SEDRA: Lech lecha
This week’s sedra, Lech Lecha, is overviewed by Rabbi Shaul Rosenblatt
The first request God makes of Abraham is: “Go to yourself.” In other words, look inside, not outside.
That’s where human beings find what they are looking for. We all have a sense that life is some sort of journey. We are going somewhere – or trying to get somewhere. We are looking to achieve, to accomplish, to build, to create something that we will leave behind.
But how does that work?
Where is that destination? T
he Torah spells it out for us – the destination is us. The place we are looking to go to is ourselves. The message is that we are looking for satisfaction and that satisfaction will never come from anything on the outside.
It will never come from the house, the car, the pool.
Neither will it come from friends and family. And it will not come from success and the respect from others that success brings.
Ultimately, none of these things will bring the lasting satisfaction that we seek. Lasting satisfaction will come only from within.
When we ‘find’ ourselves. When we discover our true essence. When we awaken the Godly soul that burns brightly in each and every one of us that is at our very core. That’s when we find the satisfaction that each of us craves.
So God says to Abraham, go on a journey – a journey to a foreign land; a journey to reach out to the world around you and make a difference; a journey to build a spiritual empire that will contribute to the world for millennia.
But as external as Abraham’s journey was to be, ultimately, God tells him, it is a journey to self. It is a journey to nurture the human spirit and allow it to flourish. When we go to ourselves we find what we are looking for.
It’s so much easier to look to the outside for our happiness, to say to ourselves: “If only I had a faster car. If only I had kids or, if I already do, if only they behaved better or made me worry less. If only I got the promotion or people respected me more… We can have it all.”
But if we haven’t touched the essence of who we are, if we haven’t “gone to ourselves”, as God told Abraham to do, the message is that there will always be a sense of disappointment.
Clearly, Mick Jagger didn’t understand this when he wrote his song, or he would certainly have found the satisfaction he couldn’t get.
READ More from Judaism:
Torah for today: what does the torah say about …ebola?
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
