Art by Sefira Lightstone
A WEEKLY TORAH THOUGHT FROM RABBI MORDY
One of my favorite episodes in the Torah takes place in this week’s Parsha (Vayera) between Abraham and G-d. G-d tells Abraham of his plans to destroy Sodom and Abraham challenges Him. Why must the entire city be destroyed? Aren’t there some folks there worthy of redemption, a few righteous folks in whose merit the city may be salvaged? And they debate back and forth for some time. I’ve certainly mentioned it before in some capacity as there is much to be learned – especially when we compare to Noah’s story just a couple weeks ago. Noah was righteous, no doubt, but he did not stand up to G-d to see if perhaps the world as he knew it was worth saving. In contrast, Abraham stands up. It is a perplexing dialogue between G-d Almighty and Abraham, but nonetheless, they debate. Why? Why the need over all for this conversation to take place? Abraham trusted G-d (as mentioned last week regarding his leaving the comforts of home at age 75 simply because G-d said so). Abraham also understands that whatever G-d does, He does for the best, yet here he is standing up to G-d!? The explanation is something that lives on for generations. G-d wanted Abraham to own this sense of collective responsibility. Sure, sometimes it’s important to accept things as they are and trust that G-d has a plan. There are other moments, however, when it is crucial that a challenge take place. Don’t just accept things as facts, especially when a potential injustice may occur (as in this case), but question, debate, challenge. G-d is showing Abraham (and us as his descendants) that all humanity has this vital backbone; it is a necessary component for the triumph of goodness, especially in times when leaders tell them “the facts.” No, we learn here, we don’t need to just accept things. Sometimes we need to stand up regardless of how it may appear or how our relationship with that leader may be affected. If Abraham could risk falling from grace with G-d, we can stand up to earthly beings. Any of them.
When faced with injustice, we need to challenge. And that imperative, integral to this tiny Jewish nation destined to be a moral beacon to the world, is a lesson worth debating. Good Shabbos!