Ra'anana Community Kollel - Parshat Vayera

Planting and Tending

Rabbi Binyomin Lipson

“Let a bit of water be taken to wash your feet and rest here under the tree.”
(Bereishit 18:4)

“R’ Chama the son of R’ Chanina taught, ‘As a result of three deeds of Avraham the Jewish people merited three things. As a reward for the milk and butter which he served to his visitors, Avraham’s descendents merited to eat the manna. Because he stood over his guests while they ate, the Jewish people merited the pillar of cloud which stood over them, and because Avraham said, ‘Let some water be taken . . .’ his descendents merited to drink from the well of Miriam while traveling in the wilderness.”
(Bava Metziah 86b)

The Gemara tells us that even the seemingly minor details of the way in which Avraham treated his guests played a major role in the future of his descendents when they were taken out of Egypt. However, the Gemara (Ta’anit 9b) comments that these three unique gifts which the Jewish people merited to experience while traveling in the wilderness were given in the merit of the three great leaders of that generation. It was in the merit of Moshe that the Jewish people ate the manna. It was in the merit of Aharon that they enjoyed the protection of the pillar of cloud, and in the merit of Miriam they were supplied with water from the miraculous well which followed them throughout their journeys. How should we understand these two diverse explanations? Do they simply represent a difference of opinion?

Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz explained this seeming contradiction with a parable. Although the potential for a plant’s eventual growth certainly lies within the seed, we cannot possibly give the seed all of the credit for the final product. Rather, in order to grow and develop, a seed needs earth, water, sunshine, and many other factors in order to grow into a tree which brings forth fruits. Similarly, although the “seeds” of the manna, pillar of cloud, and the miraculous spring that followed the Jewish people in the wilderness were sown by the acts of Avraham in this week’s parshah, each one of them required additional nourishment in order to actually come to physical fruition. Thus, in each case, the final actualization of these merits was a result of the combined effort of Avraham and his descendents who followed in his ways and continued his spiritual legacy.

Likewise, in the process of educating our children there are many moral and religious standards which we attempt to inculcate into their developing consciousness. However, as much as we may talk to our children and explain to them the importance of what we are trying to teach them, these conversations are nothing more than the seeds of a tree which we pray will eventually grow to bear fruit. Just as a seed which is not nourished will certainly not grow, if we merely tell our children what we expect of them, it is not likely that we will see such values come to fruition when they become adults. Rather, we can only expect to see the fruits of our children's education if we thoroughly nourish it by emulating the principles which we wish to teach. If to an adult a picture is worth a thousand words, then it can easily be said that to a child it is worth far more than a million. As parents, we carry the great responsibility of being the living pictures that will show our children the correct path through the maze of life. Only then is it reasonable for us to hope that we will be able to take pleasure in the fruits that are destined to sprout.