Go to Yourself

'God Said to Avraham: "Lech Lecha" - Go from your land, from your birthplace, from your father's house, to the land which I will show you.' (Genesis 12:1)

The 1st two words that open this parashah and lend it its name - Lech lecha (literally meaning "Go, to yourself") - are perhaps the most important words ever spoken in history. With these words, God set Avraham on the course that would reverse the process of degeneration that humanity had been locked into ever since the expulsion of Adam & Eve from the garden of Eden, a course that would eventually lead the world to the Giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai. It's fascinating that the 1st real thing we learn about Avraham is this command from God to "go." The Midrash teaches us multitudes of amazing stories about events in Avraham's life, including his preaching of monotheism to every idol worshiper around him, getting thrown into a furnace by King Nimrod and miraculously surviving, and much more! And yet, the Torah begins its narrative of Avraham's life at age 75, when he is told by God to go on a new journey. The reason for this, our Sages explain, is because as great a level as Avraham had thus reached through his heroic self sacrifice for his beliefs, his spiritual level was limited to his human capabilities. When God spoke to Avraham, commanding him to travel to Israel, this wasn't simply a travel tip. God was telling Avraham that as great a level as he had reached, there were deeper levels infinitely beyond. With this command, God was empowering Avraham to "Go to yourself" - to tap into levels unreached before. This applies to our lives today. One can meditate and contemplate the deepest mysteries of the world and God's existence, but as lofty as one can get, it will always be humanly limited. The Mitzvot, however, are Godly - and therefore lift us up through our performance of them, to levels we could never have reached on our own.

The Midrash says: "And God said to Avraham: 'Go from your land, your birthplace, and your father's house...'" (Genesis12:2) -- To what may this be compared? To a man who was traveling from place to place when he saw a palace in flames. He wondered: "Is it possible that the palace has no owner?" The owner of the palace looked out and said, "I am the owner of the palace." So Abraham our father said, "Is it possible that the world lacks a ruler?" G‑d looked out and said to him, "I am the ruler, the Sovereign of the universe." Why does the Midrash use such an analogy for Avraham? Couldn't it have merely said: "...It's like a man who sees a beautiful palace and wonders "who created such a magnificent palace?" Why does the Midrash say a "burning palace"? Our sages explain a powerful idea is being expressed here. Avraham recognized that this world was a 'beautiful palace', full of colors and sounds, miraculous childbirth and roaring waves, planets and galaxies. But he also saw that the palace was in flames - the world is full of thugs, abusers, thieves, and worse who demolish the palace, lighting it in flames of destruction! Avraham wondered, where is the owner to this palace? How can he allow this to go on!?

The Midrash says: "The Owner of the palace looked out and said, I am the owner..." God replied to Avraham's wonderment that he was indeed the owner of the world. But notice that in the analogy, the owner calls out from inside the burning palace! It is as if God, the owner, is calling for help. God made the palace, man set it on fire, and only man can put out the flames. Avraham asks G‑d, "Where are you?" G‑d replies, "I am here, where are you?" Man asks G‑d, "Why did You abandon the world?" G‑d asks man, "Why did you abandon Me?" As Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explains: 'Thus began the revolution of Judaism --- humanity's courageous venture to extinguish the flames of immorality and bloodshed and restore the world to the harmonious and sacred palace it was intended to be. Abraham's encounter with G‑d in the presence of a burning palace gave birth to the mission statement of Judaism - to be obsessed with good and horrified by evil.' May we start today to follow in our forefather Avraham's revolutionary path.

Shabbat Shalom!

Navigating the Flood

'Make for yourself an ark (Teivah).' (Genesis 6:14)

In this week's Torah portion, we read the famous story of Noah and the great flood, which was brought upon the earth because of the rampant immorailty of the time. G-d Instructs Noah to build a large ark - "teivah" in Hebrew - to house his family and animals together with him for the months long flood. Chassidic Philosophy explains the inner lesson (as every event in Torah has to teach us) behind the flood & ark in our day and age. The "flood waters" that threaten to drown us, are not waves of water, but rather the physical and financial worries that inundate us. For someone who desires to live a meaningful life, how is it possible to get beyond everyday life worries; the vast amount of daily distractions and hassles? The answer to our problem can be found in what G-d Told Noah to do when confronted with a flood: "enter the ark." For us today, we are being told: "Enter a place where you can find the inspirational warmth and protection to propel you over the powerful 'waves' of this world."

The word teivah (ark) in Hebrew, also means a word. So the 1st way to succeed in surviving these flood waters is to enter the words; the words of prayer and Torah learning. These 'words' help us float above the flood of everyday worries, and help guide our lives in a peaceful manner. Prayer was instituted every morning for this very reason! Every morning we wake up to the same flood waters, prodding us constantly to become work obsessed, chasing after the dollar and success, no matter what. Sincere words of prayer strengthen us to remember to every day treat the people we meet with respect and fairness. To propel us to a more meaningful day in all that we do. To steal away for a few minutes during the day to learn an idea in Torah reinforces this enlightened mentality. To realize a higher purpose in our dealings with the world. Business is to be conducted honestly and the money made directed to meaningful pursuits. Our primary duty is to help our children's education and to help others. Life is to be lived higher than the world tells us.

This is our daily "ark." But G-d Knew that we would need an extra special ark that could strengthen us for the long haul. The month long spiritual ark of Tishrei (Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Simchat Torah) has come to a close. But luckily, we were given a weekly "ark" to enter to rejuvenate us for our entire week of immersion in the flood waters of life. And that's Shabbat. Shabbat is a day to reflect and remember our individual purpose in life, gathering strength to carry it out. What's G-d's real intention & Purpose behind his creating of this complex and beautiful world, and placing me in it at this time?

May we all enter whatever ark we can that inspires us, to help propel us over the flood waters of life with great success, entering the world as Noah did after leaving the ark - to build it into a more pleasant, happy and meaningful world.

Shabbat Shalom!

The 1st Letter

'Bereishit Barah Elo-him, et hashamayim, v'et ha'aretz - In the Beginning of G-d's creating the heavens and earth...' (Genesis 1:1)

After the joyful celebration of Simchat Torah, where we celebrated the completion of the reading of the Torah, this week is "Shabbat Bereishit" - the beginning of the Torah anew. Action packed and full of "creation", innumerable gallons of ink have been spilled over the centuries by Sages deciphering & revealing the hidden layers in this week's Torah portion - "Bereishit - Genesis." There is a famous saying of the Baal Shem Tov: "One who grabs a part of 'etzem' (essence), he seizes it in its totality." As grand as something may be, if one grasps a level of truth somewhere in it, he has connected to the entire truth of that thing. Applying this idea to the Torah, perhaps when we learn a beautiful idea in any verse of the Torah, we have touched on the core of what the Torah is in its essence: G-d's will & wisdom.

When looking at this monumental parashah, let's look no further than the 1st word; actually the 1st letter. It is mentioned in the writings of Kabbalah (way before the theory of the 'Big-Bang' was theorized by scientists), that the entire universe can be found in the 1st word of the Torah, Bereishit - בְּרֵאשִׁית. The Sages continue, saying that all can actually be found in the first letter בְּ. Finally, they conclude, all can be found in the "dot" in the letter בְּ. So the idea that this universe began minute and expanded, seems to be shared by Torah & science alike.

But what can we, as Jews, learn from this 1st letter of the Torah? At first glance, it is a bit strange that the Torah begins with this letter at all, "bet - בְּ" which is the 2nd letter in the Torah! Why not start with the obvious 1st letter? The simple answer given, is that the 1st Hebrew letter alef - א, can begin the word "arrur - curse", while "bet" begins the word "bracha - blessing." But there are plenty of positive & negative words for both letters, so what's really going on here? The Torah is teaching us an important lesson by starting it with the 2nd letter: Reading the text, studying the Torah, is only the 2nd step. Something must come 1st. But isn't learning Torah an end all? What possible "preface" is necessary? When studying Torah, focusing one's mind on comprehending the subject matter is of primary importance. But what about the author? The answer is through preparation, step 1: Reflecting for a few moments that this that you are about to learn is G-d's wisdom which He condensed into a humanly intelligle form.

This is why the Torah begins with "bet", to hint to us that study is only the 2nd phase. When we 1st reflect on the source of what we are learning, its inner essence, we will merit the original explanation of our Sages on our lives - that Torah begins with a "bet" because it stands for the word "blessing".

Shabbat Shalom!