The recent cowardly attack on Jordan and recent arrests in Australia has once again brought the following question into sharp focus: how can we avoid the looming devastation international terrorism would like to bring upon us? Many experts are pessimistic, seemingly resigned to the idea that the worst is yet to come and there is really precious little we can do to stop it. Is this doomsday prediction a realistic view of current affairs or is it misplaced pessimism? It seems clear that the desire to cause mass murder and destruction exists. The real question however is: can we defeat this force of evil before it swallows us up?
The answer in my view is that it is within our power -and therefore the responsibility of each and every single one of us -to save the world from this terrible evil, however it demands tremendous courage. Ours is not a time for vacillating on the sidelines, it is a time for courageous people to step up to the challenge and make real changes. Firstly however we need to be convinced that a positive philosophy is more powerful than a negative one and that good will ultimately defeat and outlive evil.
This is the message of the Bible. From the flood that destroyed the immoral and murderous people of the generation of Noah to the death of the evil prophet Bilam and all the stories in between, the Bible has one message: when good confronts evil head on it always prevails. There is one story that is particularly pertinent to the current climate and that is the story of Abraham. Abraham was a revolutionary who lived in an epoch when tyrannical dictators who regarded themselves as deities abounded. As a young child Abraham realized the falsehood inherent in the claims of these dictators. He recognized that the sun or moon were not gods, and neither were these dictators. Abraham understood that there was only one God -the Creator of heaven and earth. This knowledge did not make Abraham unique. Indeed as Natan Sharansky points out in his book ‘The Case for Democracy ‘ there are large numbers of independent thinkers living in every totalitarianism. Many people living during the time of Abraham may have secretly thought that there was really only one God. But Abraham realized that the only way to change the status quo was by going public with his ïdissident’ views and actively educating others of them. The fact that Abraham had the courage to do this made him unique.
Indeed Abraham was willing to sacrifice his own life in order to confront the falsehoods that the tyrant King Nimrod tried to inculcate in his people. As the Midrash relates, Nimrod was extremely irritated by Abraham’s dissident monotheistic ideas and activities. He brought Abraham to trial and sentenced him to death by fire. Abraham was thrown into a fiery furnace but miraculously survived the ordeal unscathed.
It was only after Abraham had proven himself willing to sacrifice everything to confront evil that God revealed Himself to him. This is significant. The Midrash specifically contrasts Abraham with his brother Charan, who waited to see whether Abraham would survive the furnace before articulating his monotheistic views. Seeing Abraham survive, Charan also became a dissident and was thrown into the furnace. Unlike Abraham, Charan did not survive the fire. The lesson is clear: when faced with an evil despotic regime or ideology which offers up the rights, dignity and lives of others on the altar of self-perpetuation and aggrandizement, vacillating and political posturing in not an option: one’s opposition must be clear, unequivocal and unwavering. Ulterior motives and self-interest cannot be permitted to cloud moral clarity.
Abrahamïs success in drawing followers to his positive message and his ultimate victory over the Nimrods of this world were because he was steadfast in both his opposition of evil and in his promotion of a tolerant brand of ethical monotheism. It is this courage and tenacity that consigned Nimrod and his false theology to the footnotes of history, and ensured that Abraham’s ethical monotheism became the backbone of all civilized societies.
Yes, a positive philosophy will ultimately defeat and outlive a negative one. However there are caveats: we must be unwavering and firm in our opposition of destructive and evil ideologies and regimes and we must fearlessly, tenaciously and consistently promote the positive and constructive ideology we believe in. Only this way will we be able to offer those indoctrinated by a philosophy of hate and terror a positive alternative to believe in.
The world today faces unprecedented dangers. A belligerent and evil Iranian regime is on the verge of obtaining nuclear capabilities. An Iranian nuclear bomb coupled with international terrorism would be a direct threat to the lives of each and every one of us no matter where in the world we live or which religion we belong to. If we, the hairs of Abraham’s tolerant and peace loving philosophy of ethical monotheism, do not have the moral clarity to properly confront this new and emerging destructive element, I am afraid the pessimists will be right. I am optimistic however that the opportunity will not be lost and in the spirit of the Biblical values that we believe in we will confront this evil before it is too late.
Make no mistake; the obligation to confront evil does not lie merely with governments and democracies. Each and every one of us has this obligation. We must talk to others and use every medium at our disposal to ensure that evil and its supporters, both passive and active, are effectively and persuasively opposed. But this is not enough. Most importantly, like Abraham, we must also use every means available to us to educate people, especially those who have been tainted by an ideology of hate, with a positive and constructive ideology.
Finally, it is important to remember that on a personal level all humans have a propensity for impiety. Thus, as an extension of our mission to confront the evil from without, we must face up to our own personal egocentricity and narcissistic tendencies so that we do not place our own selfish interests above our obligations to others.