Parashat Hashavua: Lech-Lecha

I have been preparing 3rd graders for the Humash Ceremony for many years.  When we begin studying chapter 12 of Genesis, God’s call to Avraham, by asking the students what questions they have about these words, I am always surprised by the variety: What time was it? What was the weather like? Was Sarah there? Did Avraham think he was going crazy because he was hearing voices? But every year, one question reappears.  Why did God choose Avraham? 

Our students are not the only ones wondering about this issue. There are many midrashim devoted to answering this question, including the famous story about Avraham smashing the idols in his father’s shop and becoming the first (but not the last…) Jewish iconoclast.  But my favorite midrash about why God chose Avram is this?  

מָשָׁל לְאֶחָד שֶׁהָיָה עוֹבֵר מִמָּקוֹם לְמָקוֹם, וְרָאָה בִּירָה אַחַת דּוֹלֶקֶת, אָמַר תֹּאמַר שֶׁהַבִּירָה הַזּוֹ בְּלֹא מַנְהִיג, הֵצִיץ עָלָיו בַּעַל הַבִּירָה, אָמַר לוֹ אֲנִי הוּא בַּעַל הַבִּירָה

To what may Avram be compared? To a person who was going from place to place and came upon a palace that was דּוֹלֶקֶת (burning).  He wondered, if this palace is burning, whose home is this?  The owner of the palace peeked out and said, “It is my home.”

In the story, Avraham is chosen because he is the first to recognize two things: (1) this is God’s world and (2) it is burning and in need of our attention.   

It seems likely that as of tomorrow, SNAP benefits will end. This reality will create a crisis for vulnerable New Yorkers that is as immediate as a house on fire.  In a call yesterday with Greg Silverman, executive director of West Side Campaign, he told us that 20% of New Yorkers depend on SNAP benefits for the food they eat.

It is interesting that in the midrash, we don’t find out what happens to the house on fire.  Is it like the burning bush, continuing to burn but not be consumed? We may not individually have the power to douse all of the flames of poverty and food insecurity in our city. But if everyone picks up a bucket, especially now, who knows what might happen?  

Rabbi Anne Ebersman
EC/LS Director of Jewish Life/Director of Hesed (Community Service) and Tzedek (Social Responsibility)