OCTOBER 28 • 2021 | 35

A

bout 2,000 years ago, our 
sages recorded that God 
subjected Abraham to 10 
tests over the course of his lifetime 
(Pirkei Avot 5:3). However, they 
don’t record what these tests were. 
 To say that Abraham’s life was 
eventful is an understatement; 
and so, as one might expect, there 
are nearly as many different lists 
of what these 10 tests are as there 
are commentators compiling 
these lists.
One thing is unanimous, 
though, and that’s that the final 
test that Abraham was subject-
ed to was the binding of Isaac. 
Actually, it’s not quite unanimous. 
You can always find an outlier and 
this case is no different. Rabbeinu 
Yonah Gerondi (13th century 
Spain) believes that the binding 
of Isaac was Abraham’s ninth 
test. The final test that Abraham 

faced was purchasing a plot of 
land from Ephron the Hittite for 
the purpose of burying his wife, 
Sarah, the episode that opens 
this week’s Torah portion 
(Genesis 23).
Rabbeinu Yonah’s 
unique position is shock-
ing. Abraham’s ultimate 
test doesn’t take place 
when God asks him to 
sacrifice his son. It isn’t 
even the death of his wife. 
It’s a simple exchange of 
money for land that takes 
place after these other two 
events.
What Rabbeinu Yonah is 
telling us is that sometimes 
when someone experi-
ences a trauma, having to return 
to “normal” is in itself a major 
test. Purchasing land is nothing 
more than a business deal; but 

for Abraham to have to engage 
in such an activity after what he’
d 
been through feels like it’s just too 
much to ask. This is truly a major 
test.
For more than 18 months, 
we’ve all faced challenges that, 
prior to the pandemic, we 
would never have thought 
we’
d ever face. Eighteen 
months of masking and 
physical distancing. But of 
course, the challenge of a 
year and a half of a loss of 
some of our normal routines 
pales in comparison to so 
many other losses we’ve 
faced during this time. Our 
relationships with family, 
friends and community 
changed in an instant. So 
many of us know people, or 
are even caring for people, 
who are dealing with the effects 
of COVID. We’ve lost loved ones, 
often without the opportunity to 
say goodbye or to properly grieve. 

As our rhetoric slowly shifts 
toward discussing our “return to 
normal” or even coming to terms 
with a “new normal,
” it’s import-
ant for us to recognize that after 
the trauma we’ve all experienced, 
and certainly for some more than 
others, “normal” doesn’t come 
so easily. Like Abraham after the 
trauma of being tasked with kill-
ing his son and the death of his 
life partner, even going about the 
business of his daily life becomes 
a test.
After trauma, even the most 
mundane tasks take on a new 
layer of challenge. Remember this 
when you reengage relationships 
seemingly lost to time over the 
past year and a half. Handle those 
around you with care because not 
everyone can jump back into nor-
mal, whatever normal will come 
to mean, with such ease. 

Rabbi Michael Langer teaches Jewish 

Studies at the Frankel Jewish Academy. 

SPIRIT

After the Trauma

TORAH PORTION

Rabbi 
Michael 
Langer

Parshat 

Chaye Sara: 

Genesis 

23:1-25:18; 

I Kings 

1:1-31.

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