So Shall Be Your Descendants (Lech L’cha 11/09/24)

So Shall Be Your Descendants

Let us take a moment to marvel at our resilience. For over two thousand years, we have steadfastly upheld our identity and ideals despite the myriad challenges we have faced. How do we do it?

Rabbi Meir Shapiro, the beloved rabbi of Lublin from over one hundred years ago, had an original answer to this question based on a verse in our parsha, Lech L’cha.

After risking his life to save his nephew, Lot, from four mighty armies, Avram became acutely aware of his mortality and his lack of an heir:

“Avram said, “O Lord, what can You give me, seeing that I shall die childless, with only the one in charge of my household, the Damascene, Eliezer!”

The word of God came to him in reply, “That one shall not inherit you; none but your very own issue shall be your heir.” God took him outside and said, “Look toward heaven and count the stars if you are able to count them—So shall your offspring be.”

The response assuages Avram’s fear by guaranteeing him descendants as numerous as the stars of the heavens. But Rabbi Shapiro understood this promise differently.

He asked, “What would be our reaction if someone told us to go out and count the stars?” We’d simply ignore the request. It’s an impossible task. Why even bother?

Avram, however, was a stubborn and determined man. What did he do? He went out and counted the stars! He attempted to do the impossible. God responded, “This is how your descendants will be!” (כֹּה יִהְיֶה זַערך Koh yiyeh zarecha).

“This trait that you are exemplifying — when it looks impossible, when it looks beyond the reach of human beings, and nevertheless, you try, you give it your all: “So shall be your descendants!” This characteristic will endure in all your children.”

Israel, the smallest country in the Middle East, embodies this trait. Since last October, Israel has been waging war on four fronts: against Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran. How does Israel do it? It’s the blood of Avram running in our veins. When faced with the impossible, we gird our loins. Then, we are granted or discover abilities we never knew we had.

This is the blessing of “Thus shall be your descendants.” The Jewish people have the attribute of looking at something that seems impossible, but we don’t give up. Then, we’re rewarded with hitherto unseen abilities.

We don’t need to go halfway around the world to see this promise in action. The endurance of our little synagogue is case in point. How many times did we run negative balances? How many times were we offered opportunities to merge with others? How many times did the Hebrew school get precariously small?

Almost every year, we run a deficit budget. I once asked then-president, Larry Kurtzman, how do we do it? We can’t print money like the Fed! He replied, “I don’t know, but as long as I can remember, that’s how we’ve always done it!”

Perhaps Ben Gurion’s statement is true. He said, “In Israel, in order to be a realist, you must believe in miracles!” But it’s not just pertinent to the State of Israel; it’s a truism for all of us. We, as a people, constantly overcome the most daunting difficulties, finding strengths we never knew we had.

This past week, the election results brought diametrically opposed reactions. Some were jubilant, while others were devastated. Nonetheless, we all agree that we want a peaceful and prosperous nation devoted to its ideals of liberty and justice for all.

Isaiah, twenty-five hundred years ago, set our national mission to be an אור לגוים- a light unto the nations. If we’re needed to help America stay true to its path, we will undoubtedly rise to the occasion. For now, our task is to strive for unity, to befriend the one who didn’t vote like us, so that the next 250 years of American history are as storied as our first. Together, we can achieve great things.