After the Battle of Waterloo the Duke of Wellington famously said “The only thing worse than a battle lost is a battle won.” True, Napoleon had to be stopped, but a victory at the price of tens of thousands dead and maimed on both sides was nothing to feel proud about.
Wars are ugly and painful for the victor and vanquished and we hope and pray for a time when war will never happen again in the era of the final redemption through Moshiach. Until then war is inevitable and Torah provides guidelines for all aspects of war.
Thankfully there are times of peace and tranquility and even when a nation is at war the overwhelming majority of its citizens can continue living fairly peaceful lives. Does that render Torah war laws irrelevant during peacetime? Even if the practical application of a Mitzvah may be limited to a specific time and space, the spirit of every Mitzvah is relevant to all people at all times and in all places. Even during times of peace there is much for us to learn from Torah’s attitude to war. Doing the right thing is always a struggle, because G-d created us with two internal forces that influence our psyche. The Yetzer Tov (good inclination) is the agent of goodness, morality and divine service. This internal voice encourages us to better our world, help others, learn more Torah and observe more Mitzvot. This force is our ally. The Yetzer Harah (evil inclination) is the agent of ego, self centeredness and corruption. This internal voice seeks to make us apathetic to divine truth and only care for what is beneficial for ourselves to the exclusion of all others. This force is our enemy. The struggle between these two forces is ongoing and the victor is determined by us and a grammatical nuance in the opening words of this week’s parsha provide an important lesson in how to keep high morale in this life-long war. “If you go out to war over your enemies and G-d will deliver them into your hands and you will take captives.” (Deuteronomy 21:10) Unlike traditional wars where the outcome is uncertain at the outset, the Torah uses the words “over your enemies” instead of “with your enemies,” promising us that when following G-d’s instructions we can be certain of victory. Even when the going gets rough in the internal battle between good and evil, know that you are gifted with immeasurable moral and divine strength to win. And unlike traditional wars where victor and vanquished both lose out, the victory of good over evil in our life-long internal battle is advantageous for everyone involved. So get into the fight with your head held high and win!