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Chaye Sarah (2026)

Dvar Torah – Love in the Jewish Home
In this week’s portion we read the story of Eliezer, Abraham’s servant, who sojourns to Aram Naharayim to find a wife for Isaac. There, he meets Rebecca, who amazes him with her extraordinary Chessed - acts of kindness toward an unknown traveler – and who readily agrees to journey with him to Canaan and be wed to Isaac.

When Rebecca arrives in the Negev and meets Isaac for the first time, the Torah records a major milestone when it tells us that Isaac loved Rebecca. For the first time in the biblical narrative, we learn about love as a concept.

Two powerful themes can be highlighted from this story:

First, Isaac did not have a typical upbringing by any stretch of the imagination. Miraculously born to Sarah when she was ninety, he grew up surrounded by his parents' legendary mission to spread monotheism and practice Chessed. Above all, he experienced the Akeidah - his dramatic binding on Mount Moriah.

In many cultures and religions, a person of such intense spiritual experience would be expected to live a monastic, detached life. Yet, the Torah emphasizes that Isaac loved Rebecca. Isaac’s profound background didn't hinder his ability to build a warm, affectionate relationship with his wife. This story accentuates that Judaism is founded on the idea that life should be both holy and normal. In fact, a recurring theme in Halacha is that true holiness is found right inside the home.

Second, the 19th-century commentator Rabbi SR Hirsch notes a key nuance in the text: the verse specifically accentuates Isaac’s love for Rebecca after their marriage. This is the quintessential hallmark of a Jewish home. The wedding is not the apex of a couple’s love, but rather the starting line. True love in a Jewish home is continuously built, nurtured, and amplified by living a life of meaning and holiness together.

Shabbat candle lighting/Havdalah times
Yerushalayim 16:06/17:24
Tel-Aviv 16:25/17:25
Johannesburg 18:15/19:12
Paris 17:05/18:12
NYC 16:28/17:29
Chicago 16:19/17:21
More Shabbat times here

Shabbat Shalom!




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