[Avodah] Binfol oyivkha al tismach?

[Micha Berger]

Well, we battered this topic around Pesach through July 2007, then
again in Jan 2008. And a similar discussion in may 2004. And despite my
collecting an array of sources
<http://www.aishdas.org/asp/2007/07/compassion-for-our-enemies.shtml>
I didn't succeed in convincing those who entered the discussions
with the notion that feeling pained by the death of one's enemies
is liberal non-O "drivel". See the threads that begin "binfol"
at <http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/getindex.cgi?section=B#BINFOL%20OYIVCHA>.

My conclusion as to how to resolve "binfol oyivkha" and "vesheim
resha'im yirqav" is to simply take them both literally. To repeat
what I wrote July 2007:
    It would seem that from the medrash, through Shibolei haLeqet, the
    Beis Yoseif, the Taz, the Kaf haChaim and in modern times to R' Aharon
    Kotler, RSZA and a yeish omeir of R' Elyashiv, the message is to
    rejoice in one's yeshu'ah even while feeling pain over the human cost
    necessary to bring it about. Simply -- feel both, even though they
    conflict.
Man is capable of ambivalence. There is no reason to believe that
pesuqim pose a paradox just because they prescribe conflicting
emotions.

Well, presumably in connection to current events (archive readers:
this was posted shortly after bin Laden y"sh's death) R' Shmuel Herzfeld
posted the following translation of the Meshekh Chokhmah (Shemos 12:16,
"hineih") on Kol haRav blog
http://kolharav.blogspot.com/2011/05/r-meir-simcha-of-dvinsk-on-celebrating.html

    When Passover was observed in Egypt [during the year of the Exodus]
    the prohibition of eating chametz was only for one day, and so too
    the full festival was not practiced.

    And in my opinion, the reason why nevertheless he now taught them
    something that would pertain to future generations was in order to
    teach them the wholesomeness of God's commandments, for other nation,
    with their sophisticated religions, turn the day of victory, the
    day of their enemy's downfall, into a holiday, a victory celebration.

    Not so in Israel. They do not rejoice at the downfall of their
    enemies. They do not joyously celebrate this, as it states (Proverbs
    24:17-18), "Do not rejoice when your enemy falls... lest God see and
    it will be bad in His eyes and He will turn His wrath upon him." Thus,
    a refined person should not rejoice in the downfall of his enemy,
    for such joy is bad in the eyes of God. And that which is bad in the
    eyes of Gd needs to be hated! Thus, with respect to Passover it does
    not state, "The Festival of Matzot, on account of God bringing Egypt
    to justice," but rather, "on account of God leading the Israelites
    out of Egypt."

    But regarding the downfall of enemies there is no festival and
    holiday for Israel.

    Thus regarding the holiday of Chanukah, the day instructs us
    only about the lighting of the olive oil and the dedication and
    purification of the Temple, and the Divine Providence of God over His
    people at a time when there was no prophet or seer in Israel. Thus,
    we light the candles to commemorate a little-known matter -- the
    lighting of the flames for 8 days in the Temple -- for the leaders
    and officers of the army were the great Kohanim, the Hasmoneans,
    and God was concerned lest people might say, "I did this through my
    own strength and power" and military strategy. Therefore, God showed
    His Providence in the Temple, which was known only to the Kohanim,
    so that they would understand that the hand of God did this, and
    that they were saved by a miraculous manner.

    So too, with respect to the holiday of Purim: they did not make a
    festival on the day that Haman died or on the day that they killed
    their enemies, as this not a cause for rejoicing among His people
    Israel. Instead, the holiday is only "on the days that they rested
    from their enemies" (Esther 9:22). It is as though, they needed to
    rest, and there were snakes on the path and the snakes were killed,
    is it appropriate to rejoice on the day that the snakes were
    killed? Their joy was from their relief.

    Thus, "Mordechai wrote...the days on which the Jews rested." For
    the rejoicing is only on account of their relief and not on the day
    that the enemies were killed. {Meshekh Chokhmah proceeds to prove
    this point at greater length}

    And indeed, in Egypt they drowned in the sea on the seventh day of
    Passover. If God would say that they should make the seventh day a
    festival, then it would seem to some that God was commanding them
    to make a festival on the day of the downfall of their enemies. And
    indeed, we know that the angels did not sing that day as it states,
    "and they did not come near each other" -- for God does not rejoice
    in the downfall of the wicked.

    Thus already in Egypt the Israelites were taught to make the seventh
    day into a festival: in order to demonstrate that the festival of
    the seventh day does not derive from the drowning of the Egyptians in
    the sea, as they were commanded about it before the Egyptians drowned!

    So too the Midrash teaches that for this reason the word "Simcha"
    (rejoicing) is not written with respect to the holiday of Passover
    and Hallel is not recited for the entire holiday, since "Do not
    rejoice when your enemy falls."

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Today is the 14th day, which is
micha at aishdas.org        2 weeks in/toward the omer.
http://www.aishdas.org   Malchus sheb'Gevurah: How does judgment reveal
Fax: (270) 514-1507                            G-d?