34 Friday, July 12, 1985

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Stanleyll.Kaplan

NEWS

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AN APOLOGY

Yeshiva University gave out six honorary degrees at its 54th annual
commencement ceremony in New York this month. Recipients and
university officials include, seated from left; Israel Supreme Court
Justice Menachem Elon; Naphtali Louie, consul general of Israel in
New York; university President Dr. Norman Lamm; Sen. Daniel K.
Inouye (D-Hid; and Herbert Tenzer, chairman of the university's
Board of Trustees, Standing from left, are; Haim Zohar, secretary
general of the World Zionist Organization; Rabbi Rene Sirat, chief
rabbi of France; Rabbi Herbert W, Bomzer, of New York; and Robert I.
Lipp, president of Chemical Bank in New York.

TORAH PORTION

Idolatry, Extremism
Get Biblical Explanation

BY RABBI JAMBS I. GORDON

Special to The Jewish News

On Monday evening, July 1, 1985, a public
address by The Lubovitcher Rebbe, Shift°, was
scheduled of 9;30 p.m„ on cable channel 11, Unfor-
tunately, the first hour and three quarters did not
appear! The Chabod-Lubovitch Organization was In
no way responsible for this error; rather, it was due to
technical problems at our studio, for which we accept
full responsibility. Our apologies for any incon-
venience to our viewers,

Continentol Cablevision

P,$, The next presentation of the Lubayitcher ROW, Shp*, Is •
scheduled for Wednesday, August 7,198k sat 910 p,m,

This week's scriptural reading
opens with the scene immediately
following the impulsive action of
Pinhas at the conclusion of last
week's portion, Pinhas has killed
Zimri and the Midianite princess
in the midst of a grossly immoral
act, stemming the tide of immor,
ality and idolatry that threatened
to engulf the children of Israel,
Pinhas is the recipient of a dou-
ble reward — The covenant of
peace and the covenant of Priest-
hood, Why was it essential to
grant a zealot of this dimension, a
gift of peace? After all, there was
no one more at peace with himself
than Pinhas, Doubt and fain-

theartedness pervaded the elders
of the camp and Pinhas moved
quickly to stamp out disaster,
Resolution of mind and conviction
of purpose are the by products of a
peaceNl self,
The effect of a zealot is actually
measured by the after effects. If
the samepeace ofmind follows the
act itself, it is declared null and
void. The true zealot must be shit.
ken to the roots of his soul and
undergo &physiological trauma,
He has Med the courts and the
law of the Torah, He has donned
the mantle of Justice without
license, He has given vent to
anger in his soul and shed human
blood, Pinahs suffered serious
attar *trots starting from ridicule
of the liberals to OH wrenching
gut motion of his own blcodlet;
tins, This proved that his menu,

rial, impulsive act was not by de•
sign or premeditated, but strictly
a sudden decision for the sake of
sparing enormous loss of life.
There is a thin line between
righteous indignation and
sadism, between zealousness and

Pinhas:
Numbers 26:10-30; 1.
Jeremiah 1:1-2:3.

murder, Parents who beat their
children and continue normally in
their activities are sadists, Cowl-
tries that wage war and gloat over
enemy losses are murderous.
People that celebrate patriotic
acts of destruction are traitors,
We have witnessed many blind
Bete of political patriotism. Ex ,
tremism is never condoned or
encouraged, Commenting on the
act Pinhas, our sages said:
WM Ken," ("lt is
the rule, but we don't teach it as
such?) Yet, there have been we-
miens whore it became necessary
in the flow of world history, The
radical colonists forced mighty
England into surrendering her
control in the Revolutionary War.
The onrushing hordes of the
French Revolution brought free ,
don) to France; The acute and eap ,
'wive activities of the iron and

