Doing what no man dared to do, Pinchas, the son of Eleazar the kohen, earned his place in Torah, in the hearts of Israel and in G-d's eternal covenant of peace.
No doubt Pinchas did the right thing.
But at what price?
The broken vav in his covenant of peace suggests that life's fateful decisions, even when correct, are not pain-free.
Rabbi Gedalia Meyer grew up in California, became religious and eventually entered the rabbinate, spending several years as a congregational rabbi and as a Jewish educator. With his wife Suri and their children, he moved to Israel in 1999 and has never looked back. He is now at the Temple Institute in Jerusalem.