Last night, on my way to a meeting, I was listening to the talk on NPR. There was discussion of a possible "three day war" in which the United States would respond to the chemical weapons attack in Syria. Just the other night I truly wondered if President Obama would stand by his "red line." It is not that I am opposed to his line, but what a difficult position to be put in. This is where I realize that the words we speak matter, and at some point we are held accountable for them. So now, how do we respond?
As a Jew, I cannot help but wonder how different the world would be if the United States or someone else had responded when they first learned of the mass killings of Jews throughout Europe during WWII. Chemicals were used in those gas chambers, yet it took years for a real response. Perhaps we have learned our lesson and recognize that if we don't respond, who will?
As an American citizen, I worry. I worry that a military response won't be "three days" but could be months, and even years. I worry that Bashar al-Assad is just crazy enough to retaliate to whatever strike we would make. But again, how do we stand by when someone in this world is using weapons so egregious that they are killing and maiming innocent people?
Whatever President Obama and the military chiefs decide it won't be without thought and the understanding of consequences. Last week's Torah portion, Ki Tavo, reminded us that "when we enter the land" there is the potential for blessings but also the very real potential of curses and/or consequences for our actions.
So, how do we respond to this question of what to do in Syria? Do we support action even if we are scared of consequences? Or, do we say, "stay out of it, it is their problem and not ours?" This is the internal battle.
Judaism has quite a bit to say regarding war, although this case is likely not something that the rabbis of the Talmud even considered. Yet, there are more modern responses from those who sadly have witnessed the atrocities of modern warfare, so we can look to them and consider how they might respond in this situation.
Before we come to a discussion of war, there are of course mitzvot that we can turn to that might point to an imperative of how we should act. "V'ahavta l're'acha kamocha - love your neighbor as yourself, Leviticus 19:18." I'm not sure if this is too simplistic, but I am quite certain that as a country we would absolutely defend ourselves against an enemy using chemical weapons on us, so why not respond when such weapons are being used on someone else?
Or what about the teaching, "If you destroy a single life, you have destroyed the world, but if you save a single life, it is as if you have saved the entire world?" Again, a simple teaching, but if we act, how many people are we potentially saving. Consider our world if someone had thought about this lesson sixty years ago? Those who perished may have brought new ideas and insights into the world that would have changed the way we do things.
Judaism makes provisions for war. We are taught that there are three types of wars: Obligatory (these are the ones commanded by God), Defensive (these are obligatory, for when someone attacks you defend yourself), and Optional (wars fought for a good reason where there was no other option for negotiation.)
In my understanding I think we stand at the precipice of Optional War. A war fought for the sole reason of standing up for humanity and saying, "the rest of the world will not stand by and watch you destroy anyone with chemical weapons." Warnings were given, but the line was crossed. The Torah reminds us that we have the duty to defend a threatened third party. We see this is Deuteronomy 22:27, where there is a cry for help and an expectation that someone will indeed come to the aid of the victim. And we see this in Leviticus 19:16, "You shall not stand idly by." But, this does not give us carte blanche to launch weapons and kill. Even in Optional war, Judaism is very clear that before declaring war, or even a strike, there must be an attempt to make peace - "When you approach a town to attack it, you shall offer it terms of peace" Deuteronomy 20:10.
So this is where we stand. It is an interesting place to be - do we stand up to the aggressor or do we sit back and wait? Though we are not fighting for our own lives, this is an issue that was broached in the Warsaw Ghetto, "do we stand up, resist, and engage the aggressor, or do we not?" Initially, they did not resist, as it was taught that the Torah forbade Jews to engage in war, but in January 1943, at a meeting of the ghetto's surviving leaders, Rabbi Menachem Zemba, gave rabbinical approval for the uprising. . . “ In the present, when we are faced by an arch foe, whose unparalleled ruthlessness and program of total annihilation know no bounds, the Halakhah demands that we fight and resist to the very end with unequaled determination and valor for the sake of Sanctification of the Divine Name.”*
While we Americans are not fighting a "Holy War," we are up against others who are fighting for the life of their regime and are certainly up against some who are fighting in the name of God. From my point of view, God would not approve of the use of chemical weapons in said "Holy War." If peace is the ultimate goal of the Torah, even amidst the laws of war, then chemical weapons are not holy, nor would they be sanctioned or approved of by God.
Yet, even as I remind myself of the Torah's laws of war and the reasons for why we would and should stand up to an enemy who is wreaking havoc and causing the deaths of so many innocents, there is still that battle. That all too human battle of what to do and how to respond. There are no clear answers and certainly no clear outcomes.
But there is a little voice in the back of my head reminding me of Hillel's great teaching, "If I am not for myself who will be for me?" President Obama and our leaders need to weigh every possible consequence and outcome to ensure the safety of all Americans. "If I am only for myself, what am I?" If we don't respond, who will? If we allow someone to destroy others with inhumane weapons for no other reason than to destroy and kill, then are we any better than him? "If not now, when?" This is the biggest question. When do we strike? Whose support do we need? Whose word will help tip the scales?
There are no easy answers in this game of war. . . of life and death.
We ask that God be with those who are suffering in the aftermath of the chemical weapons attack. We ask that God bring healing to those who have been physically harmed, but to also bring healing to those who have lost loved ones and those who are still looking for loved ones. We also ask, O God, that you help to speedily bring healing to our world, to a time when world leaders will no longer have to decide whether to attack one another in the name of humanity. We ask that you bring peace to Syria, that you settle the hearts and the minds of its beleaguered citizens, may they know that you are with them, bringing them comfort and most importantly a sense of peace.
Merciful One, spread over all of us, the entire world, your shelter of peace and please grant to us and to all the world your blessings of peace!
*"Judaism and the Ethics of War," by Norman Solomon< International Review of the Red Cross, Volume 87, Number 858, June 2005.
