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Kehilaton: 11/7/09
Dear Friends, It’s quite interesting that the first two verses of this week’s parasha of Vayera connect to three important Jewish lessons. Today, we’ll find out what these lessons are. But first, let’s review the content of those opening verses… "The Lord appeared to Abraham by the terebinth trees of Mamre as he sat in the tent in the heat of the day. Looking up, he saw three men standing near him...and he ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them and bowed down to the ground" (Genesis 18:1-2). Now, to uncover the first lesson, we start by looking back to the last paragraph of last week’s Lech-Lecha parasha and recall that it tells us that Abraham at age 90 was circumcised along with 13 year old son, Ishmael, and all the males of the household. From this, we can then surmise that G-d sent the three men to see how Abraham and family were doing following the "surgeries", and, hence, we deduce that the first lesson is for us to perform Bikkur Cholim -- Visiting of the Sick. And to reveal the second lesson, we need only observe Abraham’s reaction towards the visitors – i.e., that he runs (not walks) to welcome them to his home! In the light of such energetic welcoming, Abraham, our first patriarch, is, thus, teaching us the important second lesson: Hachnasat Orchim – Welcoming of Guests. Finally, the phrase "The Lord appeared to Abraham…" occurring right at the start of the opening verse, teaches us the third lesson that we should: Reflect on G-d and His Presence in Our Lives. Yes, it’s true that not only Abraham, but Hagar, Adam, and many others in Biblical times managed the challenge of experiencing G-d’s presence in strong and direct ways. (Remember how G-d opened Hagar’s eyes to the miraculous well, and how He asked Adam: "Where are you?" after Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden fruit?) But today, unfortunately, we don’t have that extraordinary G-d-to-human communication ability of Biblical times. Yet we still have the same big challenge of how to find G-d in our daily lives! While some people are blessed with the ability to see the presence of G-d within their daily actions, others are not so lucky. Nonetheless, we can all still visit the sick, welcome people, and, in general, help one another knowing that these, indeed, are excellent first steps towards experiencing G-d’s presence in our lives!! Shabbat Shalom! |
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