Harry's Video Blog - 2 Hearts Beat As One: Parshat Vayera

in this week's total portion we read one of the greatest episodes in Jewish and all of history chapter 22 in Genesis aades Yak The Binding of Isaac Isaac Yak was born when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 years old it was a miracle and God had told Abraham you're going to have a son and through that son yock I'm going to build a mighty nation from your descendants and now 37 years later an Empire possible test God Appears to Abraham and he says I want you to sacrifice that son whom youve love sacrifice y AB could have asked all sorts of questions he could have said God but you're contradicting yourself you said he's going to be a great nation he's single he doesn't have any Offspring and God you're asking me to bring a human sacrifice I've spent my life campaigning against that in the Pagan World it doesn't really make sense but abam doesn't say any of that he doesn't ask any questions he wakes up in there early in the morning Saddles his donkey gets his attendance ready takes yak and they head out on the journey they get to the mountain Abraham tells his attendance to remain behind and the passage says that Abraham and Yak walk on together but yak's a smart fellow he realizes something's a Miss He says Dad yes my son I see the fire and I see the wood but where's the lamb for the sacrifice and Abraham tells him God will show us the lamb for the sacrifice my son and that's when Yak realizes he's the lamb he's the sacrifice now he could also ask all sorts of questions I venture to think that if a 37-year-old man is told by his elderly father son God appeared to me yesterday and he told me that I have to sacrifice you now son listen this is going to hurt me more than it's going to hurt you I got to believe that any 37-year-old is going to say to his father Dad I love you but maybe you drank something last night that you shouldn't have maybe that new cough medicine's a little too strong dad why don't you sit down on the couch dad put the knife dad put the knife down we could talk about this we can get you some help kidu doesn't do any of that he doesn't ask any questions the passage says they walk on together same goal same purpose same relationship it's one thing for Abraham to get this impossible test but at least he got it from God Yak has to trust his father that his father heard the command from God how does that happen we as parents as Jewish parents we fret and we worry and we wonder how can we bring up our kids how can we bring up our kids Jewish how can we bring up our kids in this world of ever escalating Temptation so here's how for 37 years before this event there is no question that in order to create that relationship Abraham must have showered that kid Yak with with love wearing his love for him on his sleeve and they must have been joined at the hip by a common purpose serving God and so now they go forward the meas tells us that yak says to Abraham dad binds me tight I'm worried that I might Flinch involuntarily and thereby render myself unfit as a sacrifice so Abraham binds him and he's ready to slaughter him and he lifts the knife and at the last second the angel stops him and says no don't harm your son God says to him through the angel now I see that you weren't going to withhold your son I see the level of sacrifice that you're willing for me and Abraham brings a ram as a sacrifice instead of his son they go down the mountain and the passage again says they go on together but this time they go on together with their attendants they don't feel special Abraham and Yak have just scaled spiritual Heights the likes of which no one has before showing sacrifice in the form and the shape that ever presently God remembers every time he judges the Jewish people he remembers The Binding of Y and putting into our psyche all Jews for coming Generations that ability to sacrifice anything for God so they've reached these spiritual Heights they come back down to their attendance and they don't feel that they're anything special they're no different than the attendance so that's our recipe if we want to bring up our kids and we want to raise the Next Generation that's the lesson for older generations to younger Generations shower those kids with love don't smother them shower them join together for a common purpose to serve God and do so humbly because remember compared to him you are no better than anybody else [Music]