Rabbi Julie’s sermon for Parshat Lech Lecha, November 9, 2024
When I first decided to speak about the 2024 presidential election this Shabbat, I wasn’t sure we would know the final outcome of the election. I am grateful that there will be a peaceful transition of power. I know we have a variety of feelings about the election, ranging from despair and numbness to jubilation and optimism. Though we are not a true ‘purple’ congregation, because we lean heavily towards the Democratic party, there are a significant number of Republicans at Shomrei and our votes were cast both for Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. So I will endeavor this morning to give an apolitical speech about one of the most important presidential elections in the history of the United States of America. Given how radically different, even mutually exclusive, the narratives are about the candidates and the significance of this election, I’m not sure it’s possible to successfully thread the needle. But I will try, and I hope when you judge my words, you will consider not only what I am saying, but also what I am refraining from saying.
This morning’s Torah portion, Lech Lecha, begins the story of our forefather Abraham, still known as Avram. It also happens to be the same Torah portion we read on Shabbat after the presidential election in 2016 when Donald Trump was first elected President of the United States. What stands out most to me this morning is that the founder of Judaism (and also Christianity and Islam) was called to take a journey with an unknown destination.
God calls to Avram, “lech lecha…el ha’aretz asher arecha.”[1] Go forth…to a place that I will show you. Our commentators often focus on the hidden reasons Avram merited this call from God, but this morning I want to focus instead on the courage and curiosity, the openness and the vigilance it took for Avram to go on a journey with an unknown destination. For the predictions of our future as Americans, as grim or triumphant as they may be, ultimately point to uncertainty about our future which is by definition unknown.
Our tradition understands God’s command to Avram, Lech Lecha – to go forth on a journey to an unknown destination as a test, one of ten tests Abraham would encounter in his lifetime. We too will be tested in the months and years ahead, both as American and as Jews. This morning, I want to take a closer look at Abraham’s ten tests and consider what tests lie ahead for us.
The concept of Abraham’s ten tests comes from Pirkei Avot, the Ethics of our Fathers. “With ten trials was Abraham, our father, tested and he withstood them all.”[2] The Mishnah doesn’t specify what the ten tests were, perhaps because the authors of the Mishnah thought it was obvious or because they wanted to leave open the possibility that the tests would be defined differently by different people in different generations.
Three famous medieval rabbis – Rashi from 11th century France, Maimonides from 12th century Cordoba, and Bartenura, from 15th century Italy all formulate lists of Abraham’s ten trials. The tests themselves are mostly the same, certainly the Binding of Isaac makes all three lists.
But there are variances, both in terms of which moments are included as tests and how those moments are characterized. This invites us to each come up with our own list of the ten trials ahead, and to revise our lists as events unfold. I will share my list of ten possible trials ahead of us, based on Jewish values and Jewish history, not because I think it’s the definitive list, but because I hope it will spark discussion and debate about the challenges ahead.
Taken from this week’s parshah, the first test, the ‘Place that I will show you test’, is the challenge of living with an uncertain future. As a caring community, how can we all of us – regardless of our political affiliation – acknowledge and support those among us who are experiencing disappointment, anxiety, and dread about the results of this election? How can compassionate listening and spiritual practices such as Shabbat support us as individuals and as a community at this time? And how can we remind ourselves that we still have agency to shape the future we want, if not at the governmental level, then at least at the communal level.
The second test, the ‘Elu v’elu’ test is based on a famous passage from the Talmud[3], where opposing opinions of Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai, these and these, elu v’elu are declared to be legitimate. It points to a central value in the Talmud, that we can disagree with each other without villainizing each other. That we can even strive to understand each other’s point of view.
In a country where a clear victory in a presidential election means 50.5% of the people voted one way and 47.9% voted another, we are divided almost evenly between two schools of thought. Within our own community, and more broadly within our country, how can we endeavor to better understand the point of view of those we disagree with politically?
The Niemoller Test, test number three, is named after Martin Neimoller, the German Lutheran Pastor who opposed the Nazis and was famous for his poem, which opens, first they came for the socialists and I did not speak out because I am not a socialist. It’s closing words, then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out for me. I am not an immigrant and I am not a high ranking political opponent of Trump. If President Trump’s rhetoric becomes action, and he unjustly comes after people who are innocent, people other than the Jews, we will be tested in whether or not we speak out. The Niemoller test is particularly poignant today, the 9th of November, the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
Test number four, the Trans Ally test is based on our commitment to the values of human dignity, and the teaching that every human being, regardless of gender or sexual orientation , is created b’tzelem elohim, in the image of God. We demonstrate our support for gender inclusivity every Shabbat when we call people up to the Torah using the words, ‘Na La’amod’, affirming in our gender-neutral Hebrew language, our commitment to be an inclusive community for Jews of all gender identities. In response to increased fears in the LGBTQ community that their rights will be diminished by all branches of government in the years ahead, we will be tested as LGBT and trans allies.
Test number 5, the ki gerim hayitem test, which evokes the teaching, repeated 36 times in our Torah that we should treat the stranger with compassion because we ourselves were strangers in the land of Egypt, builds on the Neimoller test. The ‘because we were strangers’ test, asks us to watch out for those who are most vulnerable in our society, not from a place of fear about what might happen to us, but from a place of compassion and empathy based on our historical experience. The ‘ki gerim hayitem’ test acknowledges the privileges and responsibilities we have, even as we too might feel more vulnerable as Jews in a time of increasing anti-Semitism.
Test number 6, the ‘there shall be no needy’ test comes from a famous passage in the book of Deuteronomy. First, we read, ‘there shall be no needy’ establishing an ideal that there won’t be anyone who cannot afford the basics of housing, food, and healthcare. But then just a few verses later, the Torah says, ‘If, however, there is a needy person among you…do not harden your heart and shut your hand against your needy kin, rather you shall open your hand and lend whatever is sufficient for the need.’[4] Clearly, the economy was one driving force behind this election and there are millions of fellow Americans who are struggling to make ends meet in a time when the cost of groceries has risen so dramatically. As a community of giving, one test will be our continued resolve to help those in our local community facing food and housing insecurity.
Test number 7, the ‘Hagar and Ishmael test’ is inspired by Maimonides’ version of the ten tests of Abraham. Living in Cordoba, under Muslim rule, Maimonides was not only immersed in Arab culture and thought, but inspired by it. Strikingly, his list of ten tests included not only the test of sending Hagar and Ishmael away, but also two tests not mentioned on the other lists, the test of marrying Hagar and of becoming estranged from Ishmael. We are living in a precarious time where Israel is still at war 400 days after the October 7th terror attacks. Whether one administration or the other is better for Israel is a matter of debate, but if America gives Prime Minister Netanyahu unfettered support, given Netanyahu’s current extremist coalition, the impact on Palestinian civilians could be devastating. The Hagar and Ishmael test asks us to have compassion for Palestinian women and children even in a time of war.
Test number 8, is the truth test. The famous saying, if you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it, is often attributed to Goebbels, the famous Nazi propagandist.[5] We are living in a time when it is exhausting to debunk every mistruth and lie in politics, especially in the echo chambers of social media. And yet, when lies dehumanize our neighbors, we must speak up. The word ‘emet’ or truth is a key attribute of God throughout our Shabbat morning prayers, an attribute we are asked to live up to in our personal and our political lives.
I am calling test number 9 the ‘dugmah’ or the lead by example test. From Moses, through the Talmud, to today, there is an idea in Judaism that our leaders should exemplify the highest qualities we aspire to emulate as human beings. And this is not only in their public lives, but also in their personal lives. Moses was the greatest prophet who ever lived because of his humility. And the Talmud is full of stories about the actions of the rabbis because the example they set in action was as important as their teachings and the positions of power they held. The dugmah, lead by example, test is one of choosing which examples to follow and of being our own examples of what is good and just for our community and our children.
Finally, test number 10 is inspired by a test I would argue Abraham passed that somehow wasn’t included on any of the official lists. When Abraham saw that God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, he argued with God, challenging his actions. It was in this moment that Abraham became our first prophet. We have elected officials at all levels of government, local, state, and national who need to hear our voices if and when we disagree with their policies and actions.
These ten tests I have suggested, inspired by Abraham’s 10 tests and based on our Jewish values and historical experience, are intended simply to get the conversation started. What do you think are the tests that we will encounter in the journey ahead, after this election? How will we recognize them and what tools will we use to face them? How will we be tested individually and collectively as Jews and Americans? And how can we work together as a community, despite our diverse political views, to build a future that upholds our highest ideals?
May we be spared from the worst tests we fear. And may we have the fortitude and the strength to face the trials ahead.
God Bless America and Shabbat Shalom.
[1] Genesis 12:1.
[2] Pirkei Avot 5:3.
[3] Babylonian Talmud, 13b.
[4] Deuteronomy 15:4-8.
[5] history,stackexchange.com
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