Guest Article

The Knesset Kolumn

Yaakov Avinu gathers his sons at the end of his life to bless them. However, many of his statements to his sons seem to be rebuke and not blessings. The most classic example is what he says to Shimon and Levi. He talks about their violent tendencies and the need to separate them. How is is this a blessing in any way?
Rav Shimshon Raphael Hirsch focuses on two words which Yaakov uses in this rebuke to explain how they are truly a blessing for the Jewish people. Yaakov says, ACHALKEIM B’YAA- KOV - I will divide them in Jacob, V’AFITZEIM B’YISRAEL - and I will separate them in Israel. Rav Hirsch explains that ACHALKEIM means dividing something in a way which does not diminish the original force of the object. ACHALKEIM means dispersing them to significantly reduce the original power. JACOB refers to the Jewish people while in exile while ISRAEL describes the Jewish people in Israel. While in exile, religious zealotry and even violence serves a very important purpose. Zealots can serve as an example to the rest of the nation regarding the need to serve G-D despite the persecution, and violence can help in fighting our enemies. Thus, while in exile as captured by IN JACOB, Yaakov said that Shimon and Levi will be DIVIDED. They will be spread among the people with their original force intact to inspire them to continue serving G-D and even fight back against our enemies. However, once we are IN ISRAEL, Yaakov says AFITZEIM, they must be separated without their power intact. Their zealotry and violence will only hurt the Jewish people and, therefore, the ultimate blessing is for them to not be together and exercise zero power.
These past few weeks have shown us the wisdom in Yaakov’s words. While we try to build a beautiful country where Jews from all over the world reunite with brotherly love, religious zealots who have been allowed to live together in small areas have begun to lash out to destroy what we are building. May Yaakov’s blessings come true speedily in our times with the force of the extremists diminished to none so we can get back to focusing on building a truly beautiful and unified Israel.

MK Rabbi Haim Amsalem is Chairman of the Am Shalem movement. http://www.amshalem.org

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