NOVEMBER 2 • 2023 | 47

Your eyes, do not leave Your 
servant [i.e. Please wait until I 
have given hospitality to these 
men].
’ [He then turned to the 
men and said:] ‘Let me send 
for some water so that you 
may bathe your feet and rest 
under this tree…
’”
This daring interpretation 
became the basis for a prin-
ciple in Judaism: “Greater is 
hospitality than receiving the 
Divine Presence.
” Faced with 
a choice between listening to 
God and offering hospitality 
to what seemed to be human 
beings, Abraham chose the 
latter. God acceded to his 
request, and waited while 
Abraham brought the visitors 
food and drink, before engag-
ing him in dialogue about the 
fate of Sodom. 
How can this be so? It seems 
disrespectful at best, heretical 
at worst, to put the needs of 
human beings before attending 
on the presence of God.
What the passage is telling 
us, though, is something of 
immense profundity. The 
idolaters of Abraham’s time 
worshipped the sun, the stars 
and the forces of nature as 
gods. They worshipped power 
and the powerful. Abraham 
knew, however, that God is 
not in nature but beyond nature. 
There is only one thing in the 
universe on which He has set 
His image: the human per-
son, every person, powerful 
and powerless alike.
The forces of nature are 
impersonal, which is why 
those who worship them even-
tually lose their humanity. As 
the book of Psalms puts it:
Their idols are silver and gold, 
the work of men’s hands. 
 They have mouths, but cannot 
speak, 
 Eyes, but cannot see; 
 They have ears, but cannot 
hear, nostrils but cannot smell… 
 They that make them become 
like them, 
 And so do all who put their 

trust in them.
Psalms 115:4–8
One cannot worship imper-
sonal forces and remain a per-
son; compassionate, humane, 
generous, forgiving. Precisely 
because we believe that God is 
personal, someone to whom 
we can say “You,
” we honor 
human dignity as sacrosanct.
Abraham, father of mono-
theism, knew the paradoxical 
truth that to live the life of 
faith is to see the trace of God 
in the face of the stranger. It 
is easy to receive the Divine 
Presence when God appears 
as God. 
What is difficult is to sense 
the Divine Presence when it 
comes disguised as three anon-
ymous passers-by. That was 
Abraham’s greatness. He knew 
that serving God and offering 
hospitality to strangers were 
not two things but one.
In one of the most beautiful 
comments on this episode, 
Rabbi Shalom of Belz notes 
that in verse 2, the visitors are 
spoken of as standing above 
Abraham (nitzavim alav), 
while in verse 8, Abraham is 
described as standing above 
them (omed aleihem). At first, 
the visitors were higher than 
Abraham because they were 
angels and he a mere human 
being. But when he gave them 
food and drink and shelter, 
he stood even higher than the 
angels. 
By choosing the most 
radical of the three possible 
interpretations of Genesis 18, 
the Sages allowed us to hear 
one of the most fundamental 
principles of the life of faith: 
We honor God by honoring 
His image, humankind. 

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (1948-

2020) was a global religious leader, 

philosopher, the author of more than 

25 books and moral voice for our 

time. His series of essays on the 

weekly Torah portion, titled “Covenant 

& Conversation” will continue to be 

shared and distributed around the 

world. 

Abraham and the 
Three Angels, 
watercolor by 
James Tissot, 
c. 1896–1902

SPIRIT

Monotheism Begins
O

ur earliest ancestors, 
Abraham and Sarah, 
were the counter- 
culturists of their time. While 
the entire world was steeped 
in paganism and idolatry, they 
discovered the truth of the 
monotheistic belief and its 
positive results. However, 
they did not suffice with 
their own discoveries and 
recognitions; they shared 
them with the world and 
created a movement of 
people inspired by their 
beliefs.
How did they achieve 
this? What was their 
technique to inspiring the 
masses?
The Midrash explains 
that Abraham and Sarah 
were primarily occupied 
with hospitality. They pitched 
a large tent in the desert along 
the road where wayfarers were 
always traveling. They welcomed 
everyone with genuine love 
and concern and offered them 
a delicious meal. Following the 
consumption of their meal, the 
guests would inquire as to how 
much it cost. Abraham and 
Sarah would respond, “No need 
to thank or repay us; instead, 
bless and thank HaShem who 
provided and created this 
food.
” Many of them would 
respond, “But we don’t believe in 
HaShem.
” At which point, they 
were presented with the full bill. 
Seeing the significant cost, they 
would turn heavenward and 
bless and thank HaShem. 
This is how Abraham and 
Sarah were successful in creat-
ing a big following and moving 
the masses to the concept of a 
monotheistic-centered universe 
with its ramifications in morality 
and ethics.

However, this begs the ques-
tion: Would you consider this 
acknowledgment and gratitude 
to HaShem as genuine? Is this 
something we should be emu-
lating? It may not be considered 
a coerced acknowledgment, 
but it certainly cannot be 
considered a true transfor-
mation.
A fundamental Jewish 
belief is that every one of 
us has a soul that recog-
nizes the truth of Hashem’s 
reality and yearns for this 
truth to be expressed in 
our daily lives. For many 
of us, this soul pulsates 
subconsciously and does 
not have the opportunity 
to fully express itself. But 
when times get tough, it is 
common for many hearts 
to open to this inner identity. 
This provides us with a sense of 
purpose and meaning, even in 
the most difficult times. It can 
also give us the quality of a deep-
er relationship with HaShem and 
others.
The Jewish people have been 
experiencing real traumas in the 
last few weeks. Many of us have 
recognized the need to deepen 
their connection to our personal 
Jewish identity and our brethren 
in Israel. Let us capitalize on 
this opportunity to strengthen 
our Jewish identity by doing an 
extra mitzvah, studying a little 
Torah or dedicating some time 
to prayer. 
May we merit that HaShem 
provide us with the ultimate 
solace and comfort by fulfilling 
his promise of the Messianic 
utopia, speedily in our days. 
Amen. 

Rabbi Mendel Polter is a rabbi at the 

Woodward Avenue Shul.

TORAH PORTION

Rabbi 
Mendel 
Polter

Parshat 

Vayera: 

Genesis 

18:1-22:24; 

II Kings 

4:1-37.

