One of the most poignant scenes in Parashat Vayera is Avraham’s heartfelt plea on behalf of the people of Sedom. After being informed of the impending destruction, Avraham does something unexpected: he argues with Hashem for their salvation. Not because they were righteous. Not because they were kind. Not because he agreed with their lifestyle or their values. Avraham prayed on their behalf because he believed it was the right thing to do because every human being is created B’tzelem Elokim, in the Divine image. Avraham seeks to find fifty righteous individuals, perhaps forty-five, perhaps ten. In the end, the city is not spared. On the surface, Avraham’s prayer appears to have been a failure. The outcome did not match the desired result. And yet our tradition never refers to this moment as a failure. To the contrary, it becomes the paradigm for Jewish prayer. The Talmud points to Avraham’s prayer for Sedom as foundational. Why? Because tefilah is not transactional. We do not pray because prayer guarantees a desired outcome. We pray because the act of turning to God shapes us, our values, our empathy, our resilience, our sense of responsibility for one another. Prayer may not always change the world in the way we hope, but it always has an impact and the capacity to change us.
This is a powerful message this week as Jews in New York City reflect on the recent mayoral election with both bewilderment and concern. They organized. They registered others to vote. They spoke out and they showed up. And, in the end, they did not see the result that they had hoped for. It is natural at a moment like that to feel defeated and question the value of the efforts expended. But as Avraham taught us, outcomes are not the only measure of the value of our efforts. While our preferred candidate didn’t win, we saw Jewish communities across neighborhoods and backgrounds finding common cause. People who might disagree passionately on other issues discovered that they could still stand shoulder to shoulder when it mattered. The election reminded us that our community is capable of mobilizing, communicating, caring, and working together. It reminded us that our voice can be strong, not only when we win, but when we show up and put on display the power of Jewish unity. Advocacy is about showing up. Tefilah is also about showing up, among many other important life values. No one can guarantee the result we seek every time we work on a cause. But each effort strengthens the core of community and the character of the individual.
We keep speaking out. We protect and enrich Jewish life – from both a defensive and proactive posture.
We keep working. We keep caring. We keep believing that our voice and our efforts matter. Most importantly, we keep praying; not only to be answered, but to become the kind of prayerful people we want to be.
The story of Avraham and Sedom does not end in failure. It is a story of courage, faith and resolve. Let us learn from Avraham’s example to put results in their proper context and to value, no matter the outcome, the impact we create when we put in the efforts to connect and grow together.
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