Speech
Excerpts from Convocation in Honor of Yahrzeit of the Late Mrs. Erna Michael (1969)
One of the most significant words in the vocabulary of Judaism is: Shalom, peace. This one word has defined the highest ideal of Jewish prophets and priests, sages and philosophers. The tradition identifies Shalom as the most comprehensive of all blessings. The modern Israeli, caught up in the perpetual crisis of military confrontations, nevertheless calls out to all his neighbors, both Jewish and non-Jewish, “Shalom” – and he does so both when coming and going. The Talmudic tradition teaches, however, that Shalom has another implication as well. It identifies it as a kinuy or Name of God. Shalom is not only a social desideratum – it is also a theological fact. God is merciful, gracious, patient, truth – and Shalom, peace.Thus, the greeting Shalom or Shalom Aleichem is at one and the same time a wish for peace and a prayer which, in English, would be translated as, “God be with you” (that, indeed, is the origin of the contracted word, “Good-bye”).The relationship between these two significations of the word Shalom – as social harmony and as an honorific designation of God – was first elaborated by Philo. The ancient Alexandrian philosopher maintained that just as man’s social experiences influence his theology, so do his metaphysical conceptions shape his social ideals. Therefore, it is the monotheists and not the pagans who elevated peace or Shalom to the highest level of their worldly aspirations. The pagan, the polytheist, believed in many gods, and when there is a plurality of gods there must inevitably arise rivalries, jealousies, clashes between them. The competition between gods is, in fact, one of the principal sources of all mythology. The monotheist, however, by virtue of his belief in One God, posits absolute peace in the divine realms. The pagan, therefore, transfers the principle of dissension and battle from the divine to the human scene, and the monotheist attempts to enforce the heavenly ideal of peace in his earthly existence. Perhaps this is the …
