Extremism in Jewish Thought

Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, meaning that pushing an object causes that object to push back against you, the exact amount, but in the opposite direction. What is true in science is true in life: One extreme yields another extreme.

Dictionaries, like Merriam-Webster, associate extremes with radicalism and violence. Oxford defines an extremist as a person “whose opinions, especially about religion or politics, are extreme, and who may do things that are violent, illegal.”

The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche noted that extreme positions “are not succeeded by moderate ones, but by contrary extreme positions.” In other words, as in physics, the pendulum never stops in the middle.

The novelist Truman Capote expanded on the idea by emphasizing the incompatibility of extremes: “The problem of these far-right and far-left mentalities is that they can encompass only one side of an argument and are congenitally incapable of holding two opinions in their heads at the same time.” In his scathing indictment of extremism, Capote mocks the lack of subtlety and nuance of extremist views.

What does Jewish tradition teach about extremism?

Moses, the model of leadership and closeness to God, is portrayed as the most humble of men. When he is informed that two Israelites were prophesying in the camp, instead of being jealous, he declares that he wishes all Israelites were prophets. When Israelite behavior is egregious and God threatens to erase them from the Earth and start over with him, Moses effectively argues for mercy and compassion for his people, and they are spared.

The medieval Jewish philosopher Maimonides condemned extremes and encouraged moderate behavior: “Nothing has pained us and exacerbated the wounds of our nation as much as all the ways of extremism and division have” (“For the Perplexed of the Generation” 13:19). And Maimonides, the rationalist, invoked Jewish history to call attention to the need for unity and co-operation. Jewish males are instructed in the Torah to wear tzitzit on their garments and on the tallis in order to remind them to refrain from extremism in the application of all human characteristics (Akeidat Yitzchak 77:1-4).

Finally, the Torah mentions the nazir, a person who feels the need to be zealous in his observance beyond what is required; for example, he vows not to cut his hair and to abstain from wine. He is allowed a circumscribed time, and at the end, he must bring a sin offering. Why limit the time and why a sin offering?

In an effort to discourage extreme behavior, the Torah permits an outlet for such a person, but only for a set period, and the sin offering is a sign and a warning—a sign that, while there is room for non-conformity and even excess, it is not desired and not the norm, a warning that unchecked, excess can lead to grave results. If so in zeal for God, how much more so in the secular realm?

So, we see that general culture and Jewish tradition value the middle road, reason and moderate behavior. The consequences of the alternative are known by all.

Referring to Korach, the Israelite who challenges Moses’s leadership for his own personal gain, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks compares him to the alpha male chimpanzee: “Where there is hierarchy, there will be competition as to who will be the alpha male.” This primitive behavior, when applied to the human sphere, has had ruinous results: “Biblical Israel survived as a united Kingdom for only three generations and then split in two.” Once split, it became vulnerable and eventually all was lost: “The result is what Thomas Hobbes called a perpetual and restless desire of power after power, that ceaseth only in death.” Rabbi Sacks reminds us that the extreme preoccupation with self and personal glory have had the direst consequences not just for the individual but also for the whole nation.

Observing society in America and Israel today, especially in the political arena, we witness behavior more suited to alpha male chimpanzees than to a civilized society of enlightened men and women. If Jews, for example, cannot understand, after millennia of persecution in other peoples’ lands, that the single most important imperative for survival is the absolute necessity to work together, what hope is there for humanity? What does Or Le Goyim, a light unto the nations mean, if not that?

If our societies won’t distinguish ourselves from chimpanzees, and insist on ignoring history and tradition, then let us at least take note of the law of physics. Extreme attitudes and behavior invariably will cause an equal and opposite reaction and once again, the world will bear the consequences.

Dr. Paul Socken is Distinguished Professor Emeritus and founder of the Jewish Studies program at the University of Waterloo.