Shabbat Shalom GRJC

Weekly Emails to the Congregation

Parshat Chayey Sarah 2007

Shabbat Shalom to the GRJC family,

This Shabbat, we light candles at 5:33 PM.  Friday evening services will begin at 8 PM and Saturday morning services will begin at 9 AM.  Cantor Ayelet Piatigorsky will be joining us.

Rachel will be giving her senior sermon at the Jewish Theological Seminary in Manhattan on Friday night, and so we will be away through Saturday evening.  The senior sermon is a tradition for all senior rabbinical students.  Each student presents a d’var Torah on a Shabbat during the year as a way of demonstrating skills as a teacher and preacher.

We read this Shabbat from the beginning of parshat Chayey Sarah.  The irony in the title of this parasha is that the parasha opens with the death of Sarah.  In Rashi’s commentary on the opening of the parasha, he explains:

“Sara’s death follows the binding-of-Isaac since, after hearing that her son was to be sacrificed [by Abraham] and almost was sacrificed, her soul left her and she died.”

There is a similar story, with some more details, in a book of Midrash (Midrash = Stories told by the rabbis about the Torah.)

“When Abraham returned from Mt. Moriah [the site of the binding of Isaac], Sama’el [Satan, Evil Angel] got angry since he had been unable to prevent Abraham from making his offering to God.[The offering of the ram.]  What did he do?  He went to Sarah and said, “Do you know what happened?”  She said, “No.”  Sama’el continued, “Abraham took Isaac, sacrificed him, and offered him on an altar.”  Sarah began to cry and wailed three times, like the three shofar-tekiot…and her soul left her and she died.” (Pirke de’Rabbi Eliezer [Heiger] “Chorev”, Chap. 31)

We see here one version of how Sarah learned about the binding of her son.  Sama’el, however, distorts the story by suggesting that Abraham completed the sacrifice.

In our world of instant communication, we often receive reports or information that end up being only partly true or altogether false.  It often takes time and several versions of a story before we can evaluate the evidence.  Sarah, according to the Midrash, received the news and could not withstand its impact.

Can you think of a time when you heard a story or a piece of news that had an impact on you?  Can you think of a time when that information turned out to be partially true or false?  What was your response after learning a different side of the story?

**November 2nd is “Balfour Day”, commemorating the adoption of a British government directive on Nov. 2, 1917 that supported the establishment of a Jewish national home in Palestine.**

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1. ADULT EDUCATION – Join me Sunday morning at 9:45 AM for my ongoing Adult-Ed class.  This week’s topic is, “Conversion in Jewish Thought and Practice.”  We will discuss the mechanics and meaning of conversion to Judaism.

2. MITZVAH DAY! SUNDAY, NOV 4TH  – Check the flier included in the October bulletin for information on UJA mitzvah day events for Sunday.

3. Nov 9-10 - We will celebrate the Bat Mitzvah of Sarah Boutom.

4. Friday night, Nov. 9 - Celebrating all November Birthdays and Anniversaries - During Friday night services.

5. Friday night, Nov. 9 - Remembering Kristallnacht, "Night of Broken Glass", a commemoration during Friday night services.

6. Saturday morning, Nov. 10, we will have a short Veterans Day ceremony during our service.  We would like to welcome all veterans to join us, both veterans of US military service and service in the Israeli IDF.

7. “Darfur Now” – An important and powerful new documentary film on the genocide in Darfur, Sudan will be playing in NYC for a two-week engagement beginning this weekend.  Please consider seeing this film as a way of both learning about and inspiring further activism.  Tickets online—Lincoln Plaza Cinemas (Broadway btw 62nd and 63rd), and Angelika Film Center (18 West Houston Street).

8. COLLEGE ADDRESSES – We want to stay in touch with our college-aged members! Please email us with your son or daughter’s ‘snail-mail’ addresses so that we can send monthly bulletins, as well as Chanukah and Purim packages.  Email addresses would be helpful too!  Please send the information to membership@grjc.org, Thank you!


Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Tow

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