Parshat Vayera

November 12, 2011 8 Cheshvan, 5772

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks on Parshat Vayera

Torah
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It is the hardest passage of all, one that seems to defy understanding. Abraham and Sarah have waited years for a child. G-d has promised them repeatedly that they would have many descendants, as many as the stars of the sky, the dust of the earth, the grains of sand on the sea shore. They wait. No child comes. Sarah in despair suggests that Abraham should have a child by her handmaid Hagar. He does. Ishmael is born. Yet G-d tells Abraham, This is not the one. By now Sarah is old, postmenopausal, unable by natural means to have a child. Angels come and again promise a child. Sarah laughs. But a year later Isaac is born. Sarahs joy is almost heartbreaking. Sarah said, "G-d has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me." And she added, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age." [Gen. 21: 6-7] The trial is over. It is the climax of Abrahams life, the supreme test of faith, a key moment in Jewish memory and self-definition. But it is deeply troubling. Why did G-d so nearly take away what He had given? Why did he put these two aged parents Abraham and Sarah through so appalling a test? Why did Abraham, who had earlier challenged G-d on the fate of Sodom, saying, Shall the Judge of all the earth not do justly? not protest against this cruel act against an innocent child? do. This is Jeremiah on the subject: They have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as offerings to Baalsomething I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind. [Jeremiah 19: 5] And this is Micah: Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? [Micah 6: 7]

Haftorah

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Then come the fateful words: Then G-d said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to 3:45 pm the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of 4:15 pm the mountains I will tell you about." [Gen. 22: 2]

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The rest of the story is familiar. Abraham takes Isaac. Together they 7:30/8:30 am journey for three days to the mountain. Abraham builds an altar, gathers wood, binds his son and lifts 4:20 pm the knife. At that moment: The angel of the Lord called out to him from 8:15 pm heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" Here I am," he replied. "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not 6:35/7:45 am do anything to him. Now I know that you fear G-d, because you have not 6:45/7:45 am withheld from me your son, your only son." [Gen. 22: 11-12]

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It is what Mesha, King of Moab, does to get the gods to grant him victory The standard interpretation, given by all over the Israelites: When the king of the commentators, classical and modern, Moab saw that the battle had gone against him, he took with him seven is that Abraham demonstrates his total love of G-d by being willing to sacrifice hundred swordsmen to break through the most precious thing in his life, the son to the king of Edom, but they failed. Then he took his firstborn son, who for whom he has been waiting for so was to succeed him as king, and many years. offered him as a sacrifice on the city wall. The fury against Israel was The Christian theologian Soren Kierkegaard wrote a powerful book about great; they withdrew and returned to their own land. [2 Kings 3: 26-27] it, Fear and Trembling , in which he coined such ideas as the teleological How can the Torah regard as suspension of the ethical the love of G-d may lead us to do things that would Abrahams supreme achievement that otherwise be considered morally wrong he was willing to do what the worst of idolaters do? The fact that and faith in the absurd Abraham Abraham was willing to sacrifice his trusted G-d to make the impossible possible. He believed he would lose Isaac son would seem to make him in but still keep him. For Kierkegaard, faith terms of Tenakh considered as a whole no better than Baal or transcends reason. Molech worshippers or the pagan king of Moab. This cannot be the Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik saw the only possible interpretation. binding as demonstrating that we must not expect always to be victorious. There is an alternative way of looking Sometimes we must experience defeat. at the trial. To do so we must consider G-d tells man to withdraw from an overriding theme of the Torah as a whatever man desires the most. whole. Let us assemble the evidence. All these interpretations are surely First principle: G-d owns the land of correct. They are part of our tradition. I Israel. That is why He can command want, however, to offer a quite different the return of property to its original reading, for one reason. Throughout Tenakh, the gravest sin is child sacrifice. owners in the Jubilee year: The land The Torah and the prophets consistently must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you are regard it with horror. It is what pagans

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26 Old Mill Road, Great Neck, NY 11023 (516) 487-6100 but aliens and my tenants. [Lev 25: 23] Second principle: G-d owns the children of Israel, since He redeemed them from slavery. That is what the Israelites mean when they sing, at the Red Sea: until your people pass by, O LORD, until the people you acquired [am zu kanita] pass by. Therefore they cannot be turned into permanent slaves: Because the Israelites are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt, they must not be sold as slaves. [Lev 25: 42] Third principle: G-d is the ultimate owner of all that exists. That is why we must make a blessing over anything we enjoy: Rav Judah said in the name of Samuel: To enjoy anything of this world without first reciting a blessing is like making personal use of things consecrated to heaven, since it says, The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. R. Levi contrasted two texts. It is written, The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, and it is also written, The heavens are the heavens of the Lord, but the earth hath He given to the children of men! There is no contradiction: in the one case it is before a blessing has been said, in the other, after a blessing has been said. [Berakhot 35a] All things belong to G-d, and we must acknowledge this before we make use of anything. That is what a blessing is: acknowledging that all we enjoy is from G-d. This is the jurisprudential basis of the whole of Jewish law. G-d rules by right, not by might. G-d created the universe. Therefore G-d is the ultimate owner of the universe. The legal term for this is eminent domain. Therefore G-d has the right to prescribe the conditions under which we may benefit from the universe. It is to establish this legal fact not to tell us about the physics and cosmology of the Big Bang that the Torah begins with the story of Creation. This carries a special depth and resonance for the Jewish people since in their case G-d is not just as He is for all humankind Creator and sustainer of the universe. He is also, for Jews, the G-d of history, who redeemed them from slavery and gave them a land that originally belonged to someone else, the seven nations. G-d is sovereign of the universe, but in a special sense He is Israels only ultimate king, and the sole source of their laws. That is the significance of the book of Exodus. The key narratives of the Torah are there to teach us that G-d is the ultimate owner of all. In the ancient world, up to and including the Roman empire, children were considered the legal property of their parents. They had no rights. They were not legal personalities in themselves. Under the Roman principle of patria potestas, a father could do whatever he wished with his child, including putting him to death. Infanticide was well known in antiquity. (It has even been defended in our time by the Harvard philosopher Peter Singer in the case of severely handicapped children). That, for example is how the story of Oedipus begins, with his father Laius leaving him to die. It is this principle that underlies the entire practice of child sacrifice, which was widespread throughout the pagan world. The Torah is horrified by child sacrifice, which it sees as the worst of all sins. It therefore seeks to establish, in the case of children, what it establishes in the case of the universe as a whole, the land of Israel, and the people of Israel. We do not own our children. G-d does. We are merely their guardians on G-ds behalf. Only the most dramatic event could establish an idea so revolutionary and unprecedented even unintelligible in the ancient world. That is what the story of the binding of Isaac is about. Isaac belongs to neither Abraham nor Sarah.

Shabbat Announcements Parshat Vayera 5772 Isaac belongs to G-d. All children belong to G-d. Parents do not own their children. The relationship of parent to child is one of guardianship only. G-d does not want Abraham to sacrifice his child. G-d wants him to renounce ownership in his child. That is what the angel means when it calls to Abraham, telling him to stop, You have not withheld from Me your son, your only son. The binding of Isaac is a polemic against, and a rejection of, the principle of patria potestas, the idea universal to all pagan cultures that children are the property of their parents. Seen in this light, the binding of Isaac is now consistent with the other foundational narratives of the Torah, namely the creation of the universe and the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. The rest of the narrative also makes sense. G-d had to show Abraham and Sarah that their child was not naturally theirs, because his birth was not natural at all. It took place after Sarah could no longer conceive. The story of the first Jewish child establishes a principle that applies to all Jewish children. G-d creates legal space between parent and child, because only when that space exists do children have the room to grow as independent individuals. The Torah ultimately seeks to abolish all relationships of dominance and submission. That is why it dislikes slavery and makes it, within Israel, a temporary condition rather than a permanent fate. That is why it seeks to protect children from parents who are overbearing or worse. Abraham, we argued in last weeks study, was chosen to be the role model for all time of what it is to be a parent. We now see that the binding of Isaac is the consummation of that story. A parent is one who knows he or she does not own their child.

SHABBATGUESTSCHOLARSERIES MALCOLMHOENLEIN ExecutiveViceChairman ConferenceofPresidentsofMajorAmericanJewish Organizations FRIDAY,NOVEMBER18 FamilyShabbatDinner InsidersBriefingwithMr.Hoenlein SpecialChildrensMenu&Program SATURDAY,NOVEMBER19 KeynoteAddressintheGoldwynSanctuary followingShabbatMorningServices FamilyShabbatLuncheon Q&AwithMr.Hoenlein SeudahShlishitPolicyDiscussionwithMr.Hoenlein Babysittingwillbeprovided ReservationsRequiredforShabbatDinnerandLuncheon |LimitedSeating $30/adults|$20/teens|$10/children| $100familymaximum 26OldMillRoad|GreatNeck,NY11023|516.487.6100 |mtwersky@gns.org

Great Neck Synagogue Shabbat Activities Program

Dale Polakoff, Rabbi Ian Lichter, Assistant Rabbi Dr. Ephraim Wolf ,zl, Rabbi Emeritus Daniel Schwechter, Rabbinic Intern Zeev Kron, Cantor Eleazer Schulman, zl, Cantor Emeritus Mark Twersky, Executive Director Joseph Hecht, President Harold Domnitch, Chairman of the Board

GreatNeckSynagogueMensClub andtheJewishPoliticalEducation Foundation arepleasedtopresenta breakfastandspeakeron Name:_______________________________ Sunday,November13,at10:00am Phone #__________________________ IntheBraunYouthCenter Email:_______________________________ SaulSilasFathi:Lecturer Meals purchased in memory/ in honor andAuthor of:______________ _______________________________________ TheEndoftheWarinIraq Amount enclosed:______ andProspectsfor _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ WarwithIran We are also looking for a limited number of volunteers (ALL AGES) to help serve the dinner, clean up, play music, sing & (Emphasizingthe talk to the residents Israelifactor) This year for Thanksgiving Buy a Thanksgiving Dinner for a resident at Arrandale Senior Housing and make your parents proud of you. $18.00 can sponsor a dinner in honor of/in memory of your parents
I would like to volunteer on Thursday, Nov 24th 11:30 -2 pm Food Server:_______________ Other Talent:____________________ Volunteer Names & Kids Ages:

GreatNeckSynagogueMensClub andtheJewishPoliticalEduca tionFoundation Present FormerAmbassadortotheUS andForeignandDefenseMinis terofIsrael

ProfessorMosheArens
OnWednesday,November23, 2011,at7:30pm AttheGreatNeckSynagogue 26OldMillRoad,GreatNeck ProfessorArenswillbespeaking oncurrentIsraelieventsandon hisnewbook, FlagsovertheWarsawGhetto TheUntoldStoryoftheWarsaw GhettoUprising

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Co-Sponsored by: GNS Hunger Initiative, Sisterhood & Womens Tefila For more info: call Nechama at 516-773-3572 or email lisslev@verizon.net Please return to: GNS, 26 Old Mill Road, Great Neck, NY 11023

Great Neck Synagogue 60th Anniversary Dinner

Saturday evening December 10, 2011 Honoring

Rona & Myles Mittleman Anida & Edwin Rosman

Boneh Habayit

Vivian Kron

ANNOUNCEMENTS
GNS MENS CLUB On Sunday, November 13 at 10:00 am, the GNS Mens Club, together with the Jewish Political Education Foundation, are pleased to present Saul Silas Fathi, Lecturer and Author, who will be speaking on The End of the War in Iraq and Prospects for war with Iran (emphasizing the Israeli factor). Breakfast will be available. COOKING EVENT Back by popular demand. Mens Club cooking event; Father/ son or daughter event on Sunday, Nov 20 from 5 -7 pm at 18 Birchwood Lane, GN. Come with or without a child (who must be over 10 years old). Come shecht a gigantic pumpkin and prepare a 4 course meal: Pumpkin rice, Grilled pumpkin, Stuffed burgers (no pumpkin) and Pumpkin pie. The event is interactive and will make pumpkin haters into pumpkin lovers Each family unit will take home their own pumpkin pie. Everyone should come prepared to shecht the pumpkin outside. Cost is $60 per adult, $50 per child. RSVP to: Cindy Hodkin 487-7771, koshercooking@gmail.com or Hilly Milun 504-0320, gnsmensclub@optonline.net SAVE THE DATE Dr. Paul and Drora Brody will receive the "Defender of Jerusalem Award" at the Centennial Dinner of the National Council of Young Israel, on Sunday afternoon, November 13, 2011, at Terrace on the Park. For info., please call (516) 482-3834. FREE EXERCISE CLASS The members of GNS sisterhood are invited to attend a free exercise class at Something Physical 770 Middle Neck Road. 516-205-0043 SAVE THE DATE The NSHA Early Childhood Parlor Meeting will be held on Saturday evening, November, 12th 8:00 pm at the home of Jessica and Evan Shusterman. OHEL SHABBATON on November 18th-19th. If you would like to host (no meals) OHEL that Shabbos, please contact Rabbi Lichter ilichter@gns.org

Within Our Family

Mazal Tov to Ruth & Norman Seif on the appointment of their granddaughter Sheba Seif as Co-ordinator of Health Policy and Consumer Outreach Specialist for Illinois. Mazal Tov to Rachel Wolf, daughter of Michele & Howard Wolf on becoming COO of American Committee for Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem.
FYI Jeff Wiesenfeld will deliver an address at the Herb Tarr Lecture series, open to the public, on Monday Nov. 14th at 8:30pm at Temple Beth Shalom in Roslyn. The topic will be "The Ugly Campus War Against Israel." SHIDDUCH GROUP Nov. 10th will be the first meeting of the joint GNS and YI Shidduch Group. The group will help connect our members single relatives and friends. All discussions will be considered confidential. Email Katie Lichter or Malka Ismach at katielichter@gmail.com or malkaismach@gmail.com for more info, to get a copy of the profile sheet and to RSVP. The meeting will take place Nov. 10th at 8:30, at the Feldschreiber home, 34 Gateway Drive. MIKVAH The Kaylim mikvah will be closed beginning November 21, 2011. SIMCHA DANCING FOR GIRLS Want to learn all the best dances for your next celebration? Rachel Lunzer and Sarah Katz will be running a Bat Mitzvah Dance class for girls 5th through 7th grade. The class will be held at GNS every Thurs. at 7pm. The total for all 8 classes is $100. To register for the class, email batmitzvahdance@gmail.com or call Rachel at 516-316-8690.

THANKSGIVING WITH SENIORS Buy a Thanksgiving Dinner for a resident at Arrandale Senior Housing for $18 and sponsor in honor of/ in memory of your parents. Send your name and check to GNS . Limited number ALYN HOSPITAL 300 MILES RIDE of volunteers (ALL AGES) needed to help serve dinner, clean up, Laura and Scott Danoff are in Israel this week to represent play music, sing, and talk to residents at Arrandale Senior GNS as part of Team Great Neck as they ride 300 miles to help Housing on Thursday, November 24th at 11:30-2:00 pm. Call raise badly needed funds for the Alyn Hospital. Donations can Nechama @ 516-773-3572, or email lisslev@verizon.net be made to Laura and Scott Danoff, 4 Vista Drive, GN 11021. Make checks payable to American Friends of Alyn Hospital, or Saturday, 15 Cheshvan you can donate online at www.wolusa.org/scottdanoff (http:// Pauline Loewenstein for Emanuel Rutta www.wolusa.org/scottdanoff). Ira Lubin for Nathan Lubin LADIES DANCE Ladies dance will be starting again on Wednesday mornings at 9:30am THANK YOU We would like to thank Didi & Adam Hutt, Bracha & Cantor Kron, Marcia & Dan Horowitz, Dr Lynn & Dr. Abraham Glassman, Aksana & Rabbi Jensen, Mindy & Michael Leventhal and Susan & Jonathan Shore for opening their Sukkahs to the Sukkah Hop program. HELP WANTED-GNS PR ASSOCIATES Help us promote Great Neck Synagogue events and programs by making sure our flyers and advertisements are all around town! Open also to Hgh School students - compensation/ chesed hours available. For more information, contact Rabbi Bronstein: abronstein@gns.org.

Y A H R Z E I T

Brian Smith for Francine Smith Sunday, 16 Cheshvan Herman Davidovicz for Samuel Davidovics Monday, 17 Cheshvan Miriam Bader for Sarah Fleshel Tuesday, 18 Cheshvan Osnass Shein for Simchat Charchat Joyce Swartz for Geraldine Zeff Wednesday, 19 Cheshvan Anne Lupkin for Mary Fischler Irene Wineman Marcus for David Wineman Hillel Milun for Nancy Milun Thursday, 20 Cheshvan Stanley Dacher for Samuel Dacher Yaacov Mizrahi for Dalia Mizrahi Esther Nysenbaum for Micheline Singer Morris Seidman for Kalma Seidman Jerrald Weinstein for George Weinstein Friday, 21 Cheshvan Paul Brody for Ruth Schaeffer Irving Forman for Rose Forman