From the Rabbi's Desk

“Great warrior. Hmmm. Wars not make one great.” (Master Yoda) These words spoken in The Empire Strikes Back sum up the feelings of Yoda and what wars are about. They are not about making a name for oneself. Wars are not fought out of choice. Wars are not good. Wars are a necessary evil in the world because we have yet to figure out how to solve problems without violence. Wars continue to exist because we, as a species, want power and that which is not ours. Wars are not started out of altruism but out of greed, jealousy and an inability to live by the core lessons of kindergarten.

This week we will read פרשת בשלח/Parshat BeShalach. In this פרשה/portion we see that פרעה/Pharaoh changed his mind and could not live without his enslaved laborers nor could he do the right thing and so he chased after us. When we were at the Sea of Reeds, and the Egyptians were on our heels, we were saved as the sea split and we walked on dry land. After the waters closed on the Egyptians, and they were destroyed while we were saved, we rejoiced and sang. The song we sang was the “Song of the Sea” we sing each morning in services, אז ישיר/Az YaShir. One of the lines that's always stuck out to me is from שמות 15:3:

ה' איש מלחמה ה' שמו

Hashem is a “Man” of War, Hashem is God’s name.

This line has always been perplexing. I don’t imagine or picture God as being violent or vengeful. I picture God as just and caring. I picture God as benevolent. I picture God as being a part of all we struggle with and we can rely on God to help us through our hardest times. But what is with this whole concept of God being violent and being a fighter? One commentator answers as follows:

The Sforno explained:

ה' איש מלחמה, ה' שמו, even though He at times appears as the איש מלחמה, the “Man” of war who destroys His foes by invoking the attribute of Justice, He is yet predominantly Hashem, the God who practices mercy. It’s this attribute of His which is responsible for the continued existence of all His creatures. When He destroys His foes, He is in effect removing weeds from the garden in order to enable the useful plants to survive and develop. The wicked are like the thorns and thistles in a vineyard.

It isn’t that God is vengeful or violent. It’s that God is predominantly merciful. God’s mercy is what sustains humanity. The reality is this line is there to teach that war does not make us great but war is a necessary part of life and existence. Mercy is the optimal way for God to exist and the same is true of humanity. To think God is only love and everything sweet is to think God is one sided and beyond the simplest imaginations. God is not great because of the wars that are fought. God is great because He helps us when we need Him the most.