[Index of all Weekly Divrei Torah pages]
Part of a Jew’s weekly obligation is to read the Torah portion of that week, repeating each Hebrew verse twice and saying the Aramaic translation (targum Onkelos) once. After a few years of doing this, we become quite familiar with the flow of the Torah, and even with the details and some nuances. In addition, it is a very good idea to study the commentary of Rashi, who explicates the simple level of the text for us (often, the “simple level” is not simple at all).
Our parsha (Vayeirah) begins where last week’s parsha (Lech lecha) left off – with the mila, or circumcision of Abraham. And in his very first comment on our parsha, Rashi tells us that it was Avraham’s friend and confidante, Mamre, who gave Abraham the advice to undergo circumcision. This is strange on a number of levels. First of all, where do we find that Abraham asked anybody for advice regarding his spiritual matters? From the beginning of life, Abraham was a lone sojourner along a winding intellectual path that eventually led him to belief in the one God. Since he was surrounded by idol worshippers, there was nobody from whom he could glean any advice.
Second, if Abraham was seeking advice, then at first glance there was someone else who seemed more appropriate than Mamre. There was Malchizedek, King of Shalem, who was none other than Shem, son of Noach. As a general rule when we seek advice in spiritual matters, we do so with those who are at least equals and who are further along on the spiritual path than we ourselves are. Here, Malchizedek must have been spiritually accomplished, since he was a “priest,” and moreover he was from Abraham’s family (though a much earlier generation). What better person with whom to discuss private spiritual matters? Why did Abraham rely upon Mamre, who though the Torah describes him as “member of the covenant” together with Abraham, was more of a trusted colleague than an accomplished spiritual master?
The Chassidic master, R’ Menachem Mendel of Rimanov, provides us with part of the answer. He says that the key to this question lies with the principle that “one who does something because he is commanded is more meritorious than one who does so voluntarily.” That is, when we decide of our own volition to do something, we experience the energy and excitement of our own commitment. That gives us added energy and motivation to perform our duties. However, when we have been commanded to do something, it is much more difficult to rally our powers of enthusiasm and spirit of voluntarism. After all, we have been commanded, so we do not really have a choice, and therefore it is more difficult to approach our duties with enthusiasm. Moreover, the yetzer harah, or “evil inclination” gets more involved in matters that are commanded from Above – since there is a greater level of holiness involved – we are more likely to succomb to forces that seek to prevent us from fulfilling the command. Therefore, one who is commanded to do a specific act is more meritorious than one who does that act voluntarily. And that, says R’ Menachem Mendel of Rimanov is the reason that Abraham consulted with Mamre – so that after receiving his opinion, he could say that he was “commanded” (so to speak) by Mamre, and then attain the status of one who fulfills the commandments not just because he decided to do so, but because he was commanded to do so.
Still, we do not find that Abraham sought advice or placed emphasis on receiving a command regarding any of the other mitzvoth that he accepted upon himself. Our sages tell us that he fulfilled all of the commandments of the Torah even before it was given. That is, he “figured out” the Torah, using his immense intellect, even before it was given to Moshe six generations later, and he did whatever he could to fulfill it. In all likelihood then, he knew that the mitzvah of mila was also a commandment from the Torah. So, why did he wait until now to fulfill this mitzvah?
The Siftei Chachamim (who are a commentary on Rashi) explain that although Avraham fulfilled all of the other mitzvoth without being commanded, that was because even after performing them once, he hoped to fulfill them again at a later time, after receiving a command from Above. But, since mila is a mitzvah that is performed on the body, and is irreversible, there was no option of performing the act a second time (with a commandment). Once the circumcision is done, there is no way to repeat it. So, Avraham sought advice regarding this matter because though he wished to progress in spirituality, he preferred to do it as one who is commanded, rather than one who is not commanded. (The Lubavitcher Rebbe ztz’l gives another reason as to why Avraham did not perform the mila on himself – before the Torah was given, all of mankind, including Avraham were in the category of bnei Noah (the offspring of Noah). And the bnei Noah were obligated to refrain from drawing any kind of blood, even from themselves, as an adjunct to the command against “eating from a living animal”).
This answers the question of why Avraham sought advice regarding mila, which was something we did not hear that he did regarding any other mitzvoth. However, why did he seek advice from Mamre and not from anybody else in his generation? To this, the Ilana deChaya (R’ Menachem Mendel of Rimanov) answers somewhat at length. He says that Avraham’s entire body sought holiness. All of his limbs were conditioned to seek holiness and bring it into the world. In fact, they were all so sensitized to holiness that they sought the mitzvah for which they were made. They sought the commandment from above that would allow them to fulfill their purpose in creation, which was to be a vehicle for the transmission of Godliness into the world. However, one limb did not actively seek out Godliness, and that was his mila. The reason it did not express holiness as much as the other limbs was because it was still covered with the foreskin. Since there was still a level of impurity attached to it, the mila was not as holy as his other limbs. And that in turn is why Avraham waited until he was commanded before actually performing his circumcision.
However, in the meantime, he did discuss the matter with his friend and confidante, who lived in his neighborhood – Mamre. We can assume that Mamre was more than an advisor – he was from the same ancestral line as Avraham – he was from the line of Shem. We know this because later when Abraham commanded his servant Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzhak, Eliezer asks him what he should do if the woman does not wish to return with him to marry Yitzhak. Abraham then replies that Eliezer should not look among the local Canaanites, but rather from among the families of Aner, Eshkol and Mamre (Rashi on Gen. 24:8). Therefore, we can assume that these families were from the same blood line as Abraham. Furthermore, even though all were from the same line, Mamre was located nearby him in Hebron, while Malchizedek was located elsewhere. Moreover, Abraham may have felt more comfortable consulting with a contemporary than consulting with Malchizedek, who was born many hundreds of years earlier.
Now, being his friend and confidante (as well as family), Mamre of course did not want to do or say anything that would obstruct Avraham’s spiritual growth. So, he advised Avraham to go ahead and perform the mila. In this way two things happened simultaneously: One, Avraham became “commanded” (or at least advised) to do the mitzvah (by Mamre) and two, now all of Avraham’s limbs were conditioned to express spirituality. And that being the case, he was now ready for the command from Above that also soon arrived, to do the mitzvah of mila. (In this case, he fulfilled the command first of all at the behest of Mamre, and then as the result of the command from Above. Perhaps we might say that this is similar to the giving of the Torah, which required that first Yitro, Moshe’s father in law, convert to Judaism. Only after he converted, in so doing transforming all of previous forms of worship to Torah, could the Torah be given to the Jewish people. Perhaps here as well, since this was the only mitzvah that Avraham had not yet fulfilled, the command from Above could only come down once Avraham’s friend Mamre had initiated the idea…)