Vayikra (Shabbat Zachor): Remembering What it Means to be Human

Right now, Russia’s war against the Ukraine and the Ukrainian people dominates the newspaper headlines. Are we disproportionately concerned with this conflict, over the plights of the Rohingya from Myanmar, the Uyghurs in China, or any other oppressed group around the world? Honestly, yes, we are. It’s not the most flattering aspect of human nature, but we are prone to care about people who look and live like us. But there are also understandable reasons to be hyper-focused on this war: The global threat of a nuclear superpower like Russia attacking neighboring countries at will is simply terrifying. And to us as Jews, it may feel disturbingly like the mid-1930s, which makes it absolutely imperative that the world not accept Putin’s show of strength or thirst for power. Yet as incensed as we certainly are, we must also admit that megalomania too is a familiar byproduct of human nature. This Shabbat, our calendar has brought us to an interesting special observance that is very relevant to the stories in the newspaper headlines. And it brings with it a lesson that we absolutely, positively cannot ever afford to forget.

The Shabbat before Purim (which begins on Wednesday evening, 3/16) is always known as Shabbat Zachor, or the Shabbat of Remembrance. What we are specifically remembering is that Haman - the Megillah’s infamous villain - was a descendant of the Amalekite people. The Amalekites repeatedly attacked the Children of Israel as they traveled through the wilderness. They weren’t the only enemy we encountered, but their tactics were particularly heinous, as they would sneak up on the older, weaker, infirm Israelites straggling along at the back. So as we prepare to read about Haman’s hatred of the Jews, we remind ourselves that his anti-Semitism was not an isolated incident or an anomaly; it is something we’ve confronted in every generation, and against which we must always - in future generations too - remain vigilant as well. 

I recently read a Torah commentary on Shabbat Zachor by a former professor of mine from the Schechter Institute in Jerusalem, Professor David Frankel. Frankel writes: “Amalek represents that which is evil, destructive, and reflects a lack of morality and a basic sense of decency.” Then he goes on to add a challenge that we all need to take to heart: “The fear and the danger that the Torah wants to warn against is that we may forget that this is humanity. That this is part of humanity. We may think that we are somehow in a new era, that mankind has advanced, civilization has advanced, and so we can plan our world for a brighter future without worry. The Torah teaches us “zachor”, always remember because what happened with Amalek is paradigmatic of the human character and nature.” And that is why I included my comments in the first paragraph above - caring more about people who look like us is our default human instinct, and we, as a species, are also prone to produce heartless, narcissistic dictators obsessed with power. Are these pleasant things to acknowledge about ourselves? No. But the Torah is reminding us that we still must look at these characteristics, or we’ll always be doomed to repeat our worst behaviors.

In its brutal campaign, Russia has reportedly bombed a maternity and children’s hospital. They opened up a humanitarian corridor for civilians to escape… but tried to force those paths to lead straight into Russia and Belarus. More and more atrocities are being committed every day. This too is Amalek. It is not an anomaly or a shocking, unexpected thing for a delusional despot like Vladimir Putin to undertake. Professor Frankel reminds us: “The evil which is within humanity does not go away, we have to fight it in each generation.” And this then is our generation’s fight against the Amalekites. Just as it is also our responsibility to push back against our default inclination to mainly help people like ourselves. We are obligated to defend the Rohingya, the Uyghurs, and oppressed groups everywhere... including disenfranchised and marginalized groups who live in this country. There are countless ways that you can help, but here’s one that our congregation recently set up on our website:

https://www.ohev.net/form/Aid-for-Ukraine

Kindness, compassion, defending others, and offering our support and assistance; these are also essential features of humanity. Obviously, we prefer to focus on those attributes, and donating to help the Ukrainians is a praiseworthy way of inhabiting our better selves. But we do need to acknowledge the darker, more sinister sides as well. We ignore them at our own peril, and we simply cannot afford to do that. Lo Tishkach! - Do not forget!

CC images in this blog post, courtesy of:
1. victorgrigas on Wikimedia Commons
2. Tilemahos Efthimiadis on Wikimedia Commons

3. GDJ on openclipart.org

4. Ministry of Defense of Ukraine on Wikimedia Commons