Abraham and Sarah

Special babies...aren't all babies special?

This Sunday we turn to a second covenant of G-d to humanity. (notice that we don't put the "o" in the name of the Holy One...because this is a Jewish story and in respect of their traditions we follow them.)

Often we think of these Hebrew Testament stories as something we learned as children with little to speak to our modern circumstances, but we err there.

Abram and Sarai were pioneers of faith, of relationship to the Divine, and that is no small leap of humanity. By comparison walking on the moon pales.

Both Abram and Sarai's families were idolatrous. Abram's father was a maker of idols, that is he made his living by selling idols to those who would worship them. Not use them as icons. Not use them to meditate on. But purely and simply to worship these statues. What Abraham discovers by listening to that still small voice that we call "G-d" is that this is folly. He tried to convince his father of this new concept (at the time) of One True G-d, but one can understand his father's reluctance to turn from what provided a good living or to live as a hypocrite.

The other matter to consider as we study this passage (or the entire story of Abraham and Sarah) is the altering of their names. Now today, it might not seem to be such a big deal, but then your name was very important and was given to you with great ceremony and thought. The slight change was far more major at that time and place. So consider your name and your nicknames...what do they say about you?

My English as a Second Language students were always amazed that most of their new Canadian friends did not know what their names "meant." But perhaps we could spend a little time wondering what our names mean. How did we come to have our name? What kinds of discussions did our parents and extended families have before they named us?

Imagine for a time, how difficult it must have been for Abraham and Sarah, not only to adjust to having new names, but to pull up stakes, to leave all they knew, a good income, many friends, a close-knit family. It was a place of comfort for sure that they left on a promise from G-d that they were chosen to be holy hands in G-d's world. Sit for a while and ponder what it would mean for you to follow the leading of that still small voice? Can you even hear it over the din of the world?

And of course, Sarah laughs when she hears that she is to be a mother at 90! What woman wouldn't? Perhaps you might like to read this book... together as a family.

Now... to go to a webpage that will help you to talk about this story together.Click here