This past Shabbat afternoon, a remarkable thing happened as Levi Kabakov stood before the Torah at Congregation Shir Shalom. By choosing to become a Bar Mitzvah he had reconnected the entire family with its Jewish ritual past that had been stolen from them first by the Nazis and later by the Soviets. Two whole generations of Levi’s family had been forbidden from celebrating their faith and now, as his grandparents, and parents came to recite the blessings before and after the Torah, the sacred generational link, the Dor L’Dor, had finally been restored. How amazing it was to be present for such a holy occasion.
In this week’s Torah portion, we get the first opportunity to see just how hard that passing can be. Abraham and Sarah are now gone. All that they stood for, lived for, is now in the hands of Isaac and Rebecca and their sons Jacob and Esau.
The Torah portion’s name Toldot, means generations. Listening to Levi read the first words of the portion brought me chills, “Eleh Toldot Yitzcahk Ben Avraham. These are the generations of Isaac son of Abraham.” I finally understood what the Torah was trying to accomplish by repeating facts that we the reader already knew all too well. It was a reminder not to take for granted this eternal human act. We are around over three thousand years later not only because of the strength of our faith, but because of the strength of our bonds with one another. Thank you Levi and your whole family for reminding us all just how special these bonds truly are.
May Levi and his whole family go from strength to strength.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Alex