04 Vayera

וַיֵּרָ֤א אֵלָיו֙ יְהוָ֔ה בְּאֵלֹנֵ֖י מַמְרֵ֑א וְה֛וּא יֹשֵׁב פֶּתַח־הָאֹהֶל כְּחֹם הַיּֽוֹם׃

Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day.

The Parasha tells the stories of Abraham's three visitors and Abraham's bargaining with God over Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot's two visitors and Lot's bargaining with the Sodomites, the flight of Lot and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, how Abraham once again passed off his wife Sarah as his sister, the birth of Isaac, the expulsion of Hagar, and disputes over wells. Lot and his daughters continue after the destruction of their home, Hagar and Ishmael survive in the wilderness, and both Abraham and Isaac return home together. Perhaps we too can allow our tears not to blind us, but to clear our vision to see the possibility of building a better world.

Abraham passed God’s challenge of faith when God commands Abraham to take his beloved son Isaac to the land of Moriah and kill him. Faithful Abraham does not hesitate. Genesis 22 may be the most loved and hated story in the Torah by every reader, no matter what their faith. When Abraham raises the knife to kill Isaac, he does not behave like a father. In that moment, for that moment, he relinquishes his role as patriarch and becomes a knight of faith. Faith alone cannot create a nation and define its people. There need to be individuals who advocate for the lives and property of their children.