Parasha Lej Leja

Trials

Hashem  tested  Avraham  Avinu and commanded him to leave his land and travel to an unknown land. Avraham Avinu did not question why he had to leave and did not even ask to be told his intended destina- tion. He relied on and trusted in Hashem that He will show him where to go, and since now Hashem  was commanding him to leave, he set out without delay.

Yet once Avraham Avinu arrived in the south of the land and understood that this is where Hashem wished him to dwell, he was met with a great famine in this land and once again had to pick up his wanderer’s stick and go down to Egypt to sustain himself and his family. Yet his tribulations had still not come to an end. The Egyptians were known as lecherous people and Avra- ham was afraid that when they see his wife Sarah who was beautiful, they will take her and kill him. There- fore, he hid her in a box and told her that if they do eventually discover her, she should say that she is his sister (and not his wife), but even this did not help and the servants of Pharaoh who noted her beauty took her to Pharaoh’s home and had Hashem not prevented him from doing so, Pharaoh would have sinned with Sarah.

Chazal say (Ta’anit 23b) that Rabbi Yitzchak bar Elyashiv was approached  by a man who poured out his distress about his unattractive wife. Rabbi Yitzchak bar Elyashiv prayed for her and she became beautiful. Several days later the husband returned  to him and said that from the time his wife had turned beautiful she had become boastful. Rabbi Yitzchak bar Elyashiv once again prayed, this time that her previous unat- tractiveness should return and she indeed became un- attractive once again.

Surely Avraham Avinu’s greatness did not fall short of that of Rabbi Yitzchak bar Elyashiv. If so, why did Avraham Avinu need to hide his wife Sarah in a box and tell her that if nevertheless the Egyptians find her she should say that she is his sister? He could have prayed for her to become ugly and they would then not desire her.

But Avraham Avinu had boundless faith in Hash- em and he understood that if Hashem wants him to go down to Egypt, part of that trial is the beauty of his wife Sarah. That is why he did not presume to change this but rather dealt with the test using the strengths that he was given together with that trial.

It is told about Rabbi Yisrael Salanter zya’a that on Purim when he became drunk in accordance with the command of the day, deep Torah insights would flow from his mouth that he would never utter on regular days  so as not to reveal  his greatness  in Torah.  His talmidim who were aware of these rare moments, re- mained in his presence the entire Purim so as to hear these Torah insights.

One year between one insight and the next, while Rabbi Yisrael was still under the effect of the strong wine,  his staunch  student,  Rabbi  Naftali Amsterdam zt”l, asked him for a special blessing. He asked that his master bless him that he should have the head of the

‘Sha’agat Aryeh’ who was known for his sharpness, and the heart of the ‘Yesod v’Shoresh Ha’avodah’ who was one of the greatest mussar personalities at the time, and the middot of his master and teacher Rabbi Yisrael Salanter.

Rabbi Yisrael zya”a answered him: “Naftali, this is not the way to serve Hashem. For Hashem intentional-ly endows each person with his own unique strengths and potentials, and his own difficulties and trials, and you with your head and your heart and your brain must serve Hashem with all your strength just as Hashem created you, without asking to be someone else, who has a different destined way of serving Hashem. Rath-er one must ask Hashem to grant him the strength to utilize all the talents that he was given.”

Absolute Faith

During Avraham Avinu’s lifetime, the entire world worshipped idols. Everyone worshipped his own differ- ent god, and even Terach, Avraham’s father, served and sold idols for whoever demanded one. But Avraham Avinu understood that all these gods had no substance, and he searched for an All-powerful Master of the Uni- verse. When Hashem saw how much Avraham was ex- tending himself to discover Him, He appeared to him and revealed that He is the Almighty G-d.

Avraham Avinu believed in Hashem to such a great extent that he asked no questions and did not allow his own understanding to make any dent in the great faith with which he lived. When Nimrod saw that Avraham Avinu believed in Hashem as the Omnipotent, he com- manded that he be thrown into a furnace to see wheth- er Hashem would save him from the intense inferno.

Avraham Avinu was not afraid and did not doubt Hashem’s power to save him. He told Nimrod that he agrees to be thrown into the furnace, and even if Hash- em does not save him and he will be burnt up, he will still not ask questions and not budge from his faith in Hashem. When Hashem saw his strong faith, He saved him from the fire.

When Hashem commanded Avraham to leave his land and birthplace and go to an unknown land, besides the physical and emotional difficulty of leaving his birth- place, he was also faced with the great challenge of con- tinuing to spread faith in Hashem in the world, for in a different land they recognized neither him nor G-d and no one had heard about the great miracle that Hashem had done for him.

But Avraham Avinu did not ask questions and if this was  Hashem’s  command,  he  followed  it  immediate- ly despite the challenges. Even when the famine grew strong and he had to continue his wanderings and go down to Egypt, then too he did not abandon his great faith and did not cease spreading faith in Hashem to the entire world.

Many times we are tried with difficult challenges and we question why Hashem did this to us, and why we, particularly, were tested. We must learn from Avra- ham Avinu’s ways for he could have asked many ques- tions, but he stood in opposition to the entire world and believed in Hashem without asking questions. He had complete faith in Hashem and the goodness of His ways.

The extent to which our faith must be complete and absolute without doubts and reservations, is aptly de- scribed by the following mashal: Someone once slipped and fell into a deep abyss, managing to halt his fall by grabbing hold of a small bush that protruded from a rock. He held onto it with all his strength so as not to fall into the depths of the abyss, but he felt his strength slowly ebbing. When he realized that his vulnerability will eventually prevail and he cannot continue holding on to the bush forever without anyone coming to his aid, he turned to the One on High and pleaded, “Master of the World, I know that only You can save me. Please, perform a miracle for me and deliver me from this abyss, healthy and whole”.

Suddenly he heard a Heavenly Voice calling out: “Do you really believe in My great power to save you?” “Cer- tainly” replied the man. “If so, release your hold on the bush and you will be saved!”

One who believes in Hashem with complete faith and without reservations, would leave go of the bush when hearing this directive, even though it is illogical, for his faith is absolute and total, even if it contradicts logic and nature. I too always tell those who come to seek my advice, that the greatest challenge is when we see no way out, and nevertheless, we continue to be- lieve with all our heart in the great power of Hashem to save us supernaturally.

Chesed

Those possessing  sterling  middot can be divided into two main categories. The first group comprises peo- ple who have a great desire to benefit others but will only offer their assistance at their convenience. They lack the element of self-sacrifice in performing chesed, for they dismiss opportunities that oppose their will and personal comfort.

On the other hand, there are those who are gen- uine ba’alei chesed, for whom chesed is the mainstay of their lives and their entire vitality is dependent on doing chesed. This category of people is prepared to for- go their own needs and desires for the benefit of their surroundings. For them, chesed is not an additional matter to consider, but something most fundamentally essential, therefore they will do everything in their pow- er to do good to others, even when this chesed is at the expense of their own convenience. Furthermore, they will search for possible acts of kindness, and will not sit passively until opportunity comes their way.

Avraham Avinu possessed sterling middot and was a ba’al chesed of the highest caliber, to the extent of self-sacrifice. While in matters of chesed Avraham Avinu showed great alacrity, with those pertaining to materi- alism Avraham Avinu was slow-moving, as this week’s Parsha tells us, “Now Avram was very laden with live- stock, silver and gold” (Bereishit 13:2). This implies that Avraham Avinu who was quick to do chesed with oth- ers, conducted himself with heaviness with all that per- tained to silver and gold. This is the opposite of human nature, for people are generally not satisfied with their material attainments and having one hundred only cre- ates a desire for two hundred.

Hashem, who perceived Avraham Avinu’s self-sacri- fice in carrying out His wishes in contrast to his unhur- ried manner concerning materialism, blessed him with an abundance of materialism and increased his livestock and possessions without Avraham having to invest any toil. This is the meaning of “Cast upon Hashem your bur- den and He will sustain you” (Tehillim 55:23), for when a person places his trust in Hashem Yitbarach that He will provide for all his needs, and does not invest all his time in increasing his wealth, he merits Heavenly blessing without having to run after it.

I can testify that during the not so short time I have been in this world, I have met many affluent peo- ple, some of whom are considered ‘multi-millionaires’, among the top-ten of the world’s wealthiest people. Yet many times, instead of coming face to face with hap- py people who delight in the fact that from a material perspective they lack nothing, I am met with unhappy and depressed individuals, who can hardly bring a smile to their face. When I ask them why they are not hap- py despite their great wealth, they claim that their vast affluence cannot fill them with joy, since money does not solve problems of marital harmony, problems with their  children,  and  other  complications that  concern businessmen  such  as  competition, and  other  similar matters.

When I came to Lyon several decades ago, the city possessed very few affluent people and was undevel- oped economically. Yet since we opened the holy Yeshi- va in the city, the businessmen started seeing blessings in their toil and slowly became wealthy. I attribute this to the sound of Torah that began to be heard in the city, for that is what brings abundance to the world. Maran Harav Shach zya”a also claimed that those who settled in America after the Holocaust were the ones ‘responsi- ble’ for America’s financial success since before the Ho- locaust, America’s economy was not in such good form. Only once it opened its doors to the Jewish refugees who brought with them the sound of Torah, did Hashem bless their country.

Free Choice

After Hashem commanded Avraham to leave the land in which he lived, he duly fulfilled Hashem’s com- mand and took with him all his possessions.  In addi- tion, the Torah tells us that he also took with him, “the souls they made in Charan” (Bereishit 12:5). Rashi explains  that  the  souls  were  those  whom  Avraham and Sara brought under the wings of the Shechina, for Avraham converted the men and Sarah the women.

But the Torah does not tell us what happened to those people. When Ya’akov his grandson went down to Egypt, only seventy souls went down with him, and these were his sons and grandsons. Where then were all those many souls that his grandfather Avraham converted and brought close to their Father in Heav- en? It seems that all those people that Avraham and Sarah  converted  did not maintain  their  repentance, for their inclination overcame them and they returned to their bad ways.

Hashem  implanted  in the  world  the  concept  of ‘free choice’. When a person sins, he is not punished immediately  for if this would  be the case he would never sin and his ‘free choice’ would be taken from him. This  ‘free  choice’  is the cause  of the constant battle between evil and good, and momentary repen- tance is not enough for one must maintain it through- out one’s life.

The war against the Evil Inclination  can be com- pared  to  someone  who  opens  a  store.  At  first,  he has to invest much effort and work very hard to see success, and the path to success is often paved with failure. However,  even as time goes by he must still keep an exact record of all income and expenses, and if there is a problem with his profits he must take care of it otherwise he will go bankrupt. Similarly, the war against the Evil Inclination  is difficult and exhausting and persists throughout one’s life. Even if one merits overcoming  one’s inclination  with one battle and re- penting, the war has not ended but continues as long as one exists. When a person merits seeing a blessing in his toil, the successes and achievements encourage him to continue trying to triumph over the Evil Incli- nation.

Our lives can be compared to someone who takes a wrong turning in the forest and tries to find his way home. He is alert and ready to fight against any beast that might jump on him to devour him. But even after overpowering  one beast, the forest is still swarming with additional wild animals and he must remain alert and ready for the next battle. So too, the Evil Inclina- tion never gives up and even if he is defeated  once or twice, he waits for an opportune moment to once again try and make man stumble, and man on his part must be ready to battle him throughout his life.

At the time of Avraham Avinu, the Evil Inclination would make man stumble with the sin of idol worship, for people were drawn to serving idols. Today, we can- not understand  what people saw in those idols. But this is only because  the Evil Inclination  has changed his form; he has not disappeared.  Today the Evil In- clination shows his power particularly  in the form of those corrupt devices that have captivated the world, and man must stand guard and be most cautious even if he is required to have this device in his home due to his livelihood, to make fences and restrictions for him- self, manifold  protections  and defenses,  so that the Evil Inclination that lies in wait inside these devices to defeat him, will not be able to overpower him.

Heavenly Reckonings

There is a seeming contradiction in Avraham Avinu’s conduct. At first when Hashem revealed Himself to him and promised him, “For all the land that you see, to you I will give it, and to your descendants forever” (Bere- ishit 13:15). Avraham Avinu heard Hashem’s promise and accepted it with great love, and did not ask for a sign that the promise will be fulfilled. However, later on, when Hashem once again promised the Holy Land to Avraham Avinu and his children, he was not satis- fied with Hashem’s promise, but asked, “Whereby shall I know that I am to inherit it” (Bereishit 15:8). Avraham Avinu asked for a sign that Hashem will indeed be faith- ful in fulfilling His promise.

Chazal tell us (Nedarim 32a) that because Avraham Avinu asked “whereby shall I know that I am to inherit it”, and did not accept Hashem’s words literally, his chil- dren were punished with the Egyptian bondage. Even though Avraham Avinu had good intention’s (he feared that his descendants might sin and become unworthy of  retaining  the  Land),  he  was  punished  for  asking, for in line with his lofty level he should have accepted Hashem’s words in silence and not asked questions.

Hashem replied to Avraham (Bereishit 15:13), “Know with certainty that your offspring shall be aliens in a land not their own, and they will serve them, and they will oppress them, four hundred years”. Meaning, I am letting you know that your descendants will be oppressed with the Egyptian bondage for 400 years, but the years of suffering and pain will be like ‘a melt- ing pot’ that eradicates all the refuse from the earth, leaving behind only the refined gold. After your descen- dants experience all the suffering in Egypt, they will then be worthy of inheriting the Land and My promise will be fulfilled in its entirety.

When I was in America, someone who had waited many years to be blessed with a child came to see me.

After many long years, he had finally been blessed with a baby boy. This child was born healthy but suddenly a dangerous growth was discovered in his brain and he had to go through long and difficult treatments. In great pain, this father asked me, “Why did Hashem give me this child after so many years? I would have pre- ferred not to be blessed and not see him die.”

I told him that his difficult challenge makes it impos- sible for me to judge him, but a believing Jew is forbid- den to ask questions and may not entertain thoughts about Hashem’s will, for we are too small to understand Heavenly reckonings. When we ask questions we are creating an opening for the Yetzer Hara to infiltrate and then, in place of growing spiritually and drawing closer to Hashem through the trial that He gave us, we can become filled with doubts and cool off our faith in Him. For indeed all that Hashem does is for the best.

We must learn a lesson from Avraham Avinu a”h who never doubted Heavenly Wisdom, and the only time he asked “whereby shall I know that I am to inherit it”, his descendants were punished with exile in Egypt, to teach us that the way of faith is not to question Hash- em’s conduct, but one must accept a Heavenly decree with love, whatever the situation.

Yesterday, the 11th of Cheshvan, was the day of the passing of Rachel Imeinu. Rachel passed away during Binyamin’s birth, and Ya’akov Avinu could have asked many questions and said that he would have preferred had Binyamin not been born. But Hashem who is the Cause of all happenings, made it happen that Rachel should pass away particularly in this place so that she should be buried on the wayside, and when the time came for her children to go into exile, she was able to pray for them in their suffering. Until this day, many visit her gravesite in Beit Lechem to arouse Heavenly mercy for her children.

Shabbat Shalom u’mevorach,