Community Torah Corner, November 24, 2024

Parshat Vayetze opens with the word departure. Out of fear for his life, Jacob leaves Israel. We find this idea of leaving one place for another expressed in a number of other contexts in the Torah. God takes Abraham out of Ur Kasdim on his sojourn to Canaan. In the Exodus story, the children of Israel will come out of Egypt. The event of Yetziat Mitzrayim, the exodus from slavery to freedom defines much of the identity of the Biblical story and Jewish practice to this day. 

Jacob’s departure, however, departs from this theme. Unlike Abraham and unlike Israel, Jacob leaves out of fear. His mother Rebecca begs him to go to Charan and save himself from Esav’s bloodthirst. Jacob leaving Israel out of fear is akin to Abraham’s early experience with the land of Canaan. When he arrives, almost immediately the land is beset with famine. This famine represents one of Abraham’s 10 tests. The Torah says because of the famine Abraham goes down to Egypt. When the land becomes uninhabitable, Abraham flees. This decision to go, in Nachmanides view, represents a failure. Abraham left the land out of fear of hunger and for the wellness of his flock and, in doing so, failed in his mission of faith to the one God. 

Jacob’s departure, as well, in our portion might be viewed similarly. He left out of fear. Fear of famine and physical harm are both life-threatening to be sure. Jacob is criticized for his many years absence from his parents by experiencing many years absence of his son, Josef, in the next generation of family drama. And the confrontation that Jacob faces next week, in parshat Vayishlach, in his wrestling match with the angelic being, archangel of Esav, according to some may represent an impediment for Jacob to run away again. Jacob is, instead, forced to face his demons as it were. 

These days, running from Israel might tempt us. Even if we are physically distant in the diaspora, we may feel like emotionally and spiritually evacuating from the land. Our bloodthirsty enemies seek to push all Jews out of Israel from river to sea. We are beset by images of horror and wreckage from Gaza. The inclination might be, out of a sense of self protection and spiritual preservation to abandon our homeland. 

Don’t Run! We must emerge from our hiding like the Abraham leaving Ur Kasdim and Israel leaving Egypt. In those journeys, they went from darkness to light; from shame to pride; from anonymity to expression; from objectification to personification. We can run and be lost or we can run towards ourselves. The poles of Am Yisrael are pulling towards our magnetized heart in the East. Do not resist the pull. Do not tear away. We need to embrace each other and our people more fully now more than ever. This is the test of our time.