D’var Torah Oct 31
Shabbat Shalom!
I hope this finds you well.
Two American heroes who have very much informed and inspired my rabbinate, my military career, and indeed my life are Congressional Medal of Honor recipients US Navy Lieutenant Michael P. Murphy (z”l) and US Army Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler (z”l). Murphy, a Navy SEAL, selflessly sacrificed his life in 2005 by exposing himself to overwhelming enemy fire in order to call in a rescue force after his reconnaissance team was discovered in the mountains of Afghanistan. Wheeler, an elite Delta Force operator, likewise made the ultimate sacrifice in 2015 while rescuing Iraqi hostages who were about to be executed by ISIS.
For Murphy and Wheeler, their courageous feats that earned them both America’s highest medal for battlefield heroism, these were not stand alone events; rather they were indicative and reflective of noble lives spent in the service of others.
Friends and family recounted that in eighth grade Murphy fought off a group of bullies who were trying to push a special needs student into a locker. The next year, Murphy protected a homeless man who was being accosted by a local group of youths. Later on, he became a lifeguard in his Long Island community. Those who knew and loved him called him “the Protector”, a sobriquet he earned many times over.[1]
Josh Wheeler, a proud member of the Cherokee nation, sadly grew up with an enormous amount of poverty and instability in life. His mother was married to two abusive husbands and the family often had trouble making ends meet. He always helped get his siblings ready for school, changed soiled diapers, and worked various jobs to bring in more income for the family. His sister recalled that on one occasion, while Josh was home on leave from the Army, he saw that there was no food in the house. He immediately grabbed a rifle, went out, shot a deer, harvested its meat, and put food on the table for her and the other members of the family.[2]
In essence, Murphy’s heroism in the mountains of Afghanistan in 2005, and Wheeler’s valor in Iraq in 2015, were the culmination and capstone of lives devoted in the service of others.
This brings us to this week’s parsha of Lekh Lekha (Genesis 12:1-17:27). In it, we read that the four kings abduct Abram’s nephew, Lot (14:12). The moment Abram (soon to be Abraham) is told of Lot’s kidnapping, he jumps into action, organizes an army of 318 men, and leads a successful rescue mission freeing his nephew (14:14-16).
But why is this short episode so significant?
Because Abram/Abraham is the first of our people, the first Jew. He set the foundation, framework, and tone for what it means to be Jewish and how to act Jewishly. His rescue of Lot demonstrates that as Jews we are meant to run towards the sound of the guns, the roar of the hurricane gale, and into the fire, not away from them. That is the Jewish standard.
That being said, you can’t expect someone to be heroic, selfless, and altruistic on the level of Abram’s rescue of Lot from the get-go. Rather, such a mindset, moral outlook, and ethical outlook has to be encouraged, taught, scaffolded, and built upon from an early age as it was with Murphy and Wheeler.
Fair enough. What then are these golden opportunities? Thankfully, there are many. When we have our children assist us in preparing meals for the homeless, and then have our son or daughter physically hand said bagged lunch to that destitute person living on the streets – that’s an invaluable experience! When we take our nephew or niece with us to the nursing home and have them read to an elderly person whose family doesn’t visit them – that’s a potentially life-changing experience! And when we encourage our grandchild to walk with us at Relay for Life instead of watching cartoons, that is a golden opportunity!
In the Book of Proverbs we are taught, “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it,” The great rabbi Rashi penned, “Who rears his son to be righteous is like an immortal,” and in Exodus Rabbah it is written, “Mothers should introduce their children to Torah.”[3]
Bizrat HaShem, with God’s help, may we as moms and dads, aunts and uncles, grandmas and grandpas, and elders of our communities, not only teach, but indeed provide ample opportunities for our youth to cultivate the same caliber of selflessness, valor, care and concern, and bravery as Michael Murphy, Joshua Wheeler, and Avraham Aveinu.
Wishing you a Good Shabbos and a great weekend.
Bivrakha,
Rabbi Aaron Stucker-Rozovsky
Beth El Congregation | 520 Fairmont Ave, Winchester, VA 22601
(540) 667-1889 (office)