Dear Temple Sinai Members and Friends,
This Shabbat, Lech-Lecha, begins the history of the Jewish people with the
story of its beloved ancestor, Abraham, called at first Avrum. Let us keep in mind
that Avrum was not Jewish. Avrum was a Hebrew, an Yvri, meaning a Wanderer.
The word “Jewish” is derived from the word Yehudah, and Yehudah (or Judah) was
one of the great grandsons of Avrum. Our people did not take on the name “Jews”
until after the time of Moses with the settlement in the Promised Land. The theme
of the lives of the patriarchs Avrum, Isaac and Jacob and their spouses Sarah,
Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah have two parts to it. Constantly God is called upon to
validate God’s promises that 1) these ancestors would someday be settled in a Land
later to be known as Israel, and 2) they would be blessed with many generations of
family and children. Prior to the story of Avrum, the Torah is setting the stage for
his appearance on the scene of history by introducing the reader to the history of
the world and the creation of human beings. We are introduced to Adam and Eve,
Cain and Abel, and Noah. All of this is like the overture or the intro to this week’s
Torah portion, as the Torah must be understood as the biography of the Jewish
people.
As we read of the adventures of these men and women, we could ask if these
stories are fact, fiction, or mere legend. I have always believed that in truth such
questions are really irrelevant. These stories are teaching us about our ancestors as
they took their faith in the One God of Avrum and faced all the challenges they
faced as a new people to become one of the greatest and longstanding civilizations
on earth. We need to also take their stories and ask how they speak to us of the
challenges in our own lives.
Take for instance the opening of this week’s reading, Lech Lecha. Avrum is
called upon by the One God to pack up all his belongings, and with his family and
those he converted to the belief in this God, leave the place where they were born,
without knowing exactly where they would be going. This is a story that many of
us have had to face in our own lives, either leaving our home, moving out and
moving on, changing jobs, or even spouses. It is a story of new beginnings when
we don’t know what the endings would be. It is a story of faith. So, as we read
about Avrum’s early life, we need to ask ourselves how he got through this period
in his life and how we did as well. We need to assess the strengths we used and the
weaknesses that held us back. When we can accomplish this, then the Torah text is
more than a collection of nice stories from our people’s past, but also a story of our
own pasts and how we can learn from this for our future.
Please remember that there are some very special events coming up in
the near future. On Tuesday night November 18th at 7 pm here at Temple Sinai, the
Temple is hosting the Annual Delray Beach Thanksgiving Inter-Faith Service as
the choir of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church of Delray Beach joins our choir and
Cantor Shir, and the clergy and members of other communities in prayer, song and
gratitude. Then, later that same week, on Thursday night November 20th at 7 pm,
we will be joining 13 other synagogues of the county for the annual Support Israel
Bonds event and dessert reception. You must rsvp by calling 561-939-1369. Please
come down and honor our Temple Sinai honorees Doreen and her son Scott
Solkoff. Many of you supported Israel Bonds as a part of our Kol Nidre Appeal.
You can still attend this event just to support Doreen, Scott, Temple Sinai and the
Palm Beach County Jewish community.
Shabbat shalom
Your Rabbi Steve