ZEALOUSNESS AND PEACE

There are times in life that are extremely painful, especially after the death of a loved one.  During the seven day of Shiva, the pain of loss is ameliorated with visits of friends and relatives with expressions of  nechamah .  I felt an immense feeling of bereavement during the shiva period after the Peterah  of my beloved sister Diane.  I am grateful for receiving the much needed nechamah from our friends and family bringing consolation to our family.

This  Shabbat we will read Parshat Pinchas. I find this Sedrah  very fascinating and most intriguing, especially the personality of Pinchas and how he acted when viewing a very dastardly act, creating a Chilul Hashem, in public, by a Jew, in front of the entire Jewish People.  Pinchas steps forward and  was קנה לאלוקיו, was 'Zealous for G -D'. He killed the desecrators to protect the name of Hashem and to be M'Kadesh Shaym Shamayim.  

One may ask ," Who was this Pinchas who stepped forward to protect the honor of G-D and did so in front of Moshe?"
Chazal say פנחס זו אליהו, "Elijah is the reincarnation of Pinchas". They are truly one person.
This idea is prompted by the fact that both of these personalities performed  zealous acts on behalf of Hashem.

I wonder with you today, amidst all that is happening in Israel, is there a place for zealousness in our day and age?

My question is prompted by the very fact that Pinchas was the grandson of Aaron , a man that is described as  אוהב שלום ורודף שלום and here Pinchas acts with such zealousness. Why did he act this way?

I sense his action was commendable, for the Torah states that Hashem agreed with his action -
השיב את חמתי מעל בני ישראל 
Pinchas "turned G-d's wrath away from the Jewish People."

Even though the zealous action of Pinchas turned the anger of Hashem into forgiveness, G-d rewarded Pinchas with the 'Covenant of Peace' suggesting that a zealous attitude should be accompanied by the attribute of peace.

In light of all the present events of our day, I am beginning to believe that we need to take control of our lives within the law and, especially, within a Torah oriented way.  But I feel that taking control of our lives is a function in the fulfillment of our daily living. To be out of control, is to feel helpless and dependent on others. As a people we have learned well, through history, we can never depend upon others. It just does not work for the Jewish people . Powerlessness brings disaster and only leads to the downfall of humanity.  

Yiddishkeit  teaches us "take control of our lives and beseech the Almighty to help us succeed and to help bring about our ישועה, our salvation."

Remember how Nachshon jumped into the Red Sea? By doing so he caused the waters to split and the Jewish People were saved . 

There are times we cannot wait for others to act on our behalf.   To often that help never comes and we stand and wait, ואין קול ואין עונה. 

Hashem has blessed us with the capabilities of success and it is up to us to take hold of this שפע and to use it in the most appropriate fashion possible.  However, there will not be any success if we remain passive. Life demands action on our part.  Life is not to be a spectator but rather life is to be an active participant in our G-d given destiny.

At this most crucial time for the State of Israel, we pray on behalf of the IDF and the government of Israel that their actions will bring about a lasting peace for the Jewish People.

May we be blessed to have the Z'chut to see the ביאת גואל צדק.