Chaye Sarah 5770

Chaye Sarah 5770

G-d Blessed Abraham BaKol

This week's parasha opens with the death of Sarah and Abraham's purchase of the cave of Machpelah in which she will be buried.  After mourning and burying his wife, scriptures tells us the Abraham was old, "and G-d blessed Abraham "bah-kol".  It is conventionally translated as "G-d blessed Abraham with all".  But what is "all"?  You know that Hebrew letters also have numerical values.  Rashi, notes that the Hebrew letters of "Bakol" add up to "52", the same as the numerical value of the letters in "ben" – son.  This tells us that Abraham was blessed with everything because he had a son, Isaac, from Sarah.  One can understand how this would have been a great blessing, and some consolation, to a man who had just lost his life partner.  Rabbi Meir, on the other hand, reads this as a blessing that Abraham did not have a daughter!  You see, immediately after this verse, Abraham turns his attention to finding a wife for his son Isaac.  This involves sending his servant on a journey back to his city of origin in Mesopotamia to try to bring a wife back to the Land of Caanan.  If he had a daughter, Rabbi Meir reasons, Abraham would also have to find her a husband, but this would mean the daughter returning to Mesopotamia, because it was the custom of the time for women to live with their husband's family.  There his daughter would be exposed to idol worship and she would perhaps become an idolater herself.  So, it is a blessing that Abraham would not be subject to this heartache of separation and loss.  On the other hand, Rabbi Yehuda says that this verse means that Abraham did have a daughter, and her NAME was "Bakol" – as in, In old age, G-d blessed Abraham with "Bakol".  

There is yet another interpretation. That is, that G-d possesses a divine trait called "KOL", and that God blessed Abraham with this divine trait.  So, we can read this as "In Abraham's old age, G-d blessed him with the divine trait of "Allness".

What might this mean?  With Abraham experiencing the uncertainties of old age, the devastating loss of his wife and the challenge of finding a wife for his son, G-d blessed him with the capacity to see life's fullness and completeness in all things at all times.  It is perhaps easy to see the fullness and completeness of life in the sweeping majesty of a mountain range, in the birth of a healthy newborn, in the celebration of a birthday or of an anniversary.  It is so difficult to see life's fullness and completeness when we experience loss, poor health, or challenges that seem overwhelming. 

In the Shema we are taught to love G-d "bechol levavkah – with all your heart; bekhol nafshecha – with all your soul; uvechol me'odecha.  What is me-odecha?  Here is an interpretation from the Talmud based on the sound of the word – Meodecha – with each and every "mida" that G-d "modeds" we should "modeh" – whatever measure G-d measures out to you, you should acknowledge Him for it."  The capacity to recognize the divine in everything is indeed a great blessing.  May we all be blessed with the awareness of the divine in all things and in this way not only cope with the challenges ahead of us, but convert them into paths of greater gratefulness, hesed, and peace.

(Based on a D'var Torah by Rabbi Henry Glazer)