Rabbi's Message

Rabbi Elyse Wechterman
Read about the Rabbi
Jan. 2005

Is hate ever justified or necessary?

This question came to my attention after a congregant forwarded me an op-ed from the Boston Globe by Jeff Jacoby (November 21, 2004 p.K11 Click to read it) in which he claimed that Judaism differs from Christianity which teaches love of all, including the sinner (while hating the sin, presumably).

The context of Jacoby’s comments was in response to the death of Yassir Arafat and Jacoby’s own criticism of President George Bush’s immediate reaction to the news of “God bless his soul.” Other columnists – notably right-wing Christians – criticized Jacoby for calling into question Bush’s “Christian heart” and the teachings of Jesus that preach love of all creatures.

Jacoby countered saying his religion, Judaism, condones hate – even requires it at times. That Jews do not believe that “God loves everyone, even the bad people,” as Jacoby quotes one letter writer.

Is this really true?

Jacoby bases his claims on the teachings of Ecclesiastes (Kohelet): “There is a time for war and a time for hate.” He neglects to point out that Kohelet, an important work of theology and biblical poetry, is both a late biblical text and one that most scholars and Jewish interpreters see as a minority viewpoint in the overall canon of Jewish scripture.

He shunts aside the more prevalent injunctions of Torah to “love your neighbor as yourself,” (Leviticus 19:18) and “love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt,” Deuteronomy 10:19).

Jacoby also seems unaware of later Jewish teaching that seems to urge us not only to love the stranger, but also to pray for repentance and to expect it for all, including the sinners: The Talmud relates a story of Rabbi Meir, one of the sages of the rabbinic period. Frustrated and angered by some hooligans in his neighborhood, Rabbi Meir begins to pray for their death. His wife Bruriah chastises him. “Why do you think your prayer will be heard?” she asks, quoting a biblical verse. “Is it because of the verse (in Psalms) ‘Let the sinners be consumed?’ In fact, the verse doesn’t say sinners, but rather sins. Indeed, the verse goes on to say that the ‘wicked shall be no more.’ This implies that once sin stops, the wicked will be no more. Don’t pray for their death, rather pray for their repentance so that their wickedness will be no more.” Rabbi Meir, on account of his wife’s teaching, ceases his prayer for the death of the perpetrators and instead prays for their repentance. And, indeed, they turn in penitence.

Indeed, in this story Rabbi Meir (and we) are taught something about the Jewish notion of Teshuvah (repentance and return). Teshuvah, we know from our High Holy Day liturgy, is available to every one at any time. God loves the repentant and makes our sins as “pure as the driven snow,” in one Yom Kippur prayer.

Teshuva is powerful, primary and built in to the very fabric of God’s world – for it was created before humanity, according to teaching. But this story of Rabbi Meir adds the fact that teshuvah is somehow contagious. The turning away from hate, from a desire for death and revenge, on Rabbi Meir’s part seems to bring about a turning, repentance on the part of the sinners as well. Can it be that our act of loving a sinner can in fact bring him or her toward repentance? And if that is so, mustn’t we for the sake of the world and the possibility of redemption do as God does - love the sinners?

Let’s be clear here. A prohibition of hate and a call toward love does not negate the equally Jewish imperative toward justice and judgment. “Tzedek, Tzedek Tordof” (Justice, justice you shall pursue.)

Of course evil acts must be called what they are, perpetrators punished and held accountable, society protected, victims appropriately compensated and cared for. But these are acts of judgment and justice – not hate. That’s why judges, both in American civil life and in traditional Jewish teachings, are expected to respond to evidence and testimony from a place of rational discernment, not emotion.

Ok, so this is fine for neighborhood thugs. But what are we to do with an Arafat – or worse – a Hitler? Jacoby claims that these people deserve to be hated and vilified for their crimes against humanity. My response is: to what end? It goes without saying that acts of terror and mass murder need to be stopped and prevented in any way possible. And Jewish tradition would vote strongly in favor of murdering a Hitler in prevention of more deaths and destruction. But again that is not hate – it may be justice.

Hate, as an emotional response to something, tells us far more about the hater than it does about the hated. And since we know from tradition that repentance is always possible – even in death, hating a dead man does nothing to affect his soul – only ours.

Is hate ever justified or necessary? No. Judgment always is.

Rabbi Elyse

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