Sam Rothschild - Dvar Torah

G

ood morning Rabbi Malcom, family, friends and congregation .

This weeks parsha is “Veyara”

This Parsha is mostly about Abraham in the desert. He has just had his bris at the age of 99 and he is recovering in his tent.

Despite him being in pain he is waiting for guests so he can give them food and water and assist them with the rest of their needs. Three visitors appear, but Abraham doesn’t know that they are angels sent by G-d

They come in, and Abraham gives them a tasty and delicious meal, he washes their feet and lets them sit under a shaded tree.

They rest there for a while and then one of the angles tells Abraham, that his wife, Sarah will have a son the following year. Sarah laughed because she was barren, which meant that she couldn’t have children. G-d then asked why Sarah had laughed? To which Abraham replied, that he was too old.

Abraham had thought that Sarah would never be able to have children, so Sarah gave Abraham her slave, Hagar as a concubine so that he could have a child. Hagar fell pregnant and gave birth to a son named Ishmael.

As the angels had predicted, the following year, Sarah gave birth to a son named Isaac. After the birth of Isaac, Sarah didn’t want Hagar and Ishmael to live with them, so demanded they leave and never come back.

G-d told Abraham that He was going to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah because the people who lived there, were disrespectful to each other.

At the time Abraham’s nephew Lot and his family lived in Sodom, so Abraham asked G-d to spare the City, if he could find 50 good people living there but G-d couldn’t find 50 righteous people so Abraham asked for 40 people, then 30 people, and then 20, and finally 10.

G-d could not find even 10 good people, and the City was destroyed.

Abraham negotiated with G-d to save people that he never knew but when it came to sacrificing his own son he didn’t negotiate once with G-d. Abraham had complete faith and belief in G-d and never doubted him.

The most important lesson that I learnt from this parsha is to believe in the best in people, to be kind and have a positive influence in whatever you do.

Abraham never lost belief in G-d despite the decisions he made and what He told Abraham. He was still kind to strangers even though he was in discomfort and pain from his bris. When G-d said he would destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham negotiated for the safety of the people and tried to see the good in all people. Even though it seemed as though G-d had made up his mind to destroy the city Abraham tried his best to help save it.

The parsha taught me the importance of being kind and helpful to people in need. I am privileged to have a close family, a wonderful home and meals whenever I am hungry.

I know that my behavior and my actions will have an influence on the people I meet, and I realise that being helpful and kind will have a positive impact on society and this positivity can spread like a ripple effect.