Wake Up

Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

We read this week in Parshas Toldos about Rivkah’s difficult pregnancy. She is informed that “shnei goyim bevitneich,” she would be giving birth to two distinct personalities, Yaakov and Eisov, who would lead two separate nations.

Yaakov was the epitome of goodness, while Eisov is always pointed to as the embodiment of evil. The pesukim describe their differences somewhat cryptically, and Chazal expound upon what took place.

The posuk portrays Eisov as an “ish yodeia tzayid, ish sodeh,” a hunter, while Yaakov is depicted as an “ish tam yosheiv ohalim,” a fine person who spent his time in the tent of Torah.

On the day that Avrohom Avinu passed away, Yaakov prepared the customary “nozid” of lentils for the mourners to partake of when returning from the cemetery. Eisov returned “oyeif,” tired, from committing sins and murder in the fields. He asked Yaakov to let him eat the red mix, “ki oyeif anochi,” because he was tired. The posuk concludes, “Al kein kara shemo Edom – Therefore, they called him Edom.”

While it is commonly understood that he was given the name Edom because of his red hair and because he preferred to partake in the red soup rather than to serve as a bechor in the Bais Hamikdosh, we must understand why the posuk interrupts the discussion of his desire for the red food to tell us that he was oyeif, tired.

Yaakov responded that he would serve Eisov the red soup if he would give him the bechorah in exchange. The posuk describes this with the words, “Vayomer Yaakov michra chayom es bechorasecha li.”

Eisov was overjoyed by the deal. He mocked the bechorah and noted that it was of no use to him, since he would die anyway.

The conversation between Yaakov and Eisov is similar to the exchange between Avrohom and his assistants as they were approaching Har Hamoriah to perform the Akeidah with Yitzchok.

Avrohom and Yitzchok saw “hamakom meirachok”; they had vision and perceived the holiness of the mountain ahead of them and its eternal meaning to the Jewish people.

The assistants only knew what was immediately in front of them. They had no vision; they didn’t see the mountain up ahead and didn’t feel anything holy about the path they were on.

Avrohom told them to stay behind with the donkeys, and for all time, Chazal compared that nation to animals, for they have no vision towards the future, seeing only the present and what is in front of them.

So too, the exchange between Yaakov and Eisov contains the ideologies that would separate the two until this very day. In their dialogue and subsequent barter, the lines that separate the nations for eternity were drawn.

To Eisov and his progeny, life is temporal and fleeting. Eisov tires himself working for momentary splashes of joy. However, when it comes to matters of lasting value, he is lethargic and uninterested, because they do not grant instant physical pleasure.

A person is referred to as an oyeif when he becomes tired from engaging in idle pursuit – or worse – he simply has no strength left to engage in matters of lasting value. A student who spends the night playing games instead of studying and sleeping is too tired the next day to study and conduct himself properly.

Thus, Eisov was named Edom, and his nation is referred to as Edom for all time, because his desire for the red soup - and the lopsided barter he agreed to in order to obtain it - express his essence: Eisov and the Edomites trade the holy and eternal for simple temporal pleasure.

The opportunity of bechorah was an investment that would offer future spiritual benefits. The inherent gifts of avodah and closeness to Hashem, serving as the nation’s representatives in the Mishkon, were in the distance. Eisov didn’t possess the energy to see that far. He saw the soup, he smelled it, and he quickly enjoyed it as he moved on to fulfill his next temptation.

To Eisov, something that cannot be immediately touched and tasted has no value. The subtle and the sublime mean nothing to him. Eisov lives only in the moment for the moment. He gets his high and then he is drained, tired and empty.

Rav Mordechai Respler, rosh yeshiva of Mesivta of Long Beach, spent a few days last week with Lev L’Achim in Eretz Yisroel, observing the organization’s amazing work from one end of the country to the other. Among the people he met there was one of Israel’s leading soccer players, who has become observant through the efforts of Lev L’Achim, making many sacrifices along the way, as can be imagined. Though he still plays professionally, he spends his mornings learning Torah.

Rav Respler asked him why he gave up so much for Torah. What drove him?

He responded that with all the fame, fortune and adulating crowds, he still felt emptiness in his heart. When you go home and all the noise is gone, you are alone and empty.

When he discovered Torah and began learning and doing mitzvos, he suddenly felt fulfilled. He is thus happily on his way to becoming a full-fledged shomer Torah umitzvos.

And so it is that reshoim bechayeihem kruyim meisim, because their lives are void and empty and they are unfulfilled.

The adjectives in the posuk are laden with meaning and significance. When the posuk states “vehu oyeif,” it means more than the fact that Eisov was tired. He lacked in spirit and in verve.

This is reinforced by the phrase used in the posuk to describe the sale: “michra kayom.” It was a sale for today, because Eisov’s vision was limited to that which fit with his need for immediate gratification.

Yaakov didn’t tire. He remained vibrant, fresh and young, with the feeling that a person has at the dawn of a new day, when he is just getting started, aflame with the sense of possibility and optimism that comes with the start of a project or endeavor. He saw far into the future. He visualized the fires of the mizbeiach, the joy of a korban being accepted, and the sanctity of the makom haMikdosh. He was able to “taste” it right then. He felt it. He saw a bigger picture than “kayom.” When he realized the value of every moment and every mitzvah and every word of Torah, he was energized.

In making that decision, he invested us, his children, with the ability to stay young - ki na’ar Yisroel ve’ohaveihu - and remain fresh. Yaakov studied for 14 years in the yeshiva of Sheim and Eiver without sleeping (Rashi, Bereishis 28:12, from Bereishis Rabbah).

Imagine a marathon runner nearing the finish line. He is sapped, drained, thirsty and hot. But he sees the finish line and his spirits are up. He looks ahead, more excited and energetic as his eyes behold his goal.

A nation of people who had the strength to walk into fires in Spain, death pits in Lithuania, and gas chambers in Poland, and face the less glorious mesirus nefesh of turning their backs on the world, ignoring the call of the street and the lure of the outside culture each day, draw their strength from that vision. They embody the rush of power that comes from visualizing a goal.

Thus, the posuk states, “Vekovei Hashem, those who hope to Hashem, yachalifu koach, are constantly re-energized.” Their hope and faith invest them with life, spirit and stamina.

Being a Jew means being connected and charged. That is the legacy of Yaakov Avinu. That is our legacy. That is who we are.

Rav Mordechai Zuckerman was a humble tzaddik with a glowing countenance and unassuming ways who lived in Yerushalayim not long ago. A student of Kelm, he hid his greatness and conducted himself outwardly as if he was a regular, simple person. As was the custom, he would go to the local makolet (grocery) every morning after davening to purchase bread and milk, and he would wait on line to pay just like everyone else.

Back in those days, in the morning, the bread and milk would sit outside in boxes as most people came by after they had davened. Once, as he was on line waiting to pay for his items, a fellow customer held up a bag of milk he had taken from the box on the floor and asked the makolet owner, “Zogt mir, Reb Pinya, is the milk fresh?”

With the dry wit unique to Yerushalmis, Reb Pinya responded, “It was fresh when it came here.”

Rav Zuckerman lit up. He turned to his friend who was standing on line next to him, Rav Avrohom Sh’or Yoshuv, and said, “Reb Avrohom, did you hear what he said? That is our story. We arrive in this world fresh. It is our job to do what we can to remain fresh. Men darfen bleiben frish.”

Man’s obligation in this world, summed up in a single sentence.

The message of the milk is an important one for us all, no matter our age or our physical condition. A person who is alive, who appreciates the gifts Hashem has given him, and who understands “mah chovaso ba’olamo” doesn’t tire. Every moment is an opportunity for nitzchiyus, not to be wasted or squandered.

Did you ever notice that people who play football don’t appear tired? They get knocked down and pick themselves right back up and go back to playing. There is no stopping them. They push themselves to be their very best, charged with energy, focused on scoring. Because it is important to them, they give it all they’ve got. And if they didn’t sleep well the night before, it’s fine, because they’ll sleep tonight when the game is over.

And so it is, lehavdil, with people who appreciate Torah and mitzvos. Adrenaline kicks in every time they do a mitzvah, take a step, daven and learn. They live to do mitzvos and to learn Torah and don’t let anything stop them.

Reshoim, who by definition lack this appreciation, are kruyim meisim. Even when they are alive, they are dead. They are spent, lethargic and burnt out. They have no energy to perform life’s tasks.

Many talmidei chachomim with whom we are familiar can become overwhelmed by the day’s activities and pressures, yet when they are in front of a Gemara, they become alive. They are energized and electric with anticipation and joy as they study the word of Hashem. They are the offspring of Yaakov, who didn’t sleep for the fourteen years he studied in the yeshiva of Sheim and Eiver.

The Vilna Gaon didn’t sleep more than two hours each night, yet he had strength to study Torah throughout the day and night. Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv awoke every morning at 2:30 a.m. and began another day of uninterrupted Torah study for hours on end. Other anoshim gedolim also wake early and spend their days studying Torah, alive and fully energized.

No matter what our surroundings are and no matter what challenges are thrown our way, Hashem has blessed every one of us with the ability to keep our internal fire of Torah burning, ready to burst into a glowing flame at any moment. Let us do what we can to grow that fire, day after day, week after week, and year after year, expending our energies on matters of substance and meaning.

Let us endeavor to always remain focused on a goal, ambitious and driven, young and vital, as long as we are able to on this earth. If what we are doing is worth doing, then it is worth doing it right, energetically and giving it all we’ve got.

Let us never become lazy, lethargic or tired, focusing merely on momentary impediments.

We are charged with a mission.

Let’s get going.

Uncompromising

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

So much in the world is not what it seems. When we were young and naïve, we accepted everything at face value, but the older we get and the more we experience, the more we recognize that too often, our eyes deceive us. Too often, what appears to be good is not and what gives a bad impression can really be something good.

We have to develop methods to protect ourselves from people who seek to do us harm behind a guise of friendship and kindness. Our avos were surrounded by such duplicitous characters.

In this week’s parsha, we are introduced to some classics. When Sarah passed away and Avrohom sought to bury her in the Me’oras Hamachpeilah, he encountered Efron Hachiti. Presenting himself as a philanthropist, Efron announces that he wouldn’t be charging Avrohom for the coveted burial spot. However, when Avrohom insists on paying, the generosity evaporates and a very high price is demanded and paid.

Through it all, Avrohom was the consummate gentleman. Even while Efron was insinuating that he would give the land for free, Avrohom was insisting on paying for the property. Avrohom knew the psychology of his neighbors and understood how they operated. He didn’t want their favors and didn’t permit them to create the impression that they were respectful to him. He knew the malice that lay in their hearts and headed them off.

His disciple, Eliezer, learned the lessons of Avrohom, and when he came upon the arch-phonies Besuel and his son Lovon, father and brother of Rivkah, the girl who by dint of tefillos and tests he determined was the basherte spouse for Yitzchok, he did not permit himself to get involved with them.

When Lovon began negotiating with Eliezer over Rivkah (Bereishis 24:55), he did not engage him. He requested, “Al t’achru osi v’Hashem hitzliach darki - Hashem has helped me succeed until now. Don’t try to hold me back from completing my mission” (ibid. 24:56). With that, Rivkah was summoned and was soon on the way to meet Yitzchok.

In last week’s parsha, when Avrohom learned that Lot’s shepherds were feeding their flocks in private lands not owned by them, he told Lot that they must separate. Avrohom could not countenance dishonest behavior.

Avrohom didn’t bargain with Lot or Efron. Eliezer didn’t negotiate with Lovon and Besuel. And we learn from them to do the same.

When encountering those who seek to undermine us and push us from the path of Hashem, we don’t debate or negotiate. With strength bequeathed to us by the avos, we insist on doing what is proper, and separate ourselves from them.

Maskilim presented themselves as our brethren motivated by a sense of responsibility to help the backward ones adapt with the times and advance. Secularists founded schools in religious areas to lead children astray. They vowed that they had come to help and educate, to feed and dress the poor shtetel residents.

Singular rabbonim gedolim and dedicated askonim saw through the ruse and took them on, saving many innocents, as thousands were lost, swept along in a sea of inequity presented as halachic modernity.

Conservative Jewry presented itself as the future of Yiddishkeit. Essentially, what they did was rob hundreds of thousands of Jews of their future and cut them and their offspring from the path that they thought they were following. Jews across this country switched from Orthodox to Conservative thinking that it was no big deal and that by doing so they would keep Yiddishkeit alive in the new country.

Musmochim of yeshivos took positions as rabbis in Conservative “shuls.” The pay was better, the buildings were nicer, and the future was seemingly brighter. Their compromise cost them their children and afflicted their lives, in this world and the next.

The allure of Efron and the sweet talking of the house of Besuel and Lovon blinded them. They didn’t learn the lesson of Avrohom and Eliezer, who avoided anything that was out of line with an honest, meticulous, inflexible adherence to words of Hashem.

As I was sitting shivah for my father two weeks ago, I received a call from someone he knew in Massachusetts. She said, “I am 99 years old, so I have to be menachem avel you on the telephone.” We began speaking and she said something in Yiddish, to which I responded in Yiddish. She became emotional. “Fun vanen kenst du redden Yiddish? How do you know how to speak Yiddish?” she asked.

It was so surprising to her that an American like me would understand and speak the language of her parent’s home, with which she had grown up.

And then it hit me. Her world was lost. In her mind, Orthodoxy was lost. She had believed the people when they told her to give up the Orthodoxy of her parents. Although she kept a kosher home, she became removed from the Yiddishkeit of her parents. She thought that it is all gone.

I said to her, “Is there a shul near you, a Chabad house or anything like that?” She responded that “the Chabad is too far away, but right around the corner is Temple Beth El, so I go to the Conservative shul.”

A really fine woman she is, but her story is the tale of too many American Jews lost to the hypocrisy of Conservative Jewry. Unable to resist those who pretend they are something that they are not, so many fine people from the best families drowned in the swamp of assimilation.

Today, there are groups who suck our young from us and others who aren’t particular and rob Jews of their birthright. They present themselves as halachically observant, and people who don’t know better fall for their deceiving moniker of Open Orthodoxy. Selling plain old apikorsus, they gain adherents, bribing shuls to hire their graduates as clergy and selling a supposedly “kinder” and “gentler” Torah.

As many times as we are warned that they are a growing menace, our people shirk the responsibility of exposing the Open Orthodox as anything but and working to shut them down. It is grueling, politically incorrect and unpopular work, but as children of Avrohom, who dedicated his life to spreading the truth, we must do it anyway.

Hypocrites abound wherever we go in the world around us. Just take a look at the news and see how the media is filled with reports of the impeachment show going on in Congress. A majority of Americans see through it and believe that journalists slant their reporting of the impeachment hearings to help impeach the president.

Every day, Democrats lob new bombshells at the president, yet none of them stick and no one really believes the claims or takes them seriously. Yet, the Democrats and their media acolytes speak with straight faces about the pain they feel as their constitutional duties force them to undertake the investigation into the president’s high crimes and misdemeanors. First it was allegations that Trump colluded with Russia. It felt as if Trump’s days were numbered and the evidence was about to be released, forcing him to resign. When that was proven untrue and investigator Mueller was shown to be a bumbling, incoherent fool, the Democrats didn’t run away. They simply came up with another reason for Trump to be expunged from the job he was democratically elected to perform.

We stopped hearing about Russia collusion and new words were added to the daily conversation. He made a quid pro quo with Ukraine, we were told. They would get money if they would investigate the Bidens’ corrupt dealings in that corrupt country. When it was shown that Ukraine got their money without bothering to investigate the Biden corruption, those three words, quid pro quo, exited the lexicon as quickly as they had entered.

Turning on a dime, Democrats came up with a new poll-tested crime for which to impeach the president, and so the congressional so-called investigation continues. Despite the fact that they cannot come up with anything substantial, the headlines continue to ring out and pontificators proclaim that impeachment is around the corner.

Witnesses come forth and testify to matters that are not illegal or are hearsay and not admissible in a real court. The bureaucrats are upset that the president, uninterested in their arrogance and pomposity, has charted a new course in foreign policy, as he promised he would throughout his campaign. He has no use for the Never-Trumper State Department anti-Semitic swamp and has made that obvious, but there is no crime in a president choosing his own people to advise and guide him.

You would never know this if you would depend on the mainstream media and Democrats for your information. Up is down and down is up. The economy hums along, stronger than ever. The stock market hits historic highs and record percentages of citizens are employed. Yet, the president is mocked and vilified as an out-of-control crazy man who must be stopped.

Is this the way the world always operated? Was everything always presented in a backwards manner? Were quotes edited and pictures photoshopped to convey a certain opinion? Or did that only take place in communist and tyrannically-run countries? We aren’t sure anymore.

Too often in life, we encounter little despots, people who think they represent virtue and all must follow and bow to them. We come across hypocrites, who present themselves as friends, as holy people, only to be revealed as charlatans when pressed to perform.

As children of Avrohom, our mission is to spread goodness and G-dliness in this world. We are not to engage with those who deceive, defraud and portray themselves to be something they aren’t. We are to go in the way of Hashem with decency and without causing contention and quarrels.

At the end of this week’s parsha, the posuk states that Avrohom was niftar, and Yitzchok and Yishmoel buried him. Rashi (ibid. 25:4) quotes the Gemara in Bava Basra that says that we see from here that Yishmoel did teshuvah, as he permitted Yitzchok to go before him.

From the fact that Chazal derive that Yishmoel did teshuvah from the way he conducted himself with Yitzchok indicates that a person’s middos stem from his yiras Shomayim. If Yishmoel practiced anovah and derech eretz, it is because towards the end of his life, he repented for all the evil he had done and returned to the ways of Avrohom and Yitzchok.

Let us infuse ourselves and our children with the mesorah of honesty and fidelity to the word of Hashem and to each other in all we do. We do that by studying Torah and by increasing our yiras Shomayim.

A Great People

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

As we continue studying Seder Bereishis, we learn more of the immense stature of the avos. Parshas Vayeira is replete with stories from the life of Avrohom Avinu, one of the greatest people to ever walk this earth. From his devotion to the mitzvah of hachnosas orchim to the way he dealt with the nisayon of the Akeidah, every nuance of his demeanor, speech and actions personified the values he sought to instill in his descendants, continuing to guide and inspire us to this day.

“Maaseh avos siman labonim.” The actions of the fathers guide their children, as they point out the path to perfection in this world.

Some of the stories seem plausible only in relation to someone of Avrohom Avinu’s caliber. We wonder if we are really expected to reach the levels of chesed and kedusha that he attained. Yet, if the Torah recorded these spiritual milestones, it was unquestionably for our edification.

We cannot say that we are not on the level of Avrohom and cannot be expected to act as he did. The Torah records his actions to show us that we can all achieve greatness if we cared as much as Avrohom did. The people all around him were dopey idol worshippers. Sedom was an influential metropolis, where deviancy and selfishness were rewarded.

Avrohom stood out, self-made and selfless. He educated masses and wrote books to spread the notion of a merciful G-d. His life’s mission was to spread goodness throughout the world, and upon the birth of his son, he worked to ensure that Yitzchok would follow in his ways.

I just completed shivah following the passing of my father, whose life’s mission was to pass on to his children the traditions of his parents and see to it that we excel in Torah and mitzvos.

In his sefer on Chumash, my father writes concerning what transpired as Avrohom and Yitzchok set out to fulfill Hashem’s commandment to Avrohom to offer Yitzchok as a korban. As they approached Har Hamoriah, the posuk says, “Vayar es hamakom meirachok.” Avrohom recognized from afar that this was the appointed place. He asked Yitzchok what he saw up ahead and he also recognized the holiness of the mountain. He asked his assistants and they didn’t see anything.

Before offering Yitzchok as a korban, Avrohom wanted to ensure that he properly trained him and brought him up well. “My son, do you see what I see? Do you see the kedusha? Do you perceive what is up ahead? Do you have the same vision that I have?” If so, Avrohom could be satisfied that he had fulfilled his obligation in raising a son who appreciated holiness and could recognize it even from afar. He was able to recognize on his own that Har Hamoriah was his goal.

When he saw that he had successfully inculcated this into his son, Avrohom was then able to continue on together with him to fulfill Hashem’s commandment on Har Hamoriah.

We, too, in our day, must recognize that our primary obligation is to raise our children in the traditions of our forefathers. We must teach them about Torah and holiness and their importance in our lives until the children are able, on their own, to recognize what is holy and what is profane. They will then be able to separate the two and concentrate on reaching and attaining the points of holiness.

We must provide our children with the intelligence and vision to live lives of kedusha.

And it works both ways. The children are also obligated to follow the teachings of their parents and act the way they did. This is clearly stated in the Tana Devei Eliyohu (25), which says, “Kol echod m’Yisroel chayov lomar mosai yagiu maasai lemaasei avosai.” Every Jewish person is obligated to work to attain the level where their actions are on the level of their forefathers, Avrohom, Yitzchok and Yaakov.

This is the greatness of our people and what separates us from others, guaranteeing that our traditions and passion for kindness live on.

The parshiyos of Bereishis are intended for us to be inspired by Avrohom’s example and for us to work to train ourselves to do chesed until it becomes second nature. We study these parshiyos and note that we are expected to judge people favorably and to deal forthrightly, honestly and charitably with everyone, no matter who they are and whether we agree with their actions and philosophies.

All too often, we refrain from helping others because they are from a different camp; they were brought up differently than we were and serve Hashem differently than we do. We divide people into groups and label them. Studying this week’s parsha should demonstrate to us that this is not the way of our fathers and forefathers. Just because we disagree with someone does not mean that we cannot help them.

It is interesting to note that Avrohom Avinu interrupted his conversation with Hashem to help three strangers. He davened on behalf of the evil city of Sedom, but went ahead with the Akeidah, because Hashem had so commanded. The mitzvos of Hashem must be followed, whether we understand them or not. Avrohom felt that the mitzvah of chesed obligated him to help everyone.

Many of us rationalize. We see ourselves as big tzaddikim. But when it comes to performing mitzvos that are more difficult or expensive than others, we find excuses not to perform them or we do them on a minimal level. Those who act that way should not consider themselves as worthy heirs to Avrohom Avinu.

We should start by performing simple courtesies for each other and everyone with whom we come in contact. Letting people out of their driveways and parking spots and permitting them to make a left turn cost us mere seconds. It pains me each time I see pqeople rush with their cars to close the gap with the car ahead so that the poor trapped person shouldn’t even think of trying to get out. It is almost as if we act like people of Sedom, yet we consider ourselves as worthy heirs to Avrohom’s tradition.

Speaking of rationalization and justification of acting differently than Avrohom, many ask why we make a big deal of Avrohom following Hashem’s command to offer his beloved son at the Akeidah. Once Hashem issues a command, there is no way that anyone can ignore His order.

Rav Elozor Menachem Man Shach, whose yahrtzeit falls this week, answers that the only prophet to whom Hashem appeared b’aspaklarya hame’irah was Moshe Rabbeinu. Moshe was told exactly what Hashem wanted him to do. All other nevi’im saw their prophecy in a dream and in a parable.

When Hakadosh Boruch Hu appeared to Avrohom and told him regarding Yitzchok, “Vehaaleihu shom l’olah,” Avrohom would have been justified in interpreting the command in numerous ways, none of them involving the death of Yitzchok.

After all, Hashem had promised Avrohom that his name would live on through his son Yitzchok. It would have been perfectly reasonable to assume that Hashem had something else in mind and that “vehaaleihu” didn’t mean to sacrifice his beloved son, but rather to raise him.

But Avrohom analyzed Hashem’s words as though they were referring to someone other than his son, and he reached the conclusion that Hashem wanted Yitzchok for a korban.

There is always the urge to wiggle out of doing good things. Too often, we look for a way to get ourselves off the hook of having to perform a chesed that was dropped in our lap. We say, “It’s not for me to do. I don’t have a big enough car. I don’t have enough strength. They don’t need my money; they only need my advice.” If we are asked to make a phone call to raise money for a needy person, we procrastinate and offer excuses as to why we are the wrong person to make the call.

Not so Avrohom. He didn’t make any excuses. He didn’t look for a way out. Every Jew was his brother. He taxed himself to the utmost to understand the word of Hashem and then ran to fulfill it.

When we have a mitzvah to do, when we have obligations, we shouldn’t seek the easy way out. We shouldn’t look for excuses to shirk our duty. We should seek to carry it out to the fullest, with all hiddurim, exactly as Avrohom would have done.

The posuk states, “Vayashkeim Avrohom baboker… And Avrohom awoke the morning of the Akeidah and set out to find the appointed place.” Many explain that the posuk is teaching us the greatness of Avrohom. Even though he was going to sacrifice his son, he awoke at the crack of dawn to fulfill the word of Hashem.

The Brisker Rov says that it is natural that a person who is going to fulfill the word of Hashem would wake up early to perform the action without delay. He says that the lesson of the posuk is that Avrohom was able to sleep the night before setting out to shecht Yitzchok. Even though he knew that he was going to kill his beloved son in whom all his dreams for the future were invested, he was able to sleep peacefully.

He who is sure of himself, without doubting or questioning the ways of Hashem, serves with complete faith and sleeps very comfortably at night. One who deals honestly with his fellow man; one who hears the pleas of the hungry, the desolate and the poor; one who rises to every occasion and doesn’t turn a deaf ear to the cries of the abused and afflicted; one whose life isn’t a string of excuses and half-truths, is a child of Avrohom Avinu and can sleep comfortably at night.

There are people of such nobility in every neighborhood. During the period following my father’s passing and throughout the week of shivah, we got to meet Monsey’s best. The people of Hatzolah, Chaverim, and the chevrah kadishah were there to help. Anonymous people dropped whatever it was that they were doing and ran to be of assistance. They are worthy heirs to Avrohom Avinu and bring pride to our people.

For a week, our family was dependent on the chassodim of others for so many things and we got to see the greatness of our people. As a nation, we have been through so much, yet the middos of our avos and imahos still drive and motivate enough of us that Avrohom can be proud of us.

May Hashem spare everyone from tzaar and tzaros, and may we never need the favors of others. But when we do, it is comforting to know that armies of gutteh Yidden stand by, ready to perform chasdei avos, and many are out there daily doing all the little and big things people need to keep their feet on the ground, their kids in school, and the heat running in the homes of people who can’t afford it. Is there another people as active in hachnosas kallah, bikur cholim and gemillus chassodim as we are?

In their merit, may we be zoche to the realization of “umeivi goel livnei veneihem.”