Sign In Forgot Password

Sermon: Parshat Toledot, 11/5/21

11/09/2021 05:14:26 PM

Nov9

Rabbi Charlie

Shabbat Shalom!

People are complicated. We are all a mix of emotions. We’re not consistent one hundred percent of the time. We fall short with the best of intentions. We succeed against all odds. We are a mess… and we are amazing – each and every one of us. And most of us are trying to do good. We’re doing the best we can to live a good life and care for others. We often know this about ourselves. I wish it wasn’t so hard to see that same humanity in other people.

In parshat Toldot, Isaac is in a difficult situation. When he’s old and has lost his vision, his son Jacob – with his wife Rebecca’s help – tricks him into giving a blessing that Isaac thought was going to Esau. The Torah ultimately accepts this deception while our rabbis applaud it and provide all the reasoning for why Jacob and Rebecca were justified. But when Esau comes in after Jacob, asking for his blessing, the Torah says:

וַיֶּחֱרַ֨ד יִצְחָ֣ק חֲרָדָה֮ גְּדֹלָ֣ה עַד־מְאֹד֒

Isaac was seized with very violent trembling.

The way that I read the plain meaning of the verse, the Torah says that Isaac realized he was duped and he was very upset. Midrash Tanchuma (Toledot 11, 13) – an incredible collection of rabbinic interpretation and storytelling – teaches something very different.

The Midrash explains that Isaac trembled twice in his life. Once when he was bound by his father and again here, in this moment. While family deception is horrible, it’s hard to imagine how almost being sacrificed would not be worse. The reasoning, according to the Midrash, is that when Isaac realized that he had just blessed Jacob and not Esau, Isaac had a vision of Gehenna – which is sort of like a Jewish version of hell – and Esau was making the flames rise higher.

Those were the flames of hatred and destruction. The midrash is implying that Isaac had a vision of Romans – who were seen as descendants of Esau – and the Romans were destroying the Second Temple. Our rabbis argue that while Roman hands and Roman fires made the Temple into a ruin, what caused this to happen was sinat chinam – baseless hatred within and between Jewish groups.

The hatred that Esau had for Jacob was the same hatred that 2nd Temple Jews had for one another. This is why Isaac trembled – for such hatred only leads to destruction.

19th Century scholar, Bulgarian Rabbi Eliezer Papo, in his ethical work “Pele Yoetz” (356:1), wrote about hatred:

“…there is no sin of all the sins like hatred,” because when you hate you’re transgressing two mitzvot:  – “Do not hate your brother in your heart.” and “You shall love your fellow as yourself.” He argues that any kind of hatred is sinat chinam – baseless hatred.  

Rabbi Papo’s argument comes from Jewish tradition. The Talmud teaches (Sanhedrin 105b) that “hatred makes the straight crooked.” Pirkei Avot (2:11) argues that “hatred of one’s fellow drives a person from the world.” When we hate it’s hard to appreciate the good things we do have. When we hate, we’re certainly not seeing the other person or people as full, complex, amazing, messy human beings.

I was appalled to see the new video of a homeless man kicked repeatedly by a Dallas paramedic this past week. Unfortunately there are a ridiculous number of videos where homeless people are beaten or murdered for no reason. I’m appalled at the hatred spouted at school board meetings. School board members should not be receiving death threats. In so many ways, I’m appalled that hatred seems to be the biggest obstacle to finding practical solutions to real issues in our society.

So how do we stop the hate?

First – know the difference between disagreeing with or condemning an act verses revoking someone’s humanity. There should be consequences for that paramedic – what he did was horrific. At the same time, I realize that a news report is only going to provide so much information. Our legal system is supposed to uphold both of these ideals - that bad actions deserves punishment and law breakers are human beings.

 Second – Don’t let hate go. When we hear a friend or acquaintance cross the line from complaining about how “this person made a horrible decision” to “because of this decision, this person is the root of all evil” – please say something. Give feedback to news stations. Hate can breed hate – when we don’t let it go, we’re starting to break that cycle.

Finally – recognize the hate we’re holding on to. It’s a mitzvah not to hate another in our heart or bear a grudge. It doesn’t mean that we aren’t entitled to feel hurt or upset. That’s different from hate when we stop seeing the person. It can take time to heal, but we shouldn’t hold onto the hurt forever. Maybe we try not to generalize about a whole group of people. Maybe if someone has wronged us, we try to express it in a way they can hear us. Just the act of recognizing our own hate and trying to reduce our own internal tensions can help.

We are wonderful and infuriating, compassionate and judgmental, fallible and forgiving. We are people. And when there’s so much hatred, it’s hard to remember that. Since we need to start somewhere, let’s make sure we remember that we are all people!

And in that spirit, I hope to see you at the Peace Together Walk tomorrow!

Shabbat Shalom!

Fri, March 29 2024 19 Adar II 5784