Page 31 - HaMizrachiChayei Sarah AUS 2020

CHAYEI SARAH READING

Rabbi Yishai Fleisher

NOAH’S ARK, CHEVRON

AND THE ABRAHAM ACCORDS

hen the floodwaters came of ethical monotheism and the first The family bond, the bonds of love,
upon the earth, nothing family of the Jewish nation. and tribal values also give the Tomb its
Wremained alive except Compare that to the most sacred site vitality and sense of eternal stability.
Noah and those with him in the Ark. to the Jewish people – the Temple And speaking of tumultuous – the
They were protected because of G-d’s Mount – which was sacked by the world today seems to be experienc-
mercy – “for Noah found favor in His Romans, a small part of which – the ing some kind of flood-like cataclysm.
eyes.” Noah’s Ark has therefore come Western Wall – continues to be an epi- From divisive elections, riots and
to symbolize a safe haven in a volatile center of pilgrimage for Jews and gen- antisemitism in the US, to combat-
world. But the physical Ark is lost to tiles around the world. ive Israeli politics and of course the
mankind and nor was it meant to be an Coronavirus.
object of pilgrimage. Yet, with all the balagan (mess or
Like Noah’s Ark, Chevron’s Tomb of chaos), one light is shining bright – the
the Avot and Imahot (Forefathers and nascent diplomatic relations between
Mothers) is a haven from the vicissi- Israel and regional Arab states includ-
tudes of a turbulent world. Yet unlike ing the UAE, Bahrain and others.
the Ark, the “Machpelah” is a physical These are beautifully called the “Abra-
place to visit – one which imbues its ham Accords” – a name that recalls
visitors with a sense of permanency the father of the children of Israel and
and stability in the tumultuous uni- the children of Yishmael. It was in
verse and our fleeting existence. That Chevron that Yitzchak and Yishmael
is because the values of the Avot and came together to bury and honor their
Imahot are anchors in a world of con- shared father Avraham – and it was
stantly changing attitudes and values. Yet the permanency of the Machpelah then that Yishmael, the father of the
G-d’s promise to the Avot is a recur- stands in contrast to the political and Arabs, repented.
ring and foundational theme in the social reality that has swirled around Chevron, the City of Avraham, and the
Torah and is a bond that can never be it. Since the destruction of the Second Tomb of Avraham within it, should be
abrogated. Temple, the site has been under the viewed as a meeting place for all those
dominion of the Romans, Byzantines,
This eternal imprint is the power Arabs, Crusaders, Mamluks, Turks, who love Avraham and walk in his
behind the sense of peace and stability British and the Jordanians. Neverthe- path of worshiping the One G-d. Soon,
at the Machpelah. less, Jews and followers of Avraham G-d willing, the House of Israel, the
House of Saud, and all of the children
Moreover, the Machpelah building have flocked to the site at different of Avraham, physical and spiritual,
itself has a feeling of permanency. times and under varied conditions and will come together in Chevron to find
Unlike other structures from the always found comfort and unbounded common ground and to move forward
period, the monumental Herodian strength. in peace and prosperity.
building that sits atop the tombs has Like Noah’s Ark, the Machpelah also But until that time, Am Yisrael will
never been destroyed. It has been carries the theme of family. “Two by continue to stand strong to protect the
added to and altered but the basic two,” male and female, did the animals Tomb of the Avot and Imahot, which
structure remains the same. come into and out of the ark. So too, like Noah’s Ark, protects us through-
The Herodian edifice of the Tomb the Machpelah is a place of couples out time.
of the Avot and Imahot is the world’s – Avraham and Sarah, Yitzchak and
oldest standing structure that has con- Rivka, Ya’akov and Leah, who came Rabbi Yishai Fleisher is the International
tinuously served its original purpose – together as a family to give birth to a Spokesman for the Jewish Community of
a place to pay homage to the founders nation. Hebron.

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