I wasn’t going to write as things are still crazy after the chagim…but then I thought, it’s the first parsha of the year! If I want to maintain my commitment to this, I have to write. So, that being said, please forgive this very off-the-cuff, poorly prepared dvar Torah as an exercise in discipline.
Parshas Bereishis: Kayin and Hevel in the 21st Century
Dedicated to a refuah shelaima for Chaya Sarah bas Esther
Leah, Sharon bas Shoshana, Moshe Aaron ben Necha Itta, and Binyamin ben Simcha.
This past Simchas Torah was a chag whose simcha was doubled
by the release of the last living hostages from Gaza. Two years ago, our
generation of Jews received a devastating shock – we were well and truly part
of b’kol dor va’dor, in every generation they stood to destroy us. More so one
can say that over the last two years many Jews were equally shocked to realize
the truth of Eisev soneh es Yaakov, and Esev hates Yaakov.
There are many events in the Torah that we can point to as
explanations for what our nation has gone through, but perhaps the root of it
is in this very first parsha: jealousy. Kayin and Hevel (Cain and Abel) were
the two eldest children of Adam and Chava (Eve). As the first descendants of
the most unique creation of the Boreh Olam (Creator of the World), they should
have gotten along splendidly; after all, aside from the twin sisters described
in the Midrash, who else did they have to hang out with. Instead, their
relationship was destroyed by jealousy – and not just any jealousy, but a
jealousy related to God’s approval.
Kayin and Hevel both sought to praise and thank Hashem in
bringing their offerings. When Hevel’s offering was accepted over Kayin’s (for
reasons I won’t go into here), Kayin reacted with violence. Inherently, Kayin
could not leave room for someone else to hold top rank. Indeed, he could not
accept that he might be able to learn something from someone else. (Interestingly,
I read somewhere that he was, in fact, the more creative of the two brothers
and yet he was the one who could not accept the success of the other.)
What does this have to do with the events of the last two
years? There are analogies of human nature that offer us a new perspective on
the times we are living through. Those who seek to destroy us are descendants
of Yishmael, the elder of the two sons of Avraham but also the one who was not chosen
to carry on his father’s legacy of bringing a relationship with the Divine into
the world. Over and over again, Bnei Yishmael seethes to claim the heritage of
Yitzhak, although they do not necessarily express this clearly the way Bnei
Eisav wrestles with Bnei Yaakov.
Interestingly, the spiritual battle of Eisav and Yaakov is
different. It’s in some ways, more refined. Eisav wants to prove itself right;
Yishmael wants to prove itself only.
Yes, we’ve jumped throughout Sefer Bereishis, but these
sibling battles come back to their great-great-etc-uncle. What do you do when
Hashem, the Ultimate Father, says that your brother will be the path forward?
Kayin’s reaction was violence, but what Bnei Yishmael fails to recognize is
that Kayin’s violence was a short-term victory. Ultimately, it was his even
younger brother’s descendants who populated the earth (Noah being a descendant
of Seth).
The Torah shows us, clearly, that life – that history – is
full of cycles. Alas, one such cycle is that of jealousy (although that is not
really the right word for any of the Biblical rivalries) and violence. Why this
is necessary in the world is a question that I would say none of us can truly
comprehend, but the facts of history prove that it is. Knowing that these are
cycles and that our job, the job of Bnei Yisrael, is to hold strong and cling
to Hashem is the essence of Jewish survival, and it’s all there in the sefer we
start this week.
(And now I must get ready for work!)
Wishing you all a beautiful Shabbas Bereishis!
