The Life of Sarah was One Hundred Years and Twenty Years and Seven Years- this is the life (OR: these are the lives) of Sarah. - Parshat Chayei Sarah
Sarah is the only person in the entire Torah whose life is described in this way. The Midrash says that is because Sarah had many lives. When she was one hundred, she was as eternally youthful as when she was twenty. When she was twenty, she was as pure and holy as when she was a child of seven. She is referred to in the Torah as a sage, matriarch, mother, leader, but one title that she is NOT mentioned by is the wife of Abraham. She is a force and power independent of Abraham, greater than him in prophecy and an equal founder of the Jewish nation. Abraham may have faltered and doubted, but not Sarah. Her imprint and legacy live on in every Jewish woman.
The Mitzvah of Bikur Cholim
Of all of the mitzvot, Bikur Cholim, visiting the sick, has a special place in Halacha. The Talmud declares that one who visits someone who is ill removes one seventieth of the suffering of the patient. We are instructed not to sit next to the head of the bed because the Shechinah, G-d’s presence, is there already. From recent personal experience, just knowing that people are thinking of you, by sending a text or email, by calling or by arranging a visit, is incredibly uplifting. Going through illness can be a terribly lonely and isolating experience and feeling the connection with others makes all the difference. Like Tzedaka, Bikur Cholim benefits the one being visited, the one visiting and sends up a ray of grace and love to illuminate the world. Make Bikur Cholim a regular part of your Jewish day and practice. Be an agent of life, love and caring.
Hebrew Word of the Week: Tikvah תקוה
Usually translated as "hope”, the Hebrew word Tikvah connotes so much more. Tikvah is a vision that somehow is already in existence. Our task is to realize it. That’s why a ritual bath is called a Mikveh. You can hear the similarity. When we immerse in the Mikveh, we slough off the limits that hold us back and all becomes possible. It is like the joke about how to make a sculpture of an elephant? It is by taking a large piece of marble and chipping way at everything that doesn't look like an elephant. The hope is already there for us to reveal through will, moral action, community and solidarity.
