At the Cost of His Life!
Avraham, together with his nephew Lot, left Mitzrayim loaded with wealth - compensation for the abduction of Sarah. Soon afterwards, a dispute arose between Avraham’s shepherds and Lot’s shepherds. Wishing to avoid quarrelling Avraham approached his nephew and said, “Let there be no fight between us, for we are brothers”.
Rashi explains, that since Avraham and Lot were relatives Avraham wanted to avoid a family conflict. Rashi then quotes the Midrash Agada which explains that Avraham and Lot bore a striking resemblance to each other - they could even pass as twins. Lot’s shepherds would leave their sheep to pasture in fields that were not hefker. Avraham’s shepherds would muzzle his sheep. Given that Lot so greatly resembled Avraham, Avraham was concerned that people would think that it was his shepherds who were behaving dishonestly.
The Significance of Every Move
Obviously, Avraham wasn’t concerned for his own honor. Rather, he knew that his every move represented Hashem. If he behaved in an upright way it would be mekadesh shem shamayim - people would appreciate the ways of Hashem and be drawn closer to Him. If, however, he failed to behave in a way that gained peoples’ respect, the opposite would occur. This was so important to Avraham that he was willing to split from a member of his family because of it.
The First War
The first major war in history was between the four kings and the five kings. The four kings ultimately prevailed and one of their captives was none other than Lot. Og, king of Bashan, very much wanted to marry Sarah, and saw this an opportunity to get rid of Avraham. He would inform him of Lot’s captivity, Avraham would try to save his nephew - a fight he would surely lose (against the powerful four kings) - and Og could marry Sarah.
Avraham took the bait, and after assembling a tiny army of 318 people (and, according to some, just Eliezer), went to wage a seemingly hopeless war against the most powerful army in the world. However, miraculously Avraham won the war and freed Lot.
Why did Avraham enter the war against such daunting odds? The mighty four kings had just emerged victorious in battle - how would Avraham and a few untrained lads overcome them and recapture Lot?
Parading with the Kidnaped
The answer is that Avraham was afraid that the four kings would parade Lot around claiming that they had actually captured Avraham, the one who declared that there was but one G-d who controls the entire universe. This would create an unspeakable chilul Hashem - Avraham had to go out to battle to help prevent it.
In other words, this battle was not simply an operation to rescue Lot; it was a theological war. Avraham risked his life because he, as the spokesman for Hashem, could not be seen to have been taken capture. He had to fight to avoid the desecration of Hashem’s name.
The midos of the avos ha’kedoshim were inherited by their descendants. Avraham’s mesirus nefesh to avoid a chilul Hashem remains with us, during easier times and during trying times, during the Spanish Inquisition and during the Holocaust. Yidden of all stripes have always done everything, including sacrificing their lives, all to be mekadesh shem shamayim.
Being Mekadesh Shem Shamayim
Chazal discuss the importance of the mitzvah of being mekadesh shem shamayim and the severity of chillul Hashem in several places. R’ Yochanan ben Beroka, for example, asserted that someone who is mechalel shem shamayim in private is punished in public.
The Mishnah also states that “echad shogeg v’echad mezid b’chillul Hashem - there is no difference in between intentional and unintentional chillul Hashem”. This is an extraordinary halacha - in all cases the Torah differentiates between deliberate and accidental sinners. Why is this not the case here?
The answer to this question will help us understand why Avraham was so fiercely dedicated to preventing chillul Hashem and why generations of Yidden have sacrificed their lives for the sake of His name.
The Business Trip
Mendy had a respectable, well-paying job in CVV finances. He worked hard, delivered results, and brought home a good paycheque. As time went on he rose through the ranks and became the head of his department.
One day, his boss, Mr. Mirvis, called him to his office. He had something important to discuss. The company had been growing nicely and recently they had received a proposal from an international firm, based in Australia, that was interested in merging with them, thereby making CVV Finances an international company, and likely to significantly improve their profits.
Mr. Mirvis explained that for health reasons he could not fly and he believed that the person to sign the deal would be the faithful Mendy. Given that it was time sensitive since the deal had to be signed by the end of the week or it would be lost, he was wondering if he could book Mendy a flight for the following day.
Visiting Moshe
Mendy was very excited, not just for the financial renumeration he would receive, not just for the high-profile business visit, but his dear brother Moshe had moved to Australia five years before and he had not seen him since. He was excited about the possibility of visiting him. He told his boss that he readily agreed to travel as long as he could have an hour to spend with his brother. Mr. Mirvis agreed, as long as this did not affect his business meeting.
The next day an excited Mendy was on his way to the airport. The flight, though very long, was smooth and uneventful, and before he knew it he was in Australia. His dear brother had come to the airport with his family to great him and take him to his home. He would need to be quick as the important meeting was to begin two hours later.
They arrived at Moshe’s house and there was a festive meal waiting for them. They washed, sat down, and began to eat. They began sharing memories, and before they knew it, the photo albums came out. They spent hour after hour looking at the pictures, going down memory lane and having a great time. Suddenly Moshe shouted: “Mendy, your flight is leaving in two hours, we must rush to the airport.” Mendy grabbed his case and they rushed back to the airport, just in time to catch the plane.
Fired! Why?
Mendy arrived back safely and returned to work the next day. He was excited to share his experiences with his colleagues and his boss, however, when he arrived at his desk he noticed a pink slip of paper on it. Upon closer examination he saw that he had been fired.
Mendy was perplexed - why had he been fired? His boss quickly explained to him that it was he had missed the important meeting - the whole purpose of the trip. Mendy protested that it had been an accident, he had simply forgotten about this meeting - it wasn’t his fault. But it was to no avail. Since the entire purpose of the trip was to close this deal, accidently forgetting it was unforgivable.
We are sent to this world for one reason: to be mekadesh shem shamayim. Therefore, if we forget this fact, and are mechalel shem shamayim, even b’shogeg, we are liable.
Current Times
We now have a deeper understanding as to why Klal Yisrael, throughout the generations, have been moser nefesh al kiddush Hashem, and why Avraham Avinu was willing to fight an improbable battle to free his nephew Lot: it was to prevent a situation that would indicate that one of Hashem’s emissaries were in captivity, and thus cause chilul shem shamayim.
Achenu kol beis Yisrael ha’nesunim ba’tzara u’ba’shivya. Klal Yisrael are in a time of terrible tzarah, not seen in many years. So many of achenu beis Yisrael are still in captivity. Those on the front lines are being moser nefesh to rescue them. The Chazon Ish would say that the first hishtadlus is tefilah. We must do our upmost in tefilah and in being marbeh zechuyos, up to levels of mesirus nefesh so that we should see yeshuos gedolos. haMakom yerachem alehem v’yotzi’em mi’tzarah lirvachah u’me’afelah le’ora. May we be zocheh to the real kiddush shem shamayim when we go mi’shibud li’geulah hashta ba’agala u’bi’zman kariv, v’nomar amen.
