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Shabbat Shalom!.
Shabbat Shalom!.
Chayei Sarah
Genesis 23:1-25:18
Torah Reading for Week of November 8-14, 2009
Cheshvan 21-27 5770
"And Sarah died in Kiryat Arba, which is Chevron in the land of Canaan; and
Avraham came to cry for her and mourn her." [Bereshis 23:2]
“ He cried over her “ As there is in every parsha each word, each sentence that we
read in the torah has something which needs to be evaluated and discussed since there
is a lesson to be learned. It is interesting that every letter in the torah is written in a certain height, however it is only in this parsha that we notice one letter which is smaller than all the rest. There is a small Kuf in the word Velivkosah, (He cried over her), and naturally one needs to discuss why this is so. Many commentaries have noted
that this is to teach us that Avraham didn't cry too long .When Avraham cryed over Sara's passing, it has been said that he cried a little bit. Perhaps this is because when someone dies of a ripe old age as did Sarah, the grief is not as great as if someone who had died at a younger age. Sarah lived a long and full life, it was her time. In the first verse the word, Chai, meaning life, is repeated twice. In fact, the word death is never mentioned in the first verse. It is meant that we focus on the life of Sarah and not her death. This explains why the title of this week's Torah portion is "Chayei Sarah" - which literally means the "life of Sarah", even though the parsha spends the majority of time focusing on the death of Sarah.
“And Avraham was elderly, advanced in days, and G-d blessed him with everything" [24:1].
It is apparent that there is a connectin with the above statement and the next statement in which Abraham orders his servant Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzchak, Abraham;s son. Our attention quickly shift from that
of Abraham buying a burial plot for Sara to finding a wife for his son. There by not wasting any time moving on with his life. This is not to diminish Avrahams devotion and love for Sara, in fact Avraham credits his wife in giving him the strength to do all that he did, he was satisfied with his lot in life. Hashem blessed him with extraordinary wealth and prestige. The memory of Sarah, is a constant reflection of dignity, respect and honor from all who look . These are venerable human beings, haloed about with souls that glowed for all to see. Sarah, although physically gone from the stage, is powerfully present in Abraham's wishes to have a burial site worthy of her matriarchy
But we all need to remember as Abraham did that though things might be difficult now, we need to move beyond the present; we are sometimes so busy with our lives that we do not have the time to think about the future. The negative things that occur in ones life can be a devastation or an opportunity to grow. Abraham knew he was blessed with a son in his old age to perpetuate his legacy. Therefore after Sarah's death Abraham was resolved to fill the gap in his son's life by seeking a wife for him. Avraham, who himself was getting older, must teach his son that life must move on Yitzchak needs to build a future and ensure the continuity of Am Yisrael for all future generations. How our actions and reactions to situations in our present life affect what the future can become. As one tries to believe that life has a higher purpose than the here and now, may the example of Sarah and the vision of Abraham persist to guide us in our own struggles to attain more wisdom and Godliness. Historically, the strength of the Jewish people has always been to continue to live and to be strong even in the face of death and tragedy. This is the legacy that Avraham left which continues to stay with us both as individuals and as a nation.
Shabbat Shalom,
Miriam
The Midrash tells us that while Sarah was alive, a flame burned co
nstantly in the family's tent, from Sabbath to Sabbath. We also learn that the challah (bread) Sarah made was blessed; it was always scrumptious and satisfying. There are always a special heavenly protective cloud above Abraham and Sarah's tent. Upon Sarah's death these three blessings disappeared. However, when Isaac brought Rebecca into his mother's tent, the three blessings resumed. The following recipe for challah could have been made by Sara. It is a water challah made with no eggs and was given to me by my good friend Eva. It is definately scrumptious and satisfying!
EVA'S WATER CHALLAH
3 packages of Fleishmans active yeast
9 cups flour
3 cups water
1/2 cup oil
1/2cup +tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
Dissolve yeast and 2 tsp sugar in 1/2 cup of warm water
place flour in to very large bowl. Add the water, oil, sugar,
salt and yeast mixture.
Mix until soft dough is formed.
Knead, seperate Challah. Place dough in big bowl, cover with towel. Let dough rise until double in bulk.. punch down.
Divide into 9 balls. Let dough rest for 10 min. roll into ropes and braid 3 loaves. (optional egg wash and sesame seeds)
Let rise 20 minutes, bake 350 for 45-1hr.
Roast Turkey with Vadalia Onions and Apple
great for shabbos or thanksgiving
1 (12- to 14-pound) kosher turkey
1 pound onions 4 green apples (finely chopped)
Pan juices from roast turkey About 4 cups Turkey Giblet Stock 1/2 cup apple cider (or white wine) 4 tbl.flour
chicken broth
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar 1/2 cup sugar 4 tbl. garlic
Rinse turkey inside and out and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper inside and out. Tie drumsticks together with kitchen string. Set oven temp at 400 degrees.
Roast turkey in middle of oven 30 minutes.
While turkey is roasting, put onions, garlic, apples balsamic vinegar and sugar in pan on med. heat and cook for about 30minutes, stirring occassionally until thicker.
Reduce temperature to 350°F. Brush olive oil over turkey, cover and bake 1 &1/2 hour more.
Baste turkey , scatter ingredients around turkey ,then roast 30 minutes more.
Baste turkey and add apples to roasting pan. Roast another 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until a thermometer inserted into fleshy part of a thigh registers 180°F.
Transfer turkey, onions, and apples to a platter, leaving juices in pan. For around the turkey- mix together 1/4 cup olive oil 6 red onions,quartered, 10 cloves garlic peeled, whole garlic, 3 green apples, peeled and quartered.
Pastrami Rice Salad
3 tbl. canola oil
1/3 lb. sliced pastrami
1 bag baby leaf apinach
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1/2 medium red onion thinly sliced
1/3 cup cooked and cooled rice
heat oil and fry pastrami until crispy add rice
continue to fry until rice is crispy -set aside.
Toss spinach, mushroooms and onions
Garlic Dressing
4 tbl. rice milk or non diary creamer
2 tbl. white vinegar
4 cloves of garlic minced
3 tbl. olive oil
1/2 cup mayo
S&P to taste
blend or mix thoroughly above ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
Before serving toss salad with dressing and top with rice and pastrami
Chilli-
always comforting for a cool fall day.
1lb ground beef
2 yellow onions
1 large green pepper
3 tbsp. chilli powder
½ tsp. hot chilli powder
Salt and pepper
1 large can tomato sauce(diced tomatoes with chilli peppers is also good)
1 or 2 cans red kidney beans (depends on how much you like
your beans)
*You can substitute Kidney for black or pinto
Fry the onion in a little oil on medium heat. When soft, but not brown add the chopped green pepper, cook, then add the meat and brown. Add the salt, pepper and chilli powder and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the tomato sauce. Let simmer slowly for a couple of hours. 20 min. before serving add the beans. Serve in bowls with chips and guacamole.
Shabbat Shalom!.
