GOOD MORNING! In 1969 my parents moved their fledgling family to Israel. Those were heady days; a scant two years after Israel’s decisive victory during the Six Day War. There was a feeling of achievement and a mood of brotherhood that permeated the citizens of the Holy Land. After decisively defeating the Jordanian/Egyptian/Syrian alliance, Israel had proven beyond any doubt that they were the preeminent military power in the region.

One of the more important outcomes of the war had been the reunification of the holy city of Jerusalem. The State of Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948 and the very next day was attacked by a consortium of Arab states. After ten months of intense fighting Israel prevailed and cemented its status as an independent sovereign state. But the city of Jerusalem remained divided; Jordanian forces held the ancient city of Jerusalem while Israel controlled the newer, western parts of Jerusalem.

I remember my grandfather telling me what it was like to visit the kotel – the “Wailing Wall” – in the years after the War of Independence. In those days there was only a very narrow strip in front of the kotel to accommodate worshippers because Arab residences had been built all along the corridor facing the kotel. He explained that in order to get to the kotel he would negotiate with Arab residents of the Old City and literally go through their home to get to the area in front of the wall set aside for worship.

On June 5, 1967, what became the first day of the Six Day War, Jordanian Forces in eastern Jerusalem began shelling the Israelis in western Jerusalem. The Israelis mounted a crushing counter attack and on June 7th Israeli forces overran the Jordanians and took control of east Jerusalem and the entirety of the Old City. Some the most iconic images of the war and soundbites (“The Temple Mount is in our control!”) emerged from that battle for east Jerusalem.

The reunification of the holy city of Jerusalem was a very meaningful achievement on both a practical level (Jews were now free to visit and worship at Judaism’s holiest site) and a historical one; control of Jerusalem hadn’t been in Jewish hands in almost two millennia. But there was an even deeper significance.

The first mention of the Holy City is found in the Torah when Abraham was greeted by Malki-Tzedek king of “Shalem” (Genesis 14:18). Abraham later added what became the prefix “Jeru-” for “God will see,” as it says in Genesis (2:14), “‘Abraham named that place God will see,’ as it is said to this day, ‘On the mountain, God will be seen.’”

The word shalem means whole. Strife is always painful; when something is torn apart there is bound to be some level of suffering. This is why the word for peace in Hebrew is shalom. The word shalom comes from the Hebrew word shalem. When we have unity – or are “whole” – then we have peace. The goal of creation is to create a “oneness” and in so doing we begin to recognize the unity of the Almighty. In fact, our sages teach that one of the names of the Almighty is Shalom.

This is the reason why the Holy Temple – the source of unifying the world in service of the Almighty – had to be built in the holy city of “Jeru-Salem.” It also now takes on a variety of nuanced meanings including “God will be seen” and “peace will be seen.” Of course, it is no accident that the Holy Temple was built by King Solomon whose Hebrew name – Shlomo – is also derived from the word shalem. Thus, the ultimate definition of Jerusalem is “wholeness” and “peace,” which is why the reunification of the city during the 1967 war was so cosmically significant.

Naturally, there are always evil forces trying to rain on our parade. There are those on the far-left who argue that the city isn’t really unified; that there is terrible injustice for the Arab population there and in other parts of Israel, etc. In a hateful opinion piece that appeared in the Jerusalem Post a little over a month ago, the writer lays out his argument for abolishing the celebration of the Day of Jerusalem’s Reunification.

It’s amazing to me how some people choose to politicize almost any situation, even a celebration of peace. It reminds me of something one of my teachers once told me: People prefer pursuing their own selfish interests even at the cost of gaining a greater truth. In other words, if you had to choose between world peace or having as much money as Jeff Bezos – what color would your Lamborghini be?

The writer and others like him choose to totally ignore the realities on the ground. Two very good friends of mine, Dr. Shmuel Katz and Chaim Silberstein collaborated to write a complete rebuttal of this warped opinion piece. Dr. Katz served as an officer in the Israeli Defense Forces during the Six Day War and Chaim Silberstein is president of Keep Jerusalem and the Jerusalem Capital Development Fund. You can find their excellent article “Jerusalem is Truly a City of Peace and Unity” here.

That isn’t to say that peace is easily achieved. Very often one has to be prepared to engage in a fight to keep the peace. There’s a reason that the famous paintings of the Pilgrims celebrating Thanksgiving with the Native Americans always depict them with guns, swords, axes, and tomahawks. There’s a reason police officers are also called “peace officers.” Peace is not easily achieved or maintained; it is a constant work in progress. But it’s worth it.

We find a remarkable statement in the Torah. After listing a plethora of blessings that come as a result of following the mitzvot, the Torah adds: “And you will dwell in your land securely and I will give peace in the land […]” (Leviticus 26:5-6). The famous medieval biblical commentator known as Rashi makes the following observation: “If there is no peace there is nothing.” He continues, “Having peace is equal to every other blessing combined” (Rashi ad loc.).

Obviously, the inverse is true as well. Without an environment of peace, no blessing can be appreciated. Without a true peace of mind there is very little quality of life. This is true on a national level as well as a personal level. In fact, the harmony in one’s own home is known as “shalom bayit – a peaceful home.”

In this week’s Torah reading we find the final days of Aaron and the retelling of his death. Aaron was the brother of Moses and held the position of High Priest (Cohen Gadol). That is, he and his sons were charged with ultimate responsibility for the spiritual services in the Tabernacle such as bringing sacrifices, burning incense, lighting the menorah, and all the holiday rituals and services.

Astoundingly, Aaron’s true legacy to the Jewish people is that he “loved peace and pursued peace.” Our sages describe the enormous amount of time that Aaron spent bringing peace to fighting business partners and quarreling married couples. Anyone who has ever done couples counseling will tell you how exhausting and emotionally draining this endeavor can be.

Consider the seeming incongruity of Aaron’s life; he held the position of High Priest, a job requiring a devotional reverence and solemnity in fulfilling the spiritual duties and ceremonies of the tabernacle in the service of the Almighty. Naturally, one would envision the one who holds this lofty position to be aloof and lead the life of an ascetic. But Aaron was quite the opposite; he was the individual most focused on the mundane matters of resolving the complexities of human relationships!

This is why Hillel, the great Jewish sage of the first century, stated: “Be a student of Aaron – love peace, pursue peace” (Ethics of Our Fathers 1:12).

Chukat, Numbers 19:1 - 22:1
Balak, Numbers 22:2 - 25:9

The Jewish people wander the desert for their final year. The laws of the red heifer (Parah Adumah) are stated; it was burnt with cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet thread. The ashes were then used in a purification ceremony for those who had come in contact with the dead. Strangely enough, all who were involved in the making of the ashes became ritually impure, but all who were sprinkled with them became ritually pure. It is a lesson that we must do the commandments even if we can’t understand them. God decreed the commandments. They are for our benefit. We may not always know why.

Miriam, Moses’ sister and a prophetess, dies. The portable well that had accompanied the Israelites on her merit ceased to flow. The people rebel against Moses and Aaron because of the lack of water. The Almighty tells Moses to speak to the rock for water. Moses gets angry and hits the rock instead and water rushes forth. However, the Almighty punishes Moses and Aaron for not sanctifying Him by forbidding their entry into the land of Israel. (It pays to follow instructions and to withhold anger!)

Aaron dies. His son, Elazar, is appointed the new High Priest. The Canaanite king of Arad attacks the Israelites and is soundly defeated. There is another rebellion over the food and water, which is answered by a plague of poisonous snakes. Moses prays for the people and is instructed by God to put the image of a snake on a high pole. All who see it will think of God, repent, and live.

The Israelites then annihilate the Amorites and Bashanites who deny us peaceful passage and attacked us.

Parshat Balak is one of the most fascinating, psychologically-revealing portions in the whole Torah! Bilaam, a non-Jewish prophet, was granted a level of prophecy close to Moses’ level of prophecy. The Almighty gave Bilaam these powers so that the nations of the world could not say at some point in the future, “If we had a prophet like Moses, we too would have accepted the Torah and would have lived according to it.” Bilaam is an intriguing character — honor-driven, arrogant and self-serving. Unfortunately, not too unique amongst mankind.

Balak, the king of Moav, wanted to hire Bilaam (for a not-so-small fortune) to curse the Jewish people. It is interesting that Balak believed in God and the power of invoking a curse from God, yet thought that God would change His mind about His Chosen People (God is not one to change His mind). Bilaam was very desirous of the assignment to curse the Jews.

The Almighty allowed Bilaam to go to Balak (cautioning him to only say what God told him). The Almighty gives every person free-will and allows us to go in the direction that we choose. Three times Bilaam tried to curse us and three times the Almighty placed blessings in his mouth. Balak was furious! So, Bilaam gave him the following advice with hopes of collecting his fee; “If you want to destroy the Jewish people, entice the men with Moabite women and tell the women not to submit until the men bow down to an idol.” Balak followed the advice and consequently the Almighty brought a plague against the Jewish people because the men fell for Bilaam’s plot. We see from this that the Almighty hates licentiousness and idol worship.