Lee Gelbloom, Bat Mitsva, October 19, 2002, Cheshvan 13, 5763
My d'var torah concerns the incident in Parshot Lech Lecha when "Abram rescues Lot." In the perek before mine, Abram and Lot had a disagreement over land. They moved away from each other. Lot's land was attacked by Chedorlamer, King of Elam. Abram heard this news and went to save him, even though they had had a disagreement.
When Abram came back to his land, the King of Sodom offered him a very generous reward. Abram did not accept it. He wanted everybody to know that he had saved Lot's life to protect Lot's safety, not to gain more riches for himself.
This theme really interests me because Abram did not accept a reward for his mitzvah. The Torah says that he did not accept any reward because he didn't want people to say that melech sodom had made him rich. A couple of questions occured to me as I read this section, particularly about Abram not accepting any rewards. If Abram knew that he had saved Lot for the right reasons, couldn't he have then accepted melech sodom's reward? Also, why was he so reluctant to accept money from melech sodom? So many questions are raised by Abram's actions. Melech sodom had a reputation of being a robber just like the city he was King over. He was willing to give his money to Abram because Abram rescued it, and he, Melech Sodom, knew he would get more by stealing. But think about it, would you want to accept money if you knew that it had been stolen from people who really needed it? I wouldn't, and Abram didn't either.
A rabbi named Nachmanides suggests that " even though there had been disagreement between them, Abram remembered that Lot had been a faithful companion and friend." Even though they had had a fight, Abram still risked his own life to save Lot. So the lesson Nachmanides is trying to teach us is that the safety of another human being is more important than how we might feel about them at a particular time.
Another rabbi named Moses Maimonides writes that pidyon shvuyim - rescue of captives - is a bigger mitzvah than tzedakah. Similarly, according to Genesis Rabbah, Abram was ready to sacrifice his life to save Lot because "freeing a victim of oppression was one of the highest forms of serving G-d." This teaches us that for many of our sages, saving a life was the most important mitzvah.
Rabbi Yochanan took a very different view of what Abram did. He says that Abram should have taken the reward but that the reward should have been been not treasure but rather the conversion of Lot and even the King of Sodom to his new faith. Most rabbis disagree with Rabbi Yochanan, and so do I. Traditionally, Jews don't try to convert anybody to Judaism. I think people should have free will as to what religion they are or want to be and shouldn't be pressured into joining other religions.
I have heard a lot of different ways that people have interperted this perek. I think what Rabbi Yochanan said was really interesting (the conversion of Lot and the King of Sodom). His point was really different from the others, but I don't think it's right. How do I connect this to my Bat mitzvah? I have come to understand that immaturity is doing whatever you want, and maturity is being able to stop our selves , and knowing our limits. For example the part in my devar torah, when Abram does not accept any reward for his mitzvah, this was maturity. Do you thimk a three year old would stop and think where his/her present came from? No. They would just take it without even thinking twice.
In the summer I go to a sleep-over camp, called Gesher, and for one of the activities we learned about child labour. We learned what it is, and what stores support it. Since then I have hardly shopped in any of those stores. This is an act of maturity.
Now that I am Bat Mitzvah and I am a little bit more mature, I can tell more about my future. Going through the process of preparing for my bat mitzvah has helped me see more clearly who I'm going to be.
I can't recall a time when I have helped someone in need, that was in serious trouble. But I know that if I ever get into a situation like that, I would do anything I could to help them, even if I was in a fight with them, because I know that fights are usually temporary, and people usually make up. So why would I not help that person? Whether it is to save their life, or something less dramatic like sticking up for them if they're in trouble, I would try to forget about the fight and be there for them. In fact, if I helped them that might be the thing that helped us to make up.
Abrahm's rescue of Lot is an important example showing us that when someone is in trouble, our job is to help them.
Thank you and shabbat shalom.