|
1) A Nation Needs a Homeland
Avraham Avinu is told that from him would come a “great nation”; this promise comes hand in hand with a command to go to a special Land, one “I will show you” (12:1-2). Hashem tells Avraham what will become of his descendants, who his offspring will turn into. In a word, Hashem tells him of his importance. And it’s clear from Hashem’s words, says Rav Zvi Yehudah Kook (R. David Samson’s translation), that the importance of Erez Yisrael is just as central.
“A single man can drift from place to place. But a community, a people, a nation has to be rooted in a fixed, permanent position on the globe.” Judaism cannot exist without a homeland.
In an insightful comment, Rav Menachem Leibtag explains the borders of Eretz Yisrael – outlined in the Bris Bein HaBesarim – in a way that very much connects to this idea. Nahar Mitzrayim and Nahar Pras are not territorial lines of conquest but symbolic horizons of influence. These two rivers mark the two great centers of ancient civilization, and Eretz Yisrael lies precisely between them, the spiritual crossroads of the world. Hashem chose this land, difficult and rain-dependent, not for its comfort or abundance but because its geography demands reliance on Him and enables Jews to echo Judaism outward.
Rav Hirsch, in the Nineteen Letters, suggests that, on some level, Jews can be a “light unto the nations” when living amongst them. In fact, they may be better equipped to do so when intermingled in the galus. But we are to model more than just lives of sanctity and morality – we are to present the ideal society as well. As such, Israel’s PR is critical not just for its political and economic needs. It is central to Israel’s mission.
2) Avraham Was Not the First Monotheist
In Biblical Images, Rav Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz z”l shatters the oft-repeated misnomer of Avraham Avinu as “First Monotheist.” Malki-Tzedek, who Chazal identify as Shem ben Noach, seems to have a better claim to that title). Avraham was original in experiencing a belief of someone else’s and spreading it to others, carrying the idea in a way that he could share it with everyone he encountered. In other words, he may have not been the first to believe, but he was the first to show the willingness to shift his perspective and make it a life mission to share it with others.
When we come across truth, we may be tempted to save it for ourselves; at best, we may want to share it with others, but shy away from the effort to actually do so. Avraham didn’t invent monotheism – but at a time when the world had given up on One God, Avraham “brought Him back.”
3) Parperet - Recreating Ourselves
“Avraham was 40 years old when he recognized his Creator” (Mishnah Torah, Avodah Zara, 1:3). He is in his seventies when God commands him to start his life anew. And yet, there is a total absence of Avraham’s past in the Torah. (Even exciting episodes, like the furnace in Ur Kadsim, are left to the Medresh to tell.) Perhaps this is because his past is irrelevant – it was Avarham’s willingness to take on a new identity that made him Avinu.
In Dr. Ephraim Yitzhaki’s words (Dr. Yitzchaki wrote this thought ads part of a faculty series for Bar Ilan University) : Abraham’s destiny was to propagate the name of God in the world. In order to be suited for this mission Abraham had to be prepared to make a total break with his past: his country, his homeland, even his father’s house. He would now have to wander from place to place. He had to accept being different from others, even being persecuted for his beliefs. Therefore “Go forth,” lekh lekha, is Abraham’s first trial, a most difficult (though not the most difficult) task. The Torah sees no purpose in telling about Abraham’s past or youth because Abraham’s assignment and his being chosen did not depend upon his past activities but rather upon the future—his ability to stand up to the challenge of going forth in the world.
4) See last year's chomer (it was post-election edition - feels like a lifetime ago) here.
| 
