This week's portion recounts many of the most interesting events in the life of Abraham -- from the visit of the three angels; to the argument with God over the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah; to the expulsion of Ishmael and Hagar; and to the near-sacrifice of Isaac, the ultimate test of Abraham's faith and love.
It's hard to imagine a man who loves God so much that he is willing to sacrifice the thing he loves the most -- especially when it is his son. It is also, if we are honest with ourselves, hard to image why God would ever ask this of someone.
It seems there is a connection between the argument that Abraham has with God on the one hand, and the test of the sacrifice of Isaac, on the other.
If human beings needed to know that God would deal justly with the world, and had to test him, then perhaps God needed to know that human beings would believe in Him, and had to test Abraham just as Abraham had tested him.
Perhaps God also wanted to show Abraham just how painful it was for Him to sacrifice his own creatures in Sodom and Gomorrah, to show him -- though a similar experience -- that it was not easy for him to kill them, evil as they were.
The additional reading tells a related story from II Kings: the story of the Prophet Elisha and a young boy -- like Isaac, a prophesied gift to a barren couple -- who later died, and was resurrected through healing and prayer.
https://www.chabad.org/parshah/torahreading.asp?aid=2492488&p=complete
I should have noted in my message about the weekly Torah portion that this week is Shabbat Chazon, the Sabbath of Vision. We are about to mourn -- but see through that pain to something better that lies beyond, on the other side.
Wishing you the best vision -- and an incredible reality to follow. It happens!
We begin the final speech of Moses to the people of Israel before they enter the Promised Land. He relates the ups and downs of the years of wandering in the desert, before, finally, the people have the merit to enter the land itself.
This Sabbath always precedes Tisha B'Av, the Ninth of Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. It is the anniversary of the destruction of both of the Holy Temples, and a catch-all for many calamities that befell the Jewish people.
A word on Tisha B'Av. This year I am leaving for an overseas trip during the afternoon of the holiday -- in the middle of a fast day. Not idea, but there was no other choice. But my flight is in the afternoon, which is significant.
We relax some of the harsh, mournful customs of the day in the afternoon. We start to pray normally; we sit on regular chairs; we start to have hope again in the redemption that will, one day, lead us all back from exile to our home.
I'll be taking a trip to a land where an important part of ...
President Trump is in Scotland, playing golf and making big trade deals -- a major deal with the EU, in fact. Meanwhile, there is a global outcry about humanitarian aid to Palestinians (not about the Israeli hostages, mind you).
On top of that, Democrats are at their lowest polling numbers ever -- so they are trying to win control of the House by redistricting in the middle of a 10-year Census cycle. Oh, economic optimism is up, so they have a tough road.
And Tulsi Gabbard's revelations about the Russia collusion investigation make it clear that Obama's lieutenants lied to Congress. How deeply was he himself involved? The media continue to ignore the evidence, but we certainly won't.
Special guests:
Nick Gilbertson - Breitbart News White House correspondent, on EU deal
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Trump abroad and Russia
John Spencer - urban warfare expert, on humanitarian aid and war in Gaza
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on the ...
