. He reminded us of the fragility of happiness, the inscrutability of our passions, and the elusiveness of the self." The emptiness created by a secular view of the world speaks for itself. Most people simply do not give any thought to their purpose in the world. If people would think a bit more, there would be many more religious people and many more depressed people. What Pinker did succeed in showing is that morality needs a source. He just couldn’t bear the thought that G-d might just be that source. Not having G-d as the source for morals and ethics is a priori opening the Pandora’s Box to Amalekite values.

The utter lack of an objective morality practiced even by many secular ethical theorists was displayed by a leading bioethics professor. When accosted about his improper conduct with students in light of his position as an ethicist he replied “Does a mathematician have to be a triangle!” The implication being that he merely teaches ethics, but he need not live an ethical lifestyle. Historian Paul Johnson in his book “Intellectuals” goes right down the list of many of society’s great luminaries, and shows the disparity between their teachings and personal lives. Without a G-d nothing holds up.

Although each Amalekite has the proclivities of a Haman and Hitler Y”SH, and those tendencies have no place in the civilized world; Maimonides himself writes that an Amalekite can redeem himself by repenting from his nation’s evil path, and can even convert to Judaism. (The Talmud relates that Haman the Amalekite’s descendents studied Torah in Bnei Brak!) The goal is not physical destruction; rather it’s the Amalekite values that cannot exist. Our mission as being a light to the nations compels us to spread the beauty of Torah and its values, thereby eradicating the present-day Amalekite influences that exist in the world.