In this week’s Torah portion, Vayeitzei, Jacob is on the lamb, traveling hundreds of miles back to his family in Haran, alone, scared and desperate. At the foot of the well, he encounters a beautiful maiden. He runs to her, kisses her, and begins to cry. It is the most romantic moment in all of Torah.
A good Jewish love story comes in the most unexpected of ways. It is David falling head over heals for Bat Sheva, Moses finding Tziporah in the Midianite wilderness, and, most especially Jacob falling head over heals for Rachel. There are not many, but the ones we do have out worth the price of admission.
Nearly a decade ago my in-laws went searching for Jewish love stories in the most unexpected of places – Nazi ghettos and concentration camps. My wife’s maternal grandparents had met in Vichy France and escaped by the narrowest of margins on the last ship out of Europe, the Navemar. In honor of their legacy, my in-laws, Mindelle and Ira Pierce, interviewed dozens of survivors and found the most amazing love stories in the most unexpected of situations. Their book, Love With No Tomorrow, will be coming to a book store near you on December 15th. It is truly a labor of love, dedicated both to my wife’s grandparents Jack and Rose Najman, and the countless other couples who never let the Nazis conquer their will and determination to survive.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Alex