Parashat Lech Lecha
Dvar Torah in honor of the Yahrtzeit of Mark Samuel Z”L
Parashat Lech Lecha introduces us to the life of Avraham
Avinu, whose name is changed from Avram towards the end of the parasha. The
parasha is a collection of important events in Avraham’s life, interspersed
with very poignant communications with G-d. There are several themes in the
parasha, but central to the story is the balance between bold action, and
compelling faith. Avraham takes bold action in his decision to leave his
ancestral homeland at age 75, to move to Canaan. He is the man of conviction
when he sets out to Egypt during a famine, countering the Egyptians lack of
morality to save himself and Sarah, both escaping unharmed and amassing riches.
He was a man of action in challenging the 4 Kings who attacked the 5 kings
around Sodom, rushing to the rescue of his nephew Lot. In all of these things,
the subtext was clearly the prophetic interactions that he had with G-d. He was
told to go to Canaan which he would inherit for all generations of his
children. He was told he would be protected, that his offspring would be
numerous. Yet, here he was 99 years old at the end of the Parasha, and having
had a child (Yishmael) with Sarah’s handmaiden, not knowing if he would
actually have any offspring to allow the prophecies to be fulfilled. And
despite this, he remarkably soldiers on. His life is famous for having at least
10 tests, which begin in our parasha and culminate with the binding of Isaac in
next week’s parasha. The ability to maintain his faith in the light of these
tremendous challenges, whether it was as large scale as the military battle
with the 5 kings, or as intimate and human as his discussion with Sarah about
having a child via Hagar. You would almost expect, as we see in next weeks’
parasha, that he would argue with G-d; that he would at least say “G-d, you’ve
made all these promises about creating a great nation, about having countless
offspring, how do I know they will come true? I still don’t have a child!” Towards the culmination of the parasha,
Avraham is told that in the year to come, he will have a child with Sarah who
he will call Yitzhak; he breaks down and laughs (the root of Yitzhak, is
Tzahak, to laugh). That is as close as he comes to showing a bit of shaken
faith; however immediately after, he, at age 99, brings together his son
Ishmael, age 13, and all the men of his household, and they undergo
circumcision, no small feat considering his age!
The lives of our forefathers are given to us is great detail
in order to provide examples of how to conduct ourselves. On one hand we can marvel at Avraham, a
prophet, a visionary who realized that there was a G-d in this world who was
not some inanimate object, and who was the true moving force in history. None
of us are at the level of spiritual grandeur that Avraham reached. However, all
of our lives are defined by a series of challenges and tests, as we read in the
parasha. The magnitude may be different, but they are no less challenging and
no less important to any of us. They give us plenty of reason to doubt, to be
frustrated, to give up. This is where faith must come in. Avraham carried on,
had faith, despite not knowing if the outcome would match the prophesies. He
remained true to his vision and soldiered on, even when it appeared illogical,
even when it looked like the natural order was against him. This is a lesson we
can take to heart with our own struggles.
Going against the so-called natural order is one of the hallmarks
of humans, and is what makes science and the pursuit of new knowledge so
rewarding and ultimately, so amazing. In a recent lab meeting, my students and
I were discussing a new paradigm that one of our studies appeared to reveal.
This is, to our knowledge, extremely novel, and hopefully will change how other
scientists look at the particular issue we are studying. However, breaking new
ground is not easy. It takes conviction and lots of faith to challenge established
principles and put your ideas out on the line.
I learned a lot from Mark in this regard. He was a brilliant, cutting
edge scientist, who had no qualms about challenging existing knowledge and
trying to create new paradigms. He also championed new applications of older, less
understood methodologies. He created a stir, perhaps not as earth shaking as
founding the first monotheistic religion, but in context, his work, his
attitude, confidence and faith in what he believed in led to great things.
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