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Our Rabbi's Message
January 18th 2008
By Rabbi Aaron KriegelThe Exodus of the Children of Israel from Egypt is very much like the results of the war in Iraq. When our forefathers crossed the Sea of Reeds they won the battle against the Egyptians, but they were in for forty more years of contention and unhappiness and civil unrest before they could win the battle to begin to reclaim the Promised Land. In like manner President Bush was correct when he said on that Aircraft Carrier, dressed in a flight jacket that the allies had won the war in Iraq, which was aimed at overthrowing the regime of Saddam Hussein. However, as we now so clearly see, we are in for the long haul until the problems of civil unrest and contention and bloodshed continue as a result of the victory in that war.
At times the peace is much harder to win than is military victory. The purposes of warfare are rarely settled with only fire power. For example, the American Civil War was won by the North at a very dear cost in human life. However, the peace that war was supposed to bring has not yet been fully realized. Black people still have to struggle for the rights that are promised in our Constitution for all people, regardless of color. In many ways there is still a wide divide between the philosophy of the South and of the North. In that case and as demonstrated by the Torah portions we shall be reading until we finish the Book of Exodus we learn that victory is not enough.
It is harder to win the peace than it is to win a war.
The Torah portions that we shall be reading also teach that only with strong and focused leadership can the gains of war remain, while the battle for the souls of the people, the battles for the peace still continue.
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