THIS WEEK'S TORAH READING
Lech Lecha
: Genesis 12: 1 - 17:27
This week's
parasha
introduces us to Abraham and Sarah, who are referred to at the beginning of the portion by their original names, Abram & Sarai. God calls Abram from his homeland to "Go to...the land I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you...I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you, and all the families of the earth shall be blessed by you." (Gen 12: 1 - 3).
Once in the land, there is a famine and Abram & Sarai journey to Egypt to find relief. While there, Abram instructs Sarai to tell people she is his sister, not his wife, because he fears for his life. Pharaoh then casts his eye on Sarai, but this causes plagues on Pharaoh's house. Once he finds out they are husband and wife, Abram & Sarai are sent away.
When they return to the land of Israel, Abram's nephew Lot is captured during a battle of local chieftains. Abram is successful in rescuing Lot and returning a sense of calm to the land. After this, a covenant between Abram and God is established, called the
brit ben ha'bitarim
, or "Covenant between the Pieces". Since Sarai is barren she gives her handmaiden Hagar to Abram, and Hagar bears him a son named Ishmael.
Finally, the
parasha
ends with the
brit
(Covenant) that was made earlier being reaffirmed, and Abram & Sarai have their names changed to Abraham & Sarah, including in each of their names the letter
Heh
, representing the Covenant. This brit is symbolized by Abraham (and his whole household) being circumcised.
It is interesting that even in ancient times the rabbis recognized that Abraham and Sarah, (and thus both men and women) were each important in their own way in the building of Judaism. They understood that this was a partnership that had two people, each of whom mattered. So, when it states at the beginning of the
parasha
that as Abram and Sarai left Haran, they took with them "all the wealth they had amassed,
and the persons they had acquired in Haran"
(Gen. 12:5), the rabbis understood the phrase "the persons they had acquired" as referring not to servants or slaves, but rather to people they had "converted" to the belief in the one true God of the world. They indicated that while Abraham had taught the men, Sarah had taught and converted the women.
Today, while it might seem like a radical departure from history to call God "the God of Abraham and Sarah" (not just the "God of Abraham"), it is actually in keeping with the spirit of the of earliest rabbinic teachings. We have always been a people that looked to many role models, both male and female. We are proud to come from such a tradition and to continue it in our own times.
Shabbat Shalom
,
Rabbi Kane
