G-d once spoke to a man saying ‘Take your son, your
only son, your beloved son and place him on an altar and sacrifice him to
Me for the sake of My holy Name.”
So now this man was faced with choosing between the two
options that were available to him:
A) Do what was asked of him and sacrifice his child, or
B) Ignore the request and hope that things would just turn
out for the best.
So he thought about it, and with a firm resolve and a calm,
cool demeanor he chose option A.
This man was not our patriarch Abraham and the story did
not take place those many years ago in the Land of Israel.
The story did take
place on Rosh Hashanah, but it was a Rosh Hashanah some 4,000 years after
Abraham’s time, during the Holocaust, in the Auschwitz
concentration camp. Fourteen hundred boys had been impounded in a
sealed-off block, to be sent to the gas chambers that day. Some
desperate relatives had managed to free their sons by bribing the guards
with valuables, but in order to fill their quota, the Nazis would find a
new boy to replace each one released from the cell.
This man’s son was among those 1,400 boys, and he had
managed to acquire what was necessary in order to have his son
released. However, being a Torah-observant Jew, he sought out a Rabbi
to ascertain what Jewish law would allow in this situation.
He received his answer; he would not be allowed to save his
son from being sent immediately, that day, to the gas chambers and
crematorium. He accepted the ruling.
That evening when it was all over, the man made the
following statement: “I could have redeemed my son, but I
didn’t, because the Torah did not permit it… Now let the
sacrifice of my son to Hashem be counted as the Akeidas Yitzchak.”
BARUCH ATA HASHEM ELOKEINU MELECH HA OLAM HAMEICHIN
MITZADEI GAVER – BLESSED ARE YOU, HASHEM OUR G-D, WHO ESTABLISHES THE
FOOTSTEPS OF MAN.
The ability of the Jewish people throughout history to live
and die according to the Will of the Almighty stems from the pattern
established by our Patriarchs and Matriarchs. Their trials and
successes planted the seeds, set the stage and imprinted the footsteps for
our own. We are their children and grandchildren and
great-grandchildren.
The Torah refers to the verses relating to Abraham binding
up his son Isaac for sacrifice as the trial of Abraham (“…and
G-d tested Abraham”). Yet we call on G-d’s mercy in
our prayers and traditional liturgy by referring to the event as the Akeidas Yitzchak – the
Binding of Isaac. Why the emphasis on Yitzchak, when it was really
Abraham’s trial that is being mentioned?
A particular commentator on the Torah known as the Beis
HaLevi says that Abraham’s trial was actually far greater than that
of Isaac, because Isaac was willing to sacrifice his life, but Abraham was
willing to give up what was most precious to him in this world and to go on
living. He then responds to the above question with the contention
that mankind is unable to reach the heights attained by Abraham.
Therefore, it would not be in our favor to call upon G-d’s mercy in
the merit of his ordeal. What we can do, however, is call upon
Isaac’s merit, as his act was something that we ourselves would be
prepared to do.
One of the thoughts that we are supposed to have each time
we say the Shema is that if we were put to the test we would give up our
lives to sanctify the name of Hashem. This is called dying for
kiddush Hashem. But what about the idea of living for kiddush Hashem?
This story from the Holocaust was not the story of a boy
who was willing to give up his life. It was the story of a man who was
asked to give up something so dear to him and to continue to live in this
world. And he found within himself the immense strength
required to do so. Thank G-d, this is not a type of test with which
most of us are confronted throughout our lives. But couldn’t I
say that since it’s a proven fact that Jewish people across time have
been able to emulate Abraham in the immenseness of his deed, surely I can
too when it comes to something much less important? In other words,
let’s try to rise above ‘human nature’ or to overcome the
temptation in our real everyday situations.
This idea has many practical applications. Somebody
stretches out his hand to me for charity. Although it’s easier
for me to mumble something and run off, I’ll sift through my bag
until I find a few coins. The garbage is sitting in the
hallway. But I’m tired and I want to go to bed. Okay, so
I’ll take it out anyway. And so on.
In particular, when we hear the shofar being sounded on
Rosh Hashanah and recall the Akeidas
Yitzchak, let’s not be thinking – “like
Isaac, I would be willing to die for kiddush Hashem.”
Let’s instead say - “like Abraham, I want to prove that I am
willing to live
for kiddush Hashem.” And in this merit may we see the arrival
of Mashiach – speedily in our days.
