Judaism and peace

The philosophy of nonviolence has roots in Judaism, going back to the Jerusalem Talmud of the middle third century. While absolute nonviolence is not a requirement of Judaism, the religion so sharply restricts the use of violence, that nonviolence often becomes the only way to fulfilling a life of truth, justice and peace, which Judaism considers to be the three tools for the preservation of the world.[14]

Jewish law (past and present) does not permit any use of violence unless it is in self-defense.[15] Any person that even raises his hand in order to hit another person is called "evil."[16]

When the time for war arrived, Jewish soldiers are expected to abide by specific laws and values when fighting. Jewish war ethics attempts to balance the value of maintaining human life with the necessity of fighting a war. Judaism is somewhat unusual in that it demands adherence to Jewish values even while fighting a war. The Torah provides the following rules for how to fight a war:

1. Pursue Peace Before Waging War.
2. Preserve the Ecological Needs of the Environment.
3. Maintain Sensitivity to Human Life.
4. The Goal is Peace.[17]

The ancient orders (like those) of wars for Israel to eradicate idol worshiping does not apply today. Jews are not taught to glorify violence. The rabbis of the Talmud saw war as an avoidable evil. They taught: "The sword comes to the world because of delay of justice and through perversion of justice."

Jews have always hated war and "Shalom" expresses the hope for peace, in Judaism war is evil, but at times a necessary one, yet, Judaism teaches that one has to go to great length to avoid it.[18]

When Moses saw a Jew striking another in Egypt (Exodus 2:13): "...he said to the rasha ("evil one"), why do you hit your fellow!?".[19] The midrash comments, "Rabbi Yitzhak said: from this you learn that whoever hits his fellow, is called a rasha."[20] Maimonides ruled that whoever strikes his fellow transgresses a negative commandment.[21]

According to Deuteronomy, an offer of peace is to be made to any city which is besieged, conditional on the acceptance of terms of tribute.[22]

In the Mishna, Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel taught: "The world rests on three things: justice, truth, and peace."[23] The Mishna sages further asked, who is a hero of heroes? They answered, not one who defeats his enemy but one who turns an enemy into a friend.[24]

Shalom ("peace"), is one of the underlying principles of the Torah, Proverbs 3:17"Her ways are pleasant ways and all her paths are shalom ('peace')."[25] " The Talmud explains, "The entire Torah is for the sake of the ways of shalom".[26] Maimonides comments in his Mishneh Torah: "Great is peace, as the whole Torah was given in order to promote peace in the world, as it is stated, 'Her ways are pleasant ways and all her paths are peace.'" [27]

According to Talmudic teaching, the very fact of taking someone's life, even when justly doing so, it effects, nevertheless the person, as the Talmud regards even a justly court that did order (in ancient times) the death penalty justifiably, that particular court at that time was labeled "killer court" in shame.[28] and even King David, regarded by Jewish tradition as the most pious righteous person, (and his wars were within God's permission or/and orders) was denied building the Jewish Temple, the Talmud explains that when King David asked "Why can I not build the Bais Hamikdash?" God's answer was: "Your hands have spilled blood (in all your many wars)."[29]

The Talmud also teaches: "Be of the persecuted rather than the persecutor".[30]

Medieval Jewish commentators including the Spanish theologian and commentator Isaac Arama (c. 1420–1494), and Isaac Abravanel (1437–1508), emphasized the commitment of Judaism to peace.[22]

According to sixteenth century Rabbi Judah Loew of Prague, Jewish law forbids the killing of innocent people, even in the course of a legitimate military engagement.[31]

The Italian rabbi Samuel David Luzzatto (1800–1865) stated categorically that the only permissible war was defensive.[22] Later, a similar position prohibiting offensive war was taken by Rabbi Yeshayahu Karelitz (the Hazon Ish, 1878–1953).[22]

Rabbi Moshe Avigdor Amiel (1883–1946), who was the Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, wrote that military restraint was an absolute demand of Torah law, for "Thou shalt not murder" applied irrespective of whether the victim was Arab or Jew, and was the basis of Jewish ethics.[22]

Israeli Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren, who had served in the Israel Defense Forces as both paratrooper and chief chaplain, was instrumental in the formulation of the IDF official doctrine of ethics, and the concept of Purity of arms.[22] He wrote:

"Human life is undoubtedly a supreme value in Judaism, as expressed both in the Halacha and the prophetic ethic. This refers not only to Jews, but to all men created in the image of God."[22]

Jewish law prohibits the use of outright vandalism in warfare.[32] It forbids destruction of fruit trees as a tactic of war. It is also forbidden to break vessels, tear clothing, wreck that which is built up, stop fountains, or waste food in a destructive manner. Killing an animal needlessly or offering poisoned water to livestock are also forbidden.[32]

Those few cases in the Bible in which this norm was violated are special cases. One example was when King Hezekiah stopped all the fountains in Jerusalem in the war against Sennacherib, which Jewish scholars regards as a violation of the Biblical commandment.[32]

According to Maimonides, on besieging a city in order to seize it, it must not be surrounded on all four sides but only on three sides, thus leaving a path of escape for whoever wishes to flee to save their life.[31] Nachmanides, writing a century later, strengthened the rule and added a reason: "We are to learn to deal kindly with our enemy."[31]

Despite controversial public comments, Ovadia Yosef, an influential Sephardic rabbi and distinguished rabbinical authority, advocates for peace negotiations in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict since the late 1980s. His main justification is the halakhic principle of Pikuach Nefesh, in which all the Jewish commandments (excluding adultery, idolatry, and murder) are put on hold if a life is put in danger. Using an argument first articulated by the late American rabbinical leader Joseph Soloveitchik, Rabbi Yosef claims that the Arab–Israeli conflict endangers human lives, thereby meeting the above criteria and overruling the priority of commandments pertaining to settling the land of Israel.[33] Therefore, Israel is permitted—even obligated if saving lives is a definitive outcome—to make serious efforts to reach a peace settlement as well as to make arrangements to properly protect its citizens.[34][35] Rabbi Yosef first applied the Pikuach Nefesh principle to Israel's conflicts with its neighbors in 1979, when he ruled that this argument granted Israel authority to return the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt.[36][37]