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December 15, 2000/Kislev 18, 5761, Vol. 53, No.12
Our darkest stories help us pursue peace
Torah Study
VANESSA EHRLICH
Vayishlach/Genesis 32:4-36:43
When you ask any of our students or even their parents what they remember about Jacob, they may tell you about how he deceived Isaac to obtain Esau's birthright. They may even know that he was Joseph's father.
It is likely, however, that they are not familiar with what happened when Jacob reunited with Esau when the brothers were adults. It is also probable that the rape of Dinah and the ensuing cruel retribution by Jacob's family is not a popular topic in most synagogues and religious schools.
Yet the lessons that can be learned from Jacob and his family long ago may be relevant to what is currently happening in Israel.
When Jacob went to meet Esau 20 years after he had deceived his brother, Jacob was not sure how Esau would receive him. Jacob felt it prudent to make contingency plans.
So he divided his family into three groups to guarantee that some of his offspring would survive if Esau tried to kill him and his family when they met. Jacob also sent messengers with presents to appease Esau's anger. Finally, Jacob prepared to meet Esau in peace, as witnessed by his bowing to Esau seven times when he presented himself.
The story of Dinah includes an account of the massacre of an entire town in retaliation for her rape by its leader's son.
Much time had passed since Jacob and Esau had met near the river Jabbok, and Jacob's children were now adults. When Dinah went out to visit the daughters of the land, Shechem, son of Hamor, the chief of the country, raped Dinah. Shechem then offered to marry her. Jacob heard that his daughter had been defiled but kept silent, waiting for the return of his sons from the field.
When Dinah's brothers heard what had occurred, they were very angry. Their reply to Shechem and Hamor was that Dinah could not marry a man who was uncircumcised. So Shechem and Hamor persuaded all the men in their town to become circumcised so that they could intermarry with Jacob's family.
On the third day after the circumcisions, when Jacob's sons Simeon and Levi knew that Shechem and his people were still in pain, they came and killed all the males. They took Dinah home and seized all the flocks and assets in the town.
This story reveals a worst-case scenario for the insincerity of faith and a blind refusal to discuss peace.
One can argue that the Palestinian leaders who incite children to throw stones and Molotov cocktails or the more fanatic Jewish settlers in the West Bank are no different from Simeon and Levi. Perhaps Israelis today must also have contingencies for dealing with the Palestinians, just as Jacob had for his reunion with Esau. Perhaps Arafat may be using the same approach.
One thing is clear: Some Israelis and some Palestinians believe their respective governments are playing the role of Shechem and Hamor, and they have no intention of letting their leaders circumcise them symbolically.
As the Israelis respond militarily to the Palestinians, they must also be mindful of the media war. If Israel cannot successfully battle and win this war of words and pictures, it risks being compared to Simeon and Levi and losing something significant.
The stories of Jacob and Esau, of Simeon, Levi, Shechem and Dinah provide valuable lessons. We can use them today to understand that Israel is being prudent, just as Jacob was when he prepared to meet Esau, and that Israel is ready to make peace, just as Jacob was with Esau.
Vanessa M. Ehrlich is the educator at Lakeside Congregation for Reform Judaism in Highland Park, Ill. Torat Hayim, produced by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, is on the Internet at www.uahc.org/growth.
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