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February 28, 2003/Adar1 26 5763, Vol. 55, No. 27
Jewish law backs Iraq warRABBI IRVING GREENBERGOne cannot answer the question whether going to war with Iraq is morally justified without first establishing what state we are in now.The truth, which many American Jews find too bitter to swallow, is that we are in a state of total war already. We face an implacable enemy who has struck and killed Jews repeatedly, who has vowed to wipe out the state of Israel while making clear that all Jews worldwide are targets of this murderous hostility. The very same enemy is at war with the United States of America. Sept. 11 represents open warfare and mass murder, but this war has been waged, overtly and covertly, for decades. The "co-incidence" of war on America and the Jews is not a coincidence. America is seen as the source of economic dynamism sweeping away traditional hierarchies and of cultural transformation that is undermining authoritarian faiths and inherited structures. The West, modernity, media, women's rights, homosexuality, unlimited cultural choices and human rights are all lumped together and blamed on the "Great Satan," America. These hated values are further stigmatized by hanging them on Jews and on Israel, the "Little Satan." Arabists have recently claimed that America is hated because it supports Israel. In fact, the opposite is closer to the truth. Israel is hated as the outpost of Western civilization successfully placed in Dar-al-Islam, the land divinely ordained only for Muslim rule. Some argue that the war is being waged by Al-Qaida, not Iraq. No. This 50-plus-year war has been waged by a loose, shifting collection of states and groups, not infrequently divided and fighting among each other but all drawing upon Arab cultural resentment and radical Islamic fundamentalism. The question is whether our overt war against Al-Qaida should be extended to Iraq. The answer: Iraq, by its behavior since 1990, has confronted the United States and made war a needed response. Iraq invaded Kuwait. After losing the Gulf War, to avoid invasion, it promised to disarm. Instead, Iraq frustrated and expelled inspectors while renewing its effort to achieve nuclear arms. Should Iraq succeed in rearming, it would not hesitate to use these terror weapons (or to supply them to Al-Qaida or other terrorist groups and regimes) for use against the United States, Israel or Jews anywhere. Here we come to the core questions: Maybe Iraq can be hamstrung or delayed? Maybe, even if armed, Iraq's dictator will not strike in fear of American retaliation? My personal judgment is:
The first is a war of self-defense, a milchemet mitzvah, a commanded, "good deed'' war. The second type of legitimate war is in a situation when it is not clear that the enemy will definitely attack. However, the government feels that a preemptive strike is warranted for greater security. This war is categorized as a milchemet reshut, a permitted war. In my judgment, the Iraq situation is a classic case of a permitted war. Smashing this dictatorship will erode terrorists' standing everywhere, encourage moderates and unleash forces of democratization throughout the region. States who harbor terrorist groups will be shocked into distancing themselves from these reprehensible forces. Of course, this d'marche could fail; if so, the forces of terror would be strengthened. This is the risk of freedom. In my judgment, the risks of not acting are far greater; the cancerous growth of violence and terror cannot be stopped any other way. Israel, too, may gain new neighbors willing to make peace. For the Jewish people, then, what is good for America and American lives will be a blessing for Jews as well. In other words, if this war succeeds, then as the Bible promises, what is a blessing for the Jewish people will again be a blessing for all the families of the earth. Rabbi Irving Greenberg is the president of the Jewish Life Network/Steinhardt Foundation. |
