Although the #Brexit vote about whether
Britain would remain a member of the European Union took place a few weeks ago
I am still reeling from the result. I’m
disappointed by what happened, I'm upset about the way the debate place, and
I'm scared for the future not just of Britain, but also of the whole
world. I was most depressed by the way
that the leave campaign stoked up people's fear of immigrants and “the other”
as a way of driving people towards voting against remaining members of the
European Union. This fear of the other
was powerful in Britain, it's powerful around the world, and it's powerful in our
Torah.
This week’s Torah portion begins: ‘Balak son of Zippor saw all
that Israel had done to the Amorites. Moab was
alarmed because that people was so numerous. Moab dreaded the Israelites, and
Moab said to the elders of Midian, "Now this horde will lick clean all that
is about us as an ox licks up the grass of the field"’ (Num 22:2-4). Balak didn't know who the Israelites really
were, he had just heard about what had happened to the Amorites, and as a
result he was fearful for himself and his people.
What Balak didn’t know is that in
last week's Torah portion, before Israel came upon the Amorites, ‘Israel now
sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying, "Let me pass
through your country. We will not turn off into fields or vineyards, and we
will not drink water from wells. We will follow the king's highway until we
have crossed your territory"’ (Num. 21:21-22). The Israelites essentially offered to pass
through the land peacefully, with no conflict and no use of the Amorite
resources. Unfortunately Sihon refused, and
as a result of that refusal Israel engaged the Amorites in battle.
It didn't have to be that way. Sihon could have said “yes”. I would guess that
his reluctance to allow the Israelites through the country was related, once
again, to the fear of the other. He was
fearful of another people coming into his land even though they had committed
not to use any of his resources and not to be a drain on their economy.
Unfortunately fear of the other is a
very powerful emotion. But in our global
society we encounter others be they of race, religion, or nationality all of
the time, and the important thing for us is to remember that we shouldn't be
afraid of them. In this week’s Torah
portion we see how curse can be transformed into blessing when Bilam attempts
to curse the Israelites, but can only bless them. In most cases our encounters with people who
are different from ourselves are not a curse but a blessing; an opportunity to
grow, to learn, to develop and to form new relationships. We should not be afraid of the other, but we
should see the other as a blessing. Had Balak
been able to do this perhaps things would have worked out differently for the Moabites.
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