JULY 9 • 2020 | 25
P
inchas, the hero of this
week’
s portion, was
singled out because “he
was zealous for his God.
” An
Israelite prince, Zimri, had
done a scandalous thing.
The encamped men were
being seduced into hea-
then worship and cor-
ruption through asso-
ciating with the women
of the land. Zimri
openly and flagrantly
brought a Midianite
woman into his tent.
Pinchas, a priest and,
therefore, a man of
peace, was filled with
indignation, seized a
spear and inflicted the
punishment of death
upon the offender and
his partner.
Today, many of us have a
different outlook on Pinchas’
actions. Rather than applaud
him, we are more inclined to
criticize. We feel that his violent
act conflicts with today’
s moral
standards. I feel that we must
look less at the act and more
at the motivation of the man.
Pinchas was filled with kinah,
zeal. He boils inwardly and is
filled with passion for a cause.
However, like any great force
or energy, zeal can be danger-
ous; directing the passion and
its subsequent acts must be
tempered with sensibility. Our
history is replete with tragic
expressions of fanaticism in
oppression and intolerance,
resulting in destruction and
desecration.
Today we are experiencing
protests and marches aimed to
direct our attention to the need
for mindfulness of inequality in
our midst. The cause is being
clouded by zealots who, taking
advantage of crowd situations,
are digressing from the main
intent and taking opportunities
to loot, destroy, desecrate and
commit many violent acts.
These “zealots” are fanatics, as
opposed to those who act with
zeal to promote acts of self-
lessness, of commitment of the
need for peaceful existence.
Our zeal should be directed
toward eradicating the divisive-
ness of the situation. We
must continue to demand
justice for all citizens
and remain committed
to fighting the discord
that leads to violent and
destructive acts.
The opposite of zeal is
indifference and detach-
ment. The dangers we
face today are from
uncommitted hearts;
we cannot, in good
conscience, distance
ourselves and proclaim
non-involvement. We
cannot remain detached when
we witness the destruction of
communities and clouding of
issues.
We must zealously find
ways to be heard and be seen
to bring attention to problems
that involve us all and which
demand that we stay active in
our commitment to unity.
In the eyes of the sages,
Pinchas’
deeds were unaccept-
able. We must, however, con-
sider his zeal and commitment
to be of heroic proportions and
worthy of emulation.
A great part of Jewish life
means making commitments
to the community. We dare not
be detached and indifferent.
We must remain zealous in our
commitment to the betterment
of all people in just causes.
Sy Manello is editorial assistant of
the Jewish News.
Parshat
Pinchas:
Numbers
25:10-30:1;
I Kings
18:46-19:21.
Sy Manello
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