“There
is not a more moral army than the IDF...” - Benyamin Netanyahu
Our prime minister's statement is not
really his original idea. It reflects a notion that has long been
assumed and stated openly here in Israel. The Israel Defense Forces
incorporated the notion of 'purity of arms' and many other moral
values into its ethical doctrine. The notion that we are
no less moral, if not more moral, than any other army and other
nation is widely accepted by Israelis and Jews around the world as
well as by some notable non-Jews.
But is it true? Are we more moral than
other armies? Than other countries? Than our enemies?
It's a funny thing about morals-- who
gets to decide what is moral and what is not? You might say that
killing is immoral. But what would you say about killing someone who
is actively attempting to kill you? Or executing a serial murderer?
One of the reasons that languages have
various names for the act of ending human life is because we make
moral distinctions between those acts based largely on intent. So we
have words like kill, murder, assassinate, execute, to name just a
few in English.
Israel's self image as a moral state
with a moral army has to be understood as Israel's attempt to live up
to its own values. This is all it should mean. We as a state and a
people determine our values, no one else.
We in Israel tend to get upset when we
are constantly criticized for the way we handle ourselves in
war (also the way we handle people over the Green Line generally-- I will discuss
that in another blog). We cry that we are being judged by a 'double
standard.'
But how can we complain when we have
created the double standard ourselves? If we claim to be more moral
than others, can we be surprised when others attack us for, as they
see it, not living up to that standard?
I assume that Hamas also sees itself as
moral operators in the world with a moral army. Their morality,
however, assumes that killing Jews and wiping out the state of Israel
are supreme moral values. They are not shy about this; they express
this aspiration clearly in their own covenant and in frequent
statements to their own people. They even have cute (brrrr) shows for children teaching these values.
By their standards, our attempts to
preserve human life, both ours and the lives of our enemies, far from
being moral, may be perceived as just being stupid. Hamas leaders say
openly to their own people that they desire death more than we desire life.
It should not be important to us that
we are more moral than anyone else. It is not possible simply because
no absolute standard for morality exists. It is like spouses asking
each other who loves the other more. How do you measure?
What is vital is for us to examine our
own values, to know them and discuss them and to adhere to them.
While think that proposing that there is no uniform standard of morality needs so much qualification as to make it essentially a hyperbole if not false by the standards of Torah, I think what I perceive as your main point is tenable nonetheless. It matters little to the immoral person that you establish their immorality (just as it matters little to the spouse in the argument that you can prove you love more). The point of these arguments is defense in the spiritual struggle to stay focused and attuned to the core of our existence. If we deviate from that, we are lost, even if all the world is our ally; if we are at one with it, it matters little in the end if all the world be our enemy.
ReplyDeleteEssentially, yes, and thank you. One who believes in Torah will also believe in a moral structure derived from the Torah. Likewise, that person may believe that the Torah represents the one true standard of morality. However, one who fundamentally does not accept the Torah may not agree. That doesn't affect the truth of the Torah--truth is truth, even if it is not always easy to obtain. For us as Jews and Israelis, we need to remain true to ourselves.
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