Sedra of the week: Vayetze
Rabbi Ariel Abel is based in Liverpool
By Rabbi Ariel Abel 
When Jacob fled home under parental instruction to seek refuge from his own brother, he was frightened for his life. God reassured him in a dream that all would be well, and that his angels would accompany him to and from his exile. Jacob promised a tenth of all his possessions to charity if only he were to return home in peace. Jacob’s dream happened at a location known as Bet-El.
Our sages identify the place as the Temple Mount. Places of prayer are houses of God, they should be respected by all as refuges of peace and protection from violence. The Temple Mount itself should be the symbol of joint prayer before God, but is used as a reason to separate people from each other before God. The recent attack on worshippers in a Jerusalem synagogue while at prayer is one more horrific example of how children of the same Abrahamic heritage harbour jealousy and hatred in our shared homeland.
The ideal of togetherness of God’s children is an ideal willed by God, but sadly violated in our times. After praying for basic sustenance and to return to his father’s home in peace, Jacob left for a two-decade journey, isolating him from his roots while he set up home under the scrutiny of his father-in-law, Laban in Aram. Jacob became singularly successful breeding sheep, fulfilling Laban’s constantly changing orders to breed sheep with different coats, reassigning Jacob a new pattern. Each time, Jacob came out with the highest quota belonging to him.
This aroused the fury of Laban’s sons and resulted in their sisters, Jacob’s wives, asking Jacob to plan a hasty exit. Yet, again Jacob had to flee, this time with a full travelling company of wives, children and travelling cattle. When Laban found out that Jacob had departed unceremoniously, he was furious.
When Laban caught up with Jacob, he accused him of stealing his icons. This effectively severed the last bond of trust between them as business partners. From here on, Laban was obliged to relate to Jacob as an equal with a longstanding claim for damages for breach of contractual terms.
Laban took advantage of Jacob’s desire to dissolve their partnership to affect a mutual agreement at a stone monument, which they set up together. Jacob was now free of all bonds tying him to his Aramean relations.
• Rabbi Ariel Abel is a consultant to For Life Projects, a multi-faith ethics programme
READ MORE JUDAISM..
Ask the Rabbi: 28/11/2014: http://wp.me/p3xO31-aME
Torah for Today: What does the torah say about BAND AID 30?: http://wp.me/p3xO31-aMJ
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.
