unEdited

my take on Parsha Veyeira

Parsha Veyeira is one of the most well known biblical moments – not only in Judaism but in all three of the major monotheistic religions.  It’s a turning point.  Faith takes on a new face and fear is let go for trust in something greater. 

In Christianity faith leads to action.  You have basic guidelines to live by but every services is different, every wedding, every funeral, words are spoken and they hope to lead to good deeds.  In Judaism and Islam action leads to faith.  You pray the same prayers day after day – often in languages you are not fluent in – you bow, face a far off land and you don’t eat things because Hashem says so.

Let’s take this pattern a bit further.  In Islam it is custom to be able to recite the Qu’ran word for word in Arabic, not to ask the questions and understand.  In Judaism we question.

Yes, we are meant to follow the Mitzvot regardless of if we agree with them; however, we are also encouraged to ask questions, and the hard ones at that.

They say 3 Jews 4 opinions so let’s start with one Parsha thirty themes.

We negotiate our daily lives “do I cover my head with a hat?”, “a full sheitle?”, or “not at all”? “Do I eat dairy out”?  “Do I hold an umbrella in the rain outside an eruv?”  We negotiate with Hashem, we say “help me through this and I will say tehillim for the next seven days”; or we ask “give me strength” but we do so in the words of His scripture. 

This might seem so opposite of common interpretations of Veyiera but most people forget that before the Akedah, Isaac has to be born and Ishmael sent away, that it opens with Abraham negotiating for a Sodom and Gommorah – an entire town! We see Abraham, the first Jew davening with such Kavanah that he has an active relationship with the creator.  There is so much in this one parsha that so many people skip over but it’s all these things that makes Abraham who he is, and gets him to the moment where Hashem spares his son.  Has anyone stopped and wondered why Abraham didn’t ask “why g/d” “LaMa Hashem”?

When the sacrifice of Isaac was upon Abraham he had already sent away his first born son.  Wouldn’t anyone say Hashem… seriously?  I was childless, you grant me two sons who will be the founders of two peoples and then you leave me childless again in a deeper pain from knowing and losing than never having?!  But no, Abraham and Hashem had their arguments; their negotiations and this time Abraham didn’t have to ask, he knew, if Hashem willed it, it must be done.

The Akedah – Abrahams binding of Isaac – ties together all the major faiths we see and talk about in our daily lives.  We face a tragedy and scholars call it a modern day Akedah – most commonly this term is used alongside the holocaust; but we didn’t listen to Hashem and walk into the gas chambers, we just kept our faith He would save his people.

This moment Abraham had with the Almighty was pure devotion and faith.  As I look around this shabbos table I see strong neshema’s.  I see souls that do so much for others without being asked, that step up and that have been through tragedy, loss, love and every possible span of emotions and I remember that we are here together for Shabbat Veyeira; we are making a decision not to get angry and turn away but to say “Hashem, I love you and I will follow you.”

That said, “Veyeira is often associated with a famous quote from Abraham Joshua Heschel…

“Prayer is meaningless unless it is subversive, unless it seeks to overthrow and to ruin the pyramids of callousness, hatred, opportunism, falsehoods. The liturgical movement must become a revolutionary movement, seeking to overthrow the forces that continue to destroy the promise, the hope, the vision.”

…  It seems to have the exact opposite sentiment of faith and lack of question Abraham had when he was willing to sacrifice his son, unless you look at it as its own revolutionary moment.  If you look how father Abraham fought for what he believed in and against Hashem when it affected multitudes but accepted his personal fate, ready to do the hardest things he could imagine in silence, this quote rings not only true but inspiring, it reminds us, those who came to Hashem at a later stage, that every step we take, every prayer we say for something we truly believe in, the change we make in our own life counts, and its not blind faith or following.  The actions mean more if the prayers don’t always come easy. 

Sheila, our beautiful hostess, thank you, these dinners are never the easiest task and you so graciously host and bring together so many wonderful souls.

Sherri – happy birthday.  To a woman who has been tested so much, we love you and sticking by and saying the words can’t always be easy, but they make you like the great Abrahams of our history, liturgy and academia.