Living Jewishly can become routine, especially in quiet times between holidays. However, although most days are identical to each other in scheduling and practice, Jewish life provides a dynamic change of scenery every single day of the year.
The Alter Rebbe, the founder of the Chabad movement in the 1770s, entered his study hall in a small Russian town and declared "We must live with the times" and returned to his study. His students were perplexed at the announcement as it seemed to contradict the very premise of the Chassidic lifestyle. To "live with the times" means following the ever-changing fashion trends and adopting the fluctuating morals dictated by society. Being a chossid means transcending all the nonsense and focusing on what is truly timeless.
It turned out the Rebbe was referring to the Torah portion (parsha) of the week. We complete the entire Torah each year by reading another portion during synagogue services on Shabbat. The portion is divided into seven parts called Aliyot and before and after each Aliyah someone else is honored to recite the blessing on the Torah.
The fact that the weekly parsha is divided into seven subsections is not only highly symbolic of Shabbat being the seventh day of the week. It makes the Torah portion relevant to the entire week, not just Shabbat. In fact, one of the ways to write the date on a letter or document in Torah culture is by writing “6th of Vayeira” which would mean “Friday of the week we read the parsha of Vayeira.”
This is what the Alter Rebbe meant about “living with the times.” On Sunday, the content of the first Aliya of the parsha we are scheduled to read the coming Shabbat is the Torah message we must live with on that day. On Monday the second Aliya and so on. In order to live with it one needs to learn it. That’s why it’s crucial to learn the daily Torah portion every single day.
On Sunday I studied in the beginning of this week’s parsha about Avraham’s golden standard of hospitality through which he shared the awareness of G-d with the entire world. He welcomed everyone into his tent and personally served them the best foods until they were nourished and satisfied and then inspired and sometimes cajoled them into thanking G-d for the food. He was a man with a divine mission that consumed his entire life.
On Monday the Torah describes how G-d decided to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gemorra due to their institutionalized moral depravity. They were greedy, stingy, deplorable, and ungrateful heathens; the polar opposites of Avraham. Nevertheless, he went out on a limb to argue with G-d not to destroy the cities. Without suggesting that he will assume responsibility for their moral rehabilitation Avraham declared that the presence of at least some good people in those cities should spare the rest.
Although he was not successful, Avraham’s argument with G-d is profoundly meaningful. At great personal risk, he tried to help even those who were diametrically opposed to his ideals and way of life. Avraham inspires us today to learn to disagree with others while still respecting them as fellow human beings and caring for them as well.