Thought of the Week - Vayeira

B''H

Thought of the week



As we all know Parshat Vayeira is famous for several incidents that occur in this portion to name a few such as:

Abraham was in his 3rd day after being circumcised (Bris) this day is known as the most painful day due to it’s inflammation. The Torah tells us how G-d showed up at Avraham’s home (Vayeira El Avraham). G-d came to visit Avraham. This teaches us that it’s a Mitzvah (good deed) to visit the sick. G-d came at the hottest time of day (around 10am to mid day.) This teaches us that one should come when the person is in his most pain.
There are two reasons for this:
a) To cheer him up.
b) In order that you shall have pity on him, and will pray for his speedy recovery.

Another incident that occurred in our portion, is the story of the destruction of Sodom:
It’s says that G-d got angry at Sodom and decided to destroy it together with the four surrounding cities. (As it states: “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorah is so great, and their sin is so very grave” Genesis 18:20)

However questions arise from this:

• Hasn’t G-d learned from the generation of the flood? Is G-d going to give Abraham some promise that He’ll never destroy a city again, just as G-d did to Noah in the previous portion that He gave the rainbow as a covenant and promise to never bring a flood to the world?
• Why doesn’t G-d punish them in some other way? Why does destruction have to take place again?
• And finally what was so bad about Sodom that brought G-d to punish them so harshly?

In order to answer these questions we must first tell you who the people of Sodom were, hence replying the final question first and the other answers lye with in:

The city of Sodom was in the southern part of the land then ruled by the Canaanites. It was a major city and yet very wealthy. They had four other cities that were attached to it by the names of Gomorah, Admah, Tzevoyim and Tzoar. All were just as evil as their neighboring town Sodom. These people were so bad that they hated anything that had to do with good. For example one of their laws contained a decree against all foreigners that came by the town. No guest was accepted to any ones homes to stay a night but they were told to sleep in the streets. Then when the “inn keeper” would walk around the town and see someone sleeping on the street he would ask him, “why are you sleeping out here in the cold, it’s very dangerous here at night, come to my inn sleep on a bed.” If the guest was to insist on staying outside, he would then be murdered. When the guest was to come to the so called inn they would look to see if he was tall or short, if he was tall they gave him a short bed and cut off his legs to fit him to the bed, if he was short they would give him a long bed, three people would pull him from his feet while other three would pull him from his arms to fit him to the bed. This was the way the wicked people of Sodom would treat all their guests.

Another terrible thing they would do was that their judges were so corrupt they would favor the criminals over the righteous. As is related: ‘Once Sara sent Eliezer their head servant to her brother Lot then living in Sodom. As Eliezer entered the city he saw a Sodomite beating and yelling at one of his guests. Seeing this Eliezer told the man “Don’t you have any fear of G-d? Why are you beating this poor man for nothing? He is your guest you must respect him”
“Mind your own business!” The Sodomite replied. “Who do you think you are, anyway? You’re a stranger! Who appointed you as our judge? This man is nothing to you so why are you siding with him?” With that, he struck Eliezer in the head with a stone, causing him to bleed profusely.
Eliezer was strong and powerful, and was not cowed by the Sodomite. When they saw that they couldn’t beat him, they suggested the matter be solved in court. With a wink at his friends, the judge passed sentence, “ The man who struck you is a professional blood shedder. Pay him his fee.”
Enraged Eliezer took a stone and bloodied the judge’s face. He said to the judge, “ I am also a professional blood shedder. Take the fee that you owe me and pay it to the one who struck me!”

G-d hates evil and mischief; G-d detests corruptness especially by judges and so called justices. G-d is merciful, loving, truthful, compassionate and yet very just, and if the rulers of these cities were so corrupt they had no place in G-d’s world and deserve to be destroyed if they do not repent.

This only shows us how great the reward must be for good doers and those that are just and honest, for everything has a flip side to it. As we see in science. Plus and minus attract even though they are so different. This is to the extent that they are opposites yet they are one. Hence everything has to have an opposite to it. If G-d destroys the world, city or people for their evil doing what must happen to those that do good?

May it be G-d’s will that through our good merits shall He build the third Temple speedily in our times with His righteous Messiah and shall He destruct no more.

Remember you can make a difference with your good deeds what ever they shall be!

A Good Shabbos.

This article was mostly derived from the writings of Rabbi Yaacov Culi the Me’Am Loez.
For more info or questions feel free to contact me at doonlygood@hotmail.com
Yermiyahu Kurkus