We've survived. We've cleared the rubble and picked up the pieces of our shattered pride and shocked economy; we even have a design in the works for a new glorious World Trade Center, complete with a memorial to our dead. We've deposed the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam in Iraq. We have these big fat x-ray machines in our airports and patrol cars watching our bridges. Bin Laden's on the run or at least lying low.
And still we're in the thick of battle, this war of life versus
terror. Turns out that this battle has been going on all along, only we avoided
looking it in the face. It's not an equal fight. One side has human bombs and
lethal poisons and hateful determination and absolutely no scruples. The other
side has goodwill and moral inhibitions and hesitant smiles and kind words and
small charitable acts. It's no equal fight, since a single hesitant good deed is
a billion times more powerful than all the bombs in the world.
Life shall triumph, as it always has. As it did when eight men and women
survived the Great Flood in an ark and emerged to resettle and repopulate the
earth. As it did when 70 souls descended into exile and slavery, to climb out
four generations later as a vibrant people with a mission to bring freedom and
sanctity to the entire world. As it did when Mordechai refused to bow to Haman
and when the Maccabees refused to accept the desecration of the Holy Temple. As
it did when the free world defeated Hitler, and when the evil of Stalinism
crumbled to dust just 15 years ago. Life shall triumph, for life is so much
stronger than terror.
Numerous times during the two years since 9/11 I've read and re-read the
articles that our editors and contributors at Chabad.org have written on the
great war of life against terror. Each time I did so, I found myself
encouraged, reaffirmed in my faith in the goodness of G-d's world. If that was
my experience, perhaps it may be yours as well. Here, then, is an updated
collection:
Wanton Hatred, Wanton Love
by Zalman Shmotkin
Today I Saw Evil
by Yori Yanover
A Soldier's Boots
by Colonel Jacob Z. Goldstein
Face To Face
by Tzvi Freeman
How Do You Fight Evil?
by Tzvi Freeman
Hasn't Belief in G-d caused more Evil than Good?
by Tzvi Freeman
Why I'm Not Afraid
by Tzvi Freeman
When Heaven is Evil
by Manis Friedman
The Jewish approach to Tragedy
by Dov Wagner
Silence
by Tali Lowenthal
Today the World Trembles, Today the World is Born
by Simon Jacobson
Nine, Ten and Eleven
by Simon Jacobson
Dancing on 9/11?
by Dovi Scheiner
The Burning Palace
by Yossi Jacobson
The Twin Towers - A Spiritual Reincarnation
by Laibl Wolf
Transcending Fear
by Yanki Tauber
The Jew's Double Standard
by Yanki Tauber
Guilt
by Yanki Tauber
Why Does Esau Hate Jacob?
by Yanki Tauber
One Year Later
by Yanki Tauber
The Sacred and the Good
by Jay Litvin
Life After Terror
by Jay Litvin
Click here for a PDF print version of the complete anthology.
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