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Farmington Nis
Refute Hateful Words
Aimed At Jews, Israel
Parshat Balak: Numbers 22:2-25:9;
Micah 5:6-6:8.
T
he first time children come
crying to us saying some-
one called them a name, we
usually teach them the old saying:
"Sticks and stones may break my
bones, but names can never hurt
me." Yet, we know that this saying
only goes so far.
Over the past years, we
have seen a rise in anti-
Semitic rhetoric aimed at
the Jewish people and the
State of Israel. Like the
childhood saying implies,
we know that when an
anti-Semite slanders or
curses Jews, or Israel, the
words themselves mean
nothing — the words
themselves do no actual
harm.
Nevertheless, it is vital for us
to answer these hurtful attacks
because words unanswered have the
potential to lead to physical acts of
harm.
This week's Torah portion tells
the story of the world-famous seer
Balaam and the King of Moab,
Balak. The Torah tells us that Balak
sees "all that Israel had done to
the Amorites. Moab was alarmed
because that people was so numer-
ous. Moab dreaded the Israelites."
What is a king to do when he feels
his kingdom is at threat? He calls for
reinforcements.
Balak sends emissaries to ask for
help from Balaam ben Beor to curse
the Israelites. What follows is one
of the best examples of humor in
the Bible — Balaam eventually goes
with Balak's emissaries but encoun-
ters trouble along the way. The
world-famous "seer" is unable to see
God's angel, who is right before him,
threatening to kill Balaam.
Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah adds
to the irony: The animal upon which
Balaam rides, the ass, is the dumb-
est of animals. The ignorant beast
is able to see what Balaam, the great
seer, cannot see. Additionally, the
irony is so strong that it is clear
for us, the reader. In other words,
everyone can clearly see that which
Balaam cannot.
The strong use of irony helps
teach us an important lesson about
the words of others as explained
by the medieval commentator Don
Isaac Abravanel. He asks a fascinat-
ing question: "Why does God bother
to prevent Balaam from cursing the
Israelites? Why should the Israelites
have cared about his curse so long
as God blesses God's
people with peace?" This
question is all the more
poignant given the fact
that the Torah places no
faith in divination and
magic.
Commentators have
answered these questions
in two ways. First, the
purpose of God chang-
ing Balaam's curses to
blessings is so that the
Israelites will be encour-
aged while their enemies are dis-
couraged. Coming out of slavery
and being exposed to superstition
and the belief in magic in Egypt, the
Israelites need to be reassured that
God will not allow their enemies to
malign them.
Second, God changing the curses
to blessings is an opportunity to
educate the pagans of the world of
God's true power.
Just as the plagues against Egypt
can be seen as an opportunity to
teach Pharaoh that only God is truly
powerful, so, too, here Balaam and
all of his followers are taught that
they do not hold the power to bless
or curse.
I believe that God changes
Balaam's curses to blessings because
Balaam's curses could have led the
Israelites' enemies to be embold-
ened, encouraging them to attack
the Israelites.
Therein is our lesson: While there
are those who may say words that
are hurtful, anti-Semitic and angry,
we should not let those words nega-
tively impact our lives. Yet, we must
act to answer this hateful rhetoric,
lest it lead to others' angry action.
More than 3,000 years ago, God
acted to prevent hurtful speech from
cursing — or destroying — Israel,
so, too, should we today. LJ
Robert Gamer is the rabbi at Congregation
Beth Shalom in Oak Park.