 |
 |
|
|
PARSHAT CHAYEI SARAH This parsha is significant for women, as it portrays the transmission of "the blessings of the tent" from Sarah to Rivkah, two of our righteous mothers, the main pillars of the house of Israel. Our Torah reading depicts how Sarah handed down the virtues of Jewish womanhood to Rivkah. This began the chain that has been transmitted from generation to generation until this day. The more we can understand about their personalities, the closer our connection to the traditions they established. "TZADIKKIM ARE CALLED ALIVE AT THEIR DEATH" "And Sarah was a hundred and twenty seven years old: these were the years of Sarah's life" (Bereishit 23:1). Malbim explains that only when a person passes away can the quality of one's life be determined. As long as she or he is alive, one never knows whether he or she will sin and lose the level good deeds of his or her past. At Sarah's death, it becomes known that all her hundred-and twenty-seven years were "Shnei Chaye Sarah," "years of Sarah's life." From this apparently redundant phrase, Rashi learns that all her years were equally good. Midrash Raba quotes Tehillim (37:18), "Hashem knows the days of the perfect, and their inheritance is forever. Just like they are perfect so are their days." Abraham lamented over Sarah by reciting the words of the "Woman of Valor" in her praise. (Midrash Tanchuma, Chayei Sara 4) The timimut, perfection, of Sarah made her worthy of being eulogized by these verses, which (also) symbolize perfection since they are written acrostically from "Alef" to "Tav". BEYOND THE CHANGES OF THE TIME Sfat Emet explains the words of midrash Raba as follows: It is
a great virtue to maintain all our days in equanimity like Sarah.
The beginning of her life bore many difficulties such as famine
and being taken captive by Pharaoh and Avimelech. Only in the end
of her life did she experience many blessings. Nevertheless, she
didn't change with the ups and downs of her life. Therefore, it
says about Sarah: "She bestows good and never bad all the days
of her life." (Mishley 31:12) Since her perfection was beyond
the effects of time, she was able to withstand any test. By transforming
the negative aspects of her life into good, she was able to rectify
the sin of Chava, who caused evil to be introduced into the world.
*******~~~~~*******~~~~~*******~~~~~*******~~~~~*******~~~~~*******
|
 |
|