Thoughts Related to 9-11 and Remembering

I shared this piece last Shabbat prior to a commemoration service for those who perished in 9-11.
The following day, while working with the Jewish Community School children, Rabbi Lewis and I focused our thoughts on building toward a future of peace. There are so many thoughts that have found their way into my mind during this very pensive period of time.

Remembering is part of our Jewish ethos. We remember the Exodus from Egypt every Shabbat and on Pesach. We remember our loved ones as we recite the mourner’s kaddish. And we are also commanded to “remember what Amalek did to you on the way when you left Egypt.” We not only remember the good but we also remember the perpetrators of evil so that we can forever be prepared to meet an attack.

When the Torah mentions Amalek specifically, it does not attempt to hide the identity of the enemy that sought to destroy us. When the story of Purim is read, we make sure we mention Haman’s name as the mastermind of the evil plot to annihilate the Jews. We mention his name even though we attempt to blot out his name. When we talk about the Holocaust we are not shy about mentioning that it was a systematic plan of the Nazis to destroy the Jewish people. We remember the evil perpetrated as well as the evil-doers so we can work to prevent them or others like them from acting in a similar way in the future.

We live in a strange world. When 9-11 occurred ten years ago, we knew that Al Qaida wreaked havoc upon the lives of those in the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and on United Flight 93 that day and instilled fear in the hearts of Americans. We knew that the attack was not a matter of trying to destroy buildings, but a culture that values freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of speech, and freedom of assembly. We were able to put a face to our enemy, adherents of radical Islam. At times during the past decade, however, we have seemed less willing to speak about radical Islam as being in opposition to the values of a society that is based on the inalienable rights of all human beings. We focused on the hunt for Bin Laden acting as if his death would end the threat that faces any society that values pluralism.

Somehow, it is not considered politically correct to point out differences in religious beliefs nor to label actions as being “religiously motivated.” Yet, much of the chaos that has infiltrated every corner of the globe can be traced to those who adhere to a radicalized world view that believes martyrdom will be rewarded when one’s death leads to the death of a non-believer. Dr. Boaz Ganor, deputy dean of the Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy, and Strategy at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliyah, wrote, " After 9/11, America’s focus was on reducing the operational capability of the terrorists. The outcome was the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. The effort was designed to reduce the capabilities of al-Qaeda, the global Jihadists, and terrorists worldwide. Yet the Americans did not pay enough attention to the simultaneous need to deal with counter-motivation. "

Ganor, continued, "A few months ago, the White House Counter-Terrorism Advisor, John Brennan, discussed the Obama Administration's counter-terrorism policy. He explained: 'Terrorism is not our enemy.' I understand that terrorism is a tactic and that a tactic cannot be an enemy. But then he said, 'Islamists and Jihadists are not our enemy.' In response, I wrote an op-ed in the Jerusalem Post entitled: “If Global Jihad Isn’t the Enemy, What Is?
I explained that ..... King Abdullah of Jordan and other moderate Arab leaders ...know that the Jihadists and Islamists are the enemy. By saying that Islamists and Jihadists are not the enemy, America – the spearhead of Western society and the protector of liberal democratic values in the world – is sending a confusing message to its allies worldwide.

It is true that al-Qaeda has yet to succeed in establishing an Islamist caliphate, an Islamic radical state that will control the whole world and will be governed by Muslim Sharia law. But it is succeeding in achieving its intermediate goals to gain hearts and minds that buy into its version of Islam. While the vast majority of Muslims have not bought into these views, the trend is negative, as we see more and more people buying into it. From an historical point of view, the Islamists are winning the war.”

9-11 was just one day in the life of this great country…a tragic day….but the hatred that caused the death of almost 3,000 Americans on our own soil has not disappeared from the world. We need to remember those who perished, just as we remember the yahrzheits of our loved ones. But we also need to remember those who saw fit to turn airplanes into weapons of destruction just as we remember Amalek. When radical islamic organizations and countries speak about Israel, we don’t doubt their hatred. We need to take seriously the messianic visions of Ahmadinejad and others who see a world where Islam will reign supreme. Countries, organizations, and individuals who value death more than they value life are not to be taken lightly. When we remember our loss as a country it is because we care so much about life. We must not fool ourselves into believing that all of humanity has the same value system.

What is a fitting tribute to those who perished on 9-11? It would be wonderful if we could say we will dispel the darkness that has come into the world as a result of terrorism. But as Rabbi Avi Weiss of Riverdale, NY wrote, “When faced with evil, the goal cannot be to dispel the darkness, that is often impossible. It’s much like walking into a dark room crowded with furniture. The first time we enter, we grope blindly, we bump into everything, we stumble everywhere. But after a time, when we enter, although the room is still dark we know where the obstacles lie, we no longer fall, we have found our way.” May this country continue to strive to find its way as it struggles in the midst of the darkness introduced by terrorism. May we always recognize that “evil unchallenged is evil condoned.” (Benjamin Blech ) May our reflections on this day give us new resolve to preserve what we cherish both in our families and in our communities.

Amen.