I have been waiting for this week since I arrived in Houston. פרשת לך לך, Parshat Lech Lecha, tells of the story of Avraham’s sojourning to a land unknown:
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם לֶךְ־לְךָ֛ מֵאַרְצְךָ֥ וּמִמּֽוֹלַדְתְּךָ֖ וּמִבֵּ֣ית אָבִ֑יךָ אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַרְאֶֽךָּ
And Hashem said to Avram, “Go from your land, from the place of your birth, from your father’s house to a land that I will show you.” Bereishit 12:1
I was excited to share with you how Hashem's command to Avraham, His sending him on a mission to fulfill a mission that was unclear to him, built him into the Jewish leader he became. Art mimics life, they say. The journeys that all of our אבות ואמהות, our Forefathers and Foremothers, experienced are some of my more favorite sections of the Torah. They guide us in not only understanding the Jewish journey, and informing our current journey as Jews in 2022. Yet, that is not what I want to share this week.
In all of my Instagram posts this week, I have focused on the theme of defining Jewish Ambassadorship. Avraham and Sarah set the stage in defining monotheism and marking the path for their children and grandchildren thereafter to continue to be guided by their example. רש״י, Rashi (Rav Shlomo Ben Yitzchaki, 1040), explains that Avraham was raised in a home where idol worship was rampant and was not the ideal environment one would design for the father of the Jewish nation. Yet, Avraham exemplified a unique quality. He saw truth through the darkness of that time, learnt from the example that נח, Noach, and his ancestors left and forged a new path in Hashem’s image. Avraham stood up in the face of opposition.
We see this example come up throughout the Torah - Rivkah in Lavan’s house, Moshe being raised in Pharaoh's palace, David in the heat of being chased by Shaul, Eliyahu in a time of persecution by Ezavel. The Jewish people have been synonymous with unapologetically standing for our values in a world where those values are attacked daily.
Today, we at RMBA, have the chance to be the next in line of generations of Jewish Ambassadors the likes of Avraham, Devorah, Esther and all those in between.
Let me explain.
Together with our High School basketball team, I will be traveling to Auburn University to join nine other Jewish Day Schools for a tournament being run by NCSY. Cool? Certainly. Not the reason we are there. We are there to bring a vibrant, joyful, passionate and meaningful Shabbat experience to the entire Auburn Jewish community. Some who have never experienced an authentic Shabbat from start to finish and others who would normally travel over 2 hours to the nearest Chabad to do so.
With the blessing of Coach Bruce Pearl, the Jewish coach of the Auburn Tigers, we are going to bring the fire of Judaism to the lives of so many. (If you want a bit more explanation of who Bruce Pearl is check out these two links and keep your eyes peeled at our school Instagram accounts for more updates throughout the weekend). The students are setting the stage for us adults to take the next step in standing out and making our voices heard.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Houston has initiated the Hineni Houston project to gather the myriad of voices that make up our Jewish communities to help guide their strategic planning for how to continue to grow and nurture Judaism in Houston for years to come. In partnership with them, we will be holding a Listening Forum on Wednesday, November 16th from 7:30-9pm - along with our Listening Wall - so that RMBA parents, staff and alumni can make their wishes, dreams and hopes heard as we join together to follow in the footsteps of our Jewish Ambassadors of the past as we lay the bricks for our Jewish future.
It starts with the students and it must continue with the parents. Avraham’s journey was incomplete until the end of this week’s פרשה when Hashem promises him and שרה, Sarah, that even in their advanced age that they would have a son.
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֗ים אֲבָל֙ שָׂרָ֣ה אִשְׁתְּךָ֗ יֹלֶ֤דֶת לְךָ֙ בֵּ֔ן וְקָרָ֥אתָ אֶת־שְׁמ֖וֹ יִצְחָ֑ק
And Hashem said that Sarah, your wife, would give birth to a son to you and you will call him Yitzchak - Bereishit 17:19
Avraham and Sarah’s journeys were meaningful at the start. They took a whole new view once the future of the Jewish people was on the line. Our children are the driving force that guides us which provides us with the necessary guidance on our next steps.
This Shabbat our children are sounding the call. The question Avraham and they are asking is will we hear it?