A Parshat Vayeira Dvar Torah

This week’s Parsha is rich with both narrative and depth and there is much that could be said on many points within the text. I would like to focus on a couple lines in particular. In 18:17 the Torah records God in the midst of a reflective moment. These reflective moments are not that common as usually the text takes note of God’s communication with people and not the actual private reflections of the Divine. The verse states, “And the Lord said: Shall I conceal from Abraham what I am doing?” The action being contemplated is of course the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Rashi filling in the picture a bit more states that “לא יפה לי לעשות דבר זה שלא מדעתו – It would not be nice (or pleasant or proper) for me to do this without his [Abraham’s] knowledge.” This one moment of reflection conveys a great deal about the importance of the bilateral relationship between God and humanity. As Heschel famously argued, “God is in search of man as much as man is in search of God.” There is no doubt that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were overrun with depravity and that if the course of action chosen by God was utter destruction then that was the proper course of action to bring an end to the rampant wickedness. Yet, God wants even a decision of this magnitude and gravity to be in relationship with Abraham.

Perhaps though the most instructive point in this process is what occurs only three verses later: “And the Lord said: Since the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah has become great…” Rashi has a remarkable statement when he mentions, “שעשה כאשר אמר שלא יכסה ממנו – for He [God] did as He said, not to hide it from him.” In these three short verses we have the movement from planning to full completion. It was not going to be an easy dialogue for God to have when He declares to Abraham that the time has come to annihilate two cities. Indeed, Abraham’s response could be seen as challenging and provocative (e.g. “Will the Judge of the entire earth not perform justice?”). However, God demonstrates to us the fundamentally important lesson to not let difficulty or challenge stop us from doing what needs to be done and saying what needs to be said. It is vital that when the time calls for it that we do not shy away from hard conversations with those we care about. To pursue a path of concealment and deception is not healthy nor is it the path put forward for us by God in this week’s Parsha.

May we find strength and encouragement from the model God sets forth for us and do and say what is right even when it is challenging.