Hatred is an emotional state of affairs. It is a feeling that, on becoming powerful and intense, leads one to violence and acts of devastation. Does the Torah really require it? Or, is it rather our obligation to consider objectively and rationally the crimes that an enemy commits against us and determine that his execution is justified because it conforms with the principle of justice?

A genuine criminal could be put to death in either of two ways. It could be the result of a rational process that determines his guilt followed by a sentence commensurate with the crime. Or, alternatively, his life can be taken by a lynch mob driven by hatred. In either case, he gets what he deserves. The difference is that the first method involves a rational process where the execution is an application of the principle of justice, and the other is a raw emotional reaction.

We are obligated, in regard to Amalek, to speak about the dangers that he represents to the Jewish community, and to eradicate him and his name from under the heavens. At no point does the Torah refer to the appropriateness of hating him as well.

The late Golda Meir expressed this view in a declaration to the effect that she can "forgive the Arabs for killing our sons," but she could "not forgive them for turning our sons into killers." What she was saying was that there was no hatred and no joy in the hearts of Israelis when their enemies are killed.

The Jewish ideal has always been the implementation of justice rather than the manifestation of hatred.