CHAYE SARAH 1989
 
In the Torah portion Chaye Sarah we learn about the death of Sarah and how Abraham buys a plot for her from the Hittites.  We also learn how afterwards Abraham sends his faithful servant, Eliezer, to Mesopotamia to find a wife for his son, Yitzchak.  We then learn how Abraham remarries and has 6 other children who he gives presents to and sends away, but we do not learn anything more about Abraham's life basically after the death of Sarah.  He lived 38 more years, and these obviously were years in which he was robust and in good health because he had 6 more children, but, yet, we learn nothing more about Abraham's life.  After Sarah we do not learn that G-d spoke to him again.  We do not learn anything more about his exploits or deeds.  All we know is that after Sarah dies and he buries her he immediately feels that he has to get a wife for his son, Yitzchak, and he send Eliezer on a mission to get a wife for his son, Yitzchak.  What's more, why in this Torah portion does it start out, "These were the years of the life of Sarah, 100 years and 7 years, the years of the life of Sarah".  In other words, we repeat the last few words "the years of the life of Sarah" when we do not have to do that.  After all, the Torah is very laconic and does not waste words. Why is it that here it repeats this phrase?  It seems superfluous to have to say "these are the years of the life of Sarah" at the very end.
Perhaps the key to this is when we learn how Abraham came to bury Sarah it says, "And Abraham came to eulogize Sarah and to cry for her".  Usually when a person mourns for someone they first cry and then they mourn, but here it says that Abraham gave a eulogy and then he cried for her. The rabbis explain that the covenant that was given to Abraham was not just a covenant for Abraham alone, but that the covenant was given to Abraham and Sarah as a team, as a couple.  This was true later for Yitzchak and Rifka.  It was also true for Yaacov and Leah that the covenant was
 
not just given to the male of the couple but it was given to the couple as a couple, both the male and the female.  In this instance when Sarah died the covenant, itself, was called into question.  Abraham would no longer have the strength to continue on with the covenant.  It is true that physically he had his strength.  After all, he had 6 more children, but he did not have the spiritual power anymore to continue.  We learn that when Abraham originally received the covenant from G-d, G-d changed his name from Avrom to Avraham.  At that same time He also changed Sarah's name from Sarai to Sora.  What He did in both instances was add a Hay to their names.  Hay, everyone knows, is also an abbreviation for G-d's name, that when Abraham and Sarah became bearers of the covenant that they each contained within their name G-d's name, that they were a team. In fact, Abraham, when he was childless for many years and could not have a child with Sarah, pleaded with G-d that perhaps Lot would be his heir to carry on the covenant, or if not him maybe Eliezer, his servant, but G-d would not accept that.  Finally, Abraham said, "What about my son, Ishmael?  He is my real son from Hagar."  G-d also would not accept that.  G-d would only accept a son who came from both Abraham and Sarah, that the covenant was a joint enterprise of both of them.
That is what we learn, too, that Sarah was really greater in many respects than Abraham.  That is why this is called "the years of the life of Sarah" because these years that she lived, this was the Sarah era.  It was not so much the Abraham era.  It was the Sarah era because Sarah intuitively knew how to apply the teachings of Abraham in practice.  She knew how to apply Chesed to everyone around.  Abraham understood teaching more. He understood the ideals perhaps more, but he could not intuitively apply them to given situations.  That is why the rabbis say that Sarah's bailiwick
 
was Bathsheba, which means "a well of abundance", that she knew how to relate to people.  She knew how to sense what was right in a given situation. Abraham's main bailiwick was Chevron.  Chevron comes from the same word as Chover, for friend.  He was a teacher.  He was a person who was able to share ideas with his friends, but when it came to intuitively apply them he was not able to do it.
We also know that there is a saying in English, which really does not
apply all the time, which says that those who can do and those who cannot
teach.  Obviously, it does not apply in this instance to Abraham.  He
also did.  It is true that many times when people teach they understand
all the principles but they cannot apply them in practice, but Sarah
was able to apply these ideals of Chesed, kindness, in practice.  Abraham
had, many times, difficulty applying these things in practice.  In fact,
it was Sarah who knew that Ishmael was a bad influence on Yitzchak and
had him sent away.  After Sarah's death Abraham, himself, sent away the
other 6 boys he had realizing that they would also be a bad influence
on Yitzchak without even Sarah's prompting.  In fact, when Sarah came
up with advice, G-d said, "Listen to her voice," because she knew intuitively
how to apply these teachings of Abraham in real life situations.  Sarah
was eulogized first by Abraham because he had to tell about her greatness.
He had to sense and to convey that sense of her greatness to everyone
around him.  He knew, too, that when she died his greatness ended.  Then
later he cried.  He cried for his loss as a human being, but first he
had to make known her greatness.  He suffered as a leader first and
then he suffered as a human being.  Abraham knew then after Sarah died
that he could no longer carry on the covenant.  Therefore, he knew that
it was imperative that Yitzchak carry on the covenant, and, therefore,
 
it was imperative that he search out a wife for him.  That is why he
sent Eliezer immediately to find a wife for Yitzchak because he, himself,
no longer had the strength to carry on.  He knew that his part of the
covenant with Sarah had to do with kindness, and the covenant had three
aspects.  It was based on kindness but it also had to include observance
and worship, and that he was not as capable of as he knew his son would
be.  The third part of the covenant is Torah, is learning of Torah, and
that, of course, was left to his grandson, to Yaacov, to develop.  Abraham
went as far as he could with Gemilas Chasodeem.  The next stage was to
combine Gemilas Chasodeem with observance, with ritual, and that was
left to his son, Yitzchak, who needed a mate like Rifka in order to promote
the covenant and deepen it.  We see the same thing in our own day, that
many times synagogue and Jewish institutions were founded by wonderful
people who understood all about Gemilas Chasodeem, but they did not understand
too much about religious worship and ritual, and that is something that
an individual needs for his own life.  We see now a second generation
that is concerned with ritual and observance, but many times they cannot
go any further in Jewish learning.  It is Jewish learning which really
ties one to G-d and lets a person feel the meaning and purpose of existence.
It almost has a mystical quality to it.  That was left to Jacob to discover.
He understood that in the midst of life, in the midst of doing deeds
of kindness and observing rituals and prayer that you needed more than
that.  You also needed Jewish learning.  These were the three basics
of the covenant.  Abraham had gone as far as he could.  He now knew that
it was up to Yitzchak to get a wife and to continue on so he could further
the covenant.  In the cave where Abraham buried Sarah four people were
buried.  There was Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Yitzchak and Rifka,
and Yaacov and Leah.  The rabbis tell us that every human being has a
 
covenant.  That is what the original covenant that G-d made with Adam with all of us.  The Jews just had a little extra covenant.
It is important, though, that we realize that the covenant cannot be furthered unless there are couples, couples who sustain and help each other, that it is very difficult for an individual alone to promote the covenant, to make the covenant a living thing.  It takes a couple together. That is why Judaism stresses marriage so much.
I am reminded of the story they tell about Eve, who went up to Adam and said, "Adam, you must do something about your appearance.  You have to spruce yourself up." Adam turned to Eve and said, "You know, Eve, it's strange you should say that because I was just thinking about turning over a new leaf." When it comes to life one individual alone cannot do it, but a couple can.  Let's hope that all Jewish couples will be interested in doing deeds of kindness, as Abraham was, and worship and observance, as Yitzchak was, and in furthering Torah learning, as Yaacov and Leah were.  If we will make sure we observe the covenant to the fullest we can rest assured that Judaism will survive and the Mashiach will come. Amen.