Shabbat Zachor

Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt – how, undeterred by fear of God, he surprised you on the march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear…You shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!

Deut. 25:17 - 19

We must not forget what Amalek has done to us until the time comes when the memory of his erstwhile existence has been expunged from history. While Amalek and his descendants still exist on earth, we must make sure that in educating our children we impress upon them who he was and what he hoped to accomplish namely the extinction of the Jewish people by any means possible. The same hold true for what happened to Miriam (24:9)…

Yaakov ben Asher (14^th Century)

The reasons Amalek can as yet not be destroyed totally is, that as long as Israel is not the absolute opposite of Amalek, that is, totally free from sin, the justification to destroy Amalek totally does not exist yet. Our redemption from the present Diaspora…will come only through complete repentance…In order to accelerate the ultimate redemption, repentance is a prerequisite. Otherwise, the redemption will occur only when God’s own timetable has decreed it, and only a small fraction of the Jewish people will participate in it…

Moshe Alshich (16^th Century)

Words alone are the matzevah-Czyzewo (gravestone) unfolding before our eyes.. This memorial book does not need a preface or an explanation. As long as there are still living witnesses, it is our holy duty to gather all the material possible, everything that we remember, know and feel about our shtetl. Only a part of the Czyzewer Jews were saved from the Nazi authorities. Several only remained alive to be able to tell about the Holocaust. In Czyzewo, as in hundreds of other towns and villages, there aren't any Jews. Telling the story about these people and personalities permeates our hearts with affection and longing for all of them – those who were and are no more. Reading about them, we still see the faces of our brothers and sisters, for all of them were a part of us body and soul. This is actually the designated role of this book Alas for those who have been killed, but will not be forgotten!
Memorial Book of the Jews of Czyzewo

What, precisely, is the subtle evil of Amalek which is so dangerous? Our Sages explained: "He knows his Master, and yet intentionally rebels against Him." In other words, we are not speaking here of a heretical belief which denies the existence of G‑d (for Amalek "knows his Master"). If Amalek simply denied the existence of G‑d, or advocated idol-worship, any believing Jew would find the matter easy to reject. It is precisely because the Amalekite philosophy recognizes the existence of G‑d ("knows his Master") that it poses a danger for a Jewish person, who may easily become sympathetic to this outlook, eventually leading him to rebel against G‑d, Heaven forbid…The threat of Amalek lies in more subtle attempts to disconnect a person's knowledge from his practical observance. For example, Amalek might initially tell a person not to become excited about observing the mitzvos,2 or to believe in G‑d in general, but not with absolute certainty3 Thus, the fact that this voice is generally condoning the observance of mitzvos and belief in G‑d could fool a person into thinking that it is kosher. In truth, however, such thoughts represent one of the biggest threats that an observant Jew might face.

Menachem Schneerson (20^th Century)

Amalek was a descendant of Esau, that grandson of Abraham who was cheated out of the birthright and the blessing that would have let him follow in Abraham's footsteps. So Amalek is part of our own family -- the residue of rage that sprang from the grief and anger Esau felt. Amalek is always a possibility within us, as well as in others. The Torah is teaching that we must blot out every urge to become Amalek, our own as well as others' -- by turning that urge toward compassion

Tirza Firestone (Contemporary)