2019/5780
In the beginning of this week’s Parashah, Avraham Avinu is commanded, “Lech Lecha Mei’Artzecha,” “Go from your native land” of Ur Kasdim, and venture out to “Ha’Aretz Asher Areka,” “The land which I will show you” (BeReishit 12:1). Rashi (ibid. s.v. Lech Lecha) explains that Hashem tells Avraham to do this for his own good, for over there, he will receive the Berachot of Hashem, while if he remains, he will not.
According to most Mefarshim, this episode is the first of the ten Nisyonot (trials) of Avraham Avinu. Rav Moshe Feinstein (Darash Moshe s.v. Lech Lecha) asks: how this can possibly considered a Nisayon? We see in everyday life men who will travel far to find a source of Parnassah (livelihood), even if it is not certain that that they will find it there; meanwhile, in our Pasuk, Hashem is saying to Avraham that there will certainly be a Berachah for him there!
Rather, Rav Moshe explains that the Nisayon of Lech Lecha is the fact that Avraham Avinu was commanded to do an action which seemingly made no sense and went totally against his character. People naturally do what is logical to them, making it a basis of all of their actions. To not follow your personal logic is something of a great challenge. As we have already established, a person only moves to another source of Parnasah when he needs it. Avraham Avinu, it seems, has all that he needs in Ur Kasdim. He’s comfortable economically, surrounded by his family, and in his home that he’s lived in since birth. Why can’t Hashem, the Master of the Universe and Source of all Berachot, just provide the Berachot for Avraham in Ur Kasdim? But instead of asking these questions and doubting in the Tzivui (command) of Hashem, Avraham quelled and ignored his inquisitiveness, and did the will of God purely for the sake of serving Him. This, says Rav Moshe, was one of the quintessential Middot of Avraham Avinu, as the Pasuk says, “Hithaleich LeFanai,” “Walk before me” (BeReishit 17:1). Avraham is charged with the duty of taking a leap of faith1 and is an exemplar of absolute trust in Hashem.
We see this challenge again in Parashat VaYeira, where Avraham is told to offer his son Yitzchak as a sacrifice. Not only is there a natural love and attachment to a son that Avraham overcame, but this Tzivui of Hashem completely contradicted the promise Hashem gave to Avraham that “Ki BeYitzchak Yikarei Lecha Zara,” “For through Yitzchak, descendants shall be called yours” (ibid. 21:12). Yet Avraham ignored this seeming contradiction and came forward to do the will of Hashem without any Hirhur (doubt).2
We can find another example of this type of Nisayon in the commandment of Berit Milah. Rabbi Yissocher Frand quotes a Midrash (BeReishit Rabbah 42:8) from Parashat VaYeira; Avraham consults his colleagues Aneir, Eshkol, and Mamrei to ask for their advice on whether to perform Milah on himself or not. Aneir, “You are already 100 years old; why go and discomfort yourself now?” Eshkol says, "Why would you go and cut off part of yourself before your enemies?” Finally, Mamrei says to him, “Your God who stood by you in the fiery furnace, by [the war with the four] kings, and [during] the famine [and protected you], and now when He says to circumcise yourself, you aren’t going to listen to him?”
Rabbi Frand questions: is it possible that Avraham Avinu, who already went through other Nisyonot which upended his entire life, would suddenly have cold feet and second thoughts about doing Berit Milah? Rather, the reason why Avraham was hesitant was because he was a Mekareiv Rechokim. If all of a sudden, he had this special sign on him that differentiated him from everyone, how could he possibly connect with other people enough to make them convert?
With this in mind, we can now understand the Nisayon that was associated with Berit Milah. This was not simply a test of physical pain; it was a test of whether Avraham Avinu, the Av HaGeirim, could do an act which would seemingly harm his mission simply because it was the Tzivui of the Ribbono Shel Olam. Avraham overcame his logical calculations to entirely submit himself to Hashem; may we, his descendants, answer this selfsame calling in the manner of our illustrious ancestor Avraham.
1 Editor’s note: It should be noted that the very phrase ‘leap of faith’ is derived from Soren Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling, in which he analyzes the theological implications of Akeidat Yitzchak and presents Avraham Avinu as a paragon of pure belief in spite of logical reasons to question—a “knight of faith.”
2 This is consistent with Rav Moshe’s opinion that performing Mitzvot purely because of Hashem’s command is the optimal Kavanah for Asiyat HaMitzvot, as is voiced in a piece in Kol Ram, Parashat BeHar.