Lech Lecha 5785

As our Torah reading opens, we are introduced to Abram as he has found what true religious belief and spirituality are about. God turns to Abram stating “Lekh lekha,” “Go for yourself, to the land that I will show you, and there I will make you into a great nation.” God instructs Abram to “leave your homeland, your family, and the home of your father, to the land that I will show you.” God goes on to assure Abram that he will protect him from others who may discriminate against him, as happened in his homeland and in his father’s house: “I will bless those who will bless you and curse those that will curse you.” 

Many of the stories created by the rabbis are quite familiar to us from our childhood religious school days. In one sense this journey was to take Abram away from the discrimination he had found as the first monotheist in the world. So Abram takes his wife Sarai, and his nephew Lot, and they follow God’s directions to the land of Canaan. Lot settles in Sodom and Abram dwells in another part of the land.

 A war ensues where Lot is taken captive. The kings who were victorious also seized all of the wealth of Sodom and Gomorrah. One individual escapes and runs to Abram to apprise him of Lot’s predicament and that of the others.  Abram immediately amasses an army to free Lot and the others. He takes nothing in return as a reward for freeing them. Imagine, taking nothing as a reward. We can assume that he felt that his reward was in freeing his nephew and he didn’t need anything else. Or perhaps the altruism of doing a good deed to free those taken captive was how Abram lived his life.  No need for a reward. Doing good for others is all that is needed. God recognizes Abram’s doings, and in turn wishes to reward him for his altruistic ways.  

This past week, Lisa and I found ourselves being the recipient of another’s altruism.

Just the other day, I received a message on Facebook Marketplace from a woman who wanted  to purchase our in-really-good-condition elliptical that I could no longer use.  When the husband and wife arrived at our door, together with their four beautiful and well-behaved children, we knew that these were truly special people. This young family were some of the politest people I have ever met in my life. 

But here is where the story really takes off. As the father was wheeling the elliptical out our back door, and across our backyard towards his truck, he tripped over a tree stump that had been covered by fallen leaves. He fell to the ground and you can only imagine what happened next. The elliptical fell right on top of his legs. Lisa and I looked and were horrified. We all ran to remove the elliptical  so that he could get out from under it. We were worried that he got hurt. Instead he said “stay where you are” and  he lifted it up and got out himself. He turned and said in a thick Texas accent:  “Earl, you didn’t tell me about that stump. I’m fine.” And we all laughed. As I learned later from his wife, he was teased by his children and by his wife all the way home. 

A few minutes after they left, the wife messaged me: “if you need a guy to take out the stump, her husband would come back another day to take it out. He just didn’t have anything on his truck to do it that day.” 

Fast forward to this past Wednesday. The father and his  four children showed up and he took out the stump in about three minutes time. When I saw that the children had come with their father, I went to our stash and gave them each some chocolate, with permission of their father. Each one said, “thank you Mr. Earl.” When I went to slip him some money, he turned and said the memory of the thirty minutes and the laughter that still remains in their home was all that he needed.  He refused to take it. He gave me a big Texas hug said we are now “framily.” 

Now here is the rest of the story.  On that weekend visit we began talking and we found out that he is the fire marshal for the Coast Guard Academy.  On Wednesday’s visit he said that his kids are faith-based home schooled. He knew that I was clergy. But, on purpose, I did not wear a kippah when they visited.  I guess you cannot take the Jewishness out of the rabbi, because in our conversation as he removed the stump, the husband told me that he knew some of the Jewish cadets that had attended our services. So our connection went back all the way to our High Holiday services, without my even knowing it! 

I wonder if it was part of his faith that because I was clergy he wanted to do this kindness or would he have done this for anyone. I believe it was both.  His wife texted me afterwards to welcome us into their “framily.”

So Lisa and I were the recipients of such a loving act, that was part of a religious altruism, that was similar to that of Abram’s. And more importantly, in the end a religious family was able to fulfill what is important in our religious tradition and theirs as well, not to fulfill a good deed for the purpose of receiving a reward, but simply to do it because it is what is important to do. 

I hope that this story just gives you some respite and a smile after months of the political rhetoric that has consumed us. 

Am Yisrael Chai!
Bring them home now.

Shabbat shalom.

Rabbi K