Nov. 1, 2023

Parshas Vayeira: What Would You Do? (BONUS)

Have you ever been torn between maintaining focus during prayer and the urge to help a passer-by seeking charity? Picture this: you've finally found your rhythm in prayer, your focus is sharp, and then, a tap on your shoulder. A person stands, asking for aid. Do you interrupt your communion with the divine or brush off this plea for help? Using this real-life situation, we dissect the profound message embedded in Pashas Valleira, where Avromavina chose to help strangers despite having the opportunity for divine prophecy.

Join us as we tackle this quandary head-on, drawing upon Avromavina's choice as we navigate the maze of modern morality. We'll then explore the importance of chesed (kindness) and how this ancient principle has crucial lessons for us today. More than charity, we unravel how genuine kindness demands more than just a reaction to pity but a natural inner drive to extend help. By the end of our discussion, we hope to inspire you to embrace this authentic act of giving, making it an integral part of everyday life. So, strap in and prepare to have your perspective on giving transformed as we delve deep into the heart of Chesed.

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Transcript
Speaker 1:

I was absolutely clueless and maybe you've been in the same scenario, so maybe you have the answer. Buddy, you wake up on the right side of the bed, you're feeling good, the sun is shining, birds are chirping. You're on time for chakras that morning. Talus twillin' it fits good. Nice seat over in the corner, no loud neighbors in shul. You're praying. A bit of concentration that day. Maybe there is maybe rents due, whatever it is. Then, as I reached ashray, I get a tap on the shoulder from a mashulah raising money for a poor kala and arity of sorrow. So I fumble through my pockets. I find a quarter, find a dollar, something and give it, but I was a little distracted. Anyway, I come back to my sitter. This is a day that I'm the davani actually means something for once. And before I get to the base, I get another tap on the shoulder from another mashulah, one of those holy mashulahim, the beggars that are really the givers collecting for this initiative, this organization, for this tsarah. Before I get to the gimble, to the dalat as maybe you've noticed that the mashulahim, they tend to travel in packs if they're all friendly, but different vans pull up and every single letter of ashray. I couldn't even focus because I kept having to find a quarter or maybe say I don't have anything. I'm sorry, but I was upset because I felt like I was being distracted from my davani, but on the other hand maybe it's better to give charity. So what was the right thing to do? I was irritated and the uncertainty was even more bothersome, but then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Pashas Valleira tells us that Avromavina was sitting outside in the very heat of the day and he was looking through for travelers, for passer-byers, because he wanted to do chesed. It was the third day after his brisimila. He's an old man and the psukim of desla points out, setting on measures. It seems to be that Avromavina is about to get prophecy from Hashem, the ultimate gift of prophecy. And when Avromavina sees these passer-byers he hangs up the phone on Akhadash Baruch, he closes the book on prophecy and runs to do acts of chesed and Rashi brings for us the Maimer Chazal. That greater is it to act hospitable, to do achnossos orchem, and it is to be makhabal panay hashchina to welcome the face, the glory of Hashem into your house. To me I took the lesson very straightforward, of course, certainly that my davening is nowhere near the level of prophecy, avromavina and Avromavina would have closed the phone and hung up on prophecy to go do achnossos orchem, to go do an act of chesed. How much more so Should we definitely Maybe feel okay, okay, my davening is here, but this is an open chazal, this is what we need to do. The Chaybis al-Avabis maybe takes it a step further, and this is all in Rev Desla's famous giving piece to be a giver about chesed, that even if a person feels pity for somebody, I feel horrible that you're going through that situation. The Meshulah has this sorrow, this pain. They're going through this agony. So, yes, you give a dollar. It's a mitzvah, it's a justice you have to, can't close your hand, but pity isn't chesed. It is a high level but it ain't chesed. Chesed is driven not because you're trying to assuage or calm or alleviate any inner pain, because pity is really self-centered in a way. But real chesed is I want to help you and it's not a motive from outside, but it is inside, bursting forth like Avromavino. So maybe we even stop in the middle of Ashray. We should conclude and not only give one dollar but give another dollar, because the first may just be because of pity but the second may be an act of true chesed, and that's the way of Avromavino.