Parshat Lech Lecha
8 Cheshvan 5768
October 20, 2007
Daf Yomi: Kesovos 49
Guest
Rabbi:
Rabbi Yirmiya Milevsky
Young Israel of Memphis, TN
As Avram
returned to the land of Israel from Egypt, the Torah notes that
"He retraced his route". Rashi explains that Avram took the same
route in order to pay back his debts.
A number of commentators challenge the literal interpretation of
the verse. Was Avram really in such dire straits that he got
into debt? Additionally, assuming that Avram was in debt, who
could he have counted on to give credit to a fugitive in his
condition?
Other commentaries therefore interpret Rashi's remarks as having
a much deeper meaning. As the Midrash tells us, Avram, from a
very young age, devoted his life to teach humanity about the
existence of Hashem and about every member of the human race’s
moral responsibility. In fact, Avram's commitment to his faith
was so great, that he destroyed his family's lucrative business
(Terach's Idols Inc.), due to his moral belief. Avram would
travel all over, speaking about Hashem and teaching that all
good bestowed upon man comes from the Creator of Heaven and
earth. When the Torah tells us that Avram reached a specific
location, built an altar and called out in the name of Hashem,
he was essentially preaching monotheism and moral responsibility
to man. Unfortunately, during the famine period, Avram was in a
very difficult predicament. How can you preach that morality
brings blessing to man, when here you have the
most moral of all men leaving Israel -the land that the master
of the universe has just commanded him to travel to- and
searching for a way to survive? Avram could not answer this
difficult question, and was in "debt" on his way down to Egypt,
not physically but rather spiritually.
However, after the miraculous intervention of Hashem to save
Sarai from harm's way and the great wealth bestowed upon Avram
in Egypt, he was able to repay those debts. By showing humanity
that the Almighty protects and provides individuals that really
believe in him, Avram calmly repaid the debts that he owed.
Prayer, an essential component of a true Torah and spiritual
life, is a very difficult concept to understand. People time and
again ask, if all that is given to man is good, why should I
implore Hashem to amend the situation? Doesn't the Talmud teach
that all things are for the good? Rabbi Chaim of Volozin, in his
work Nefesh Hachaim, gives us a very deep insight into the true
purpose of prayer. The Nefesh Hachaim explains that when a
person prays to Hashem to alleviate his difficult situation, the
prayer is not for the sake of the person, but rather for the
sake of Hashem. When a person is in pain, the Shechina also
feels pain. The Midrash tells us that the relationship between
the Jew and Hashem is similar to that of twins, that when one
gets injured the other one feels the pain.
Accordingly, the objective of prayer is to ease the pain that
the Shechina is experiencing.
When the nation of Israel is suffering as a whole, in addition
to the pain Hashem feels for each and every individual, there is
also a great desecration of the name of Hashem. When the Jewish
people-the nation that is recognized by the world as chosen by
the Almighty-suffer, humanity asks: "Where is their G-d?" How is
it, they wonder, that the nation that brought monotheism to the
world can experience a Holocaust? We must focus our prayers on
this Chilul Hashem. We must pray that it end soon, for when we
cannot answer the question, we again enter into a situation of
“debt”, like Avram leaving the land of Canaan.
Avram's exodus from Egypt repaid those debts, and sanctified the
name of Hashem with the abundance of material blessings he
obtained in Egypt. The sanctification of Hashem by means of the
exodus and his reentry into Israel, was the template for the
future exodus and entree in the days of Moshe and Yehoshua, and
the great "payback of debts" that occurred throughout the
supernatural journey in the wilderness.
We pray that the suffering of the Jewish people end, and
consequently the terrible Chilul Hashem come to an end with the
coming of Moshiach, and we can finally get rid of our "debt"
that we owe to humanity.
NCYI's Weekly Divrei Torah Bulletin is
sponsored by
the Henry, Bertha and Edward Rothman Foundation -
Rochester, New York; Cleveland, Ohio; Circleville, Ohio
