Saltiness
Where would we be without Torah and Talmud?
Talmud, a commentary on Torah, gives us insight historically and ethically. The Talmud makes an interesting connection between the evil city of Sodom and the ritual of washing hands at meals. In the same way, the Torah vividly contrasts the cruelty of the citizens of Sodom with the kindness and hospitality of Abraham's household. When visitors arrived at Lot's home, the entire city, young and old, surrounded the house with the intention of molesting his guests. Lot's attempts to appease the rioters only aggravated their anger whereas, when one entered the tent of Abraham, he was fed food for his body and food for his soul. Abraham’s house had the effect of cleansing one’s hands and heart.
Who can enter into the house of the Lord? He who has clean hands and a clean heart.
Though the city of Sodom was filled with much material goods, it was not considered wealthy because that wealth was as a result of many ruthless acts of greed.
In Hebrew, a wealthy person is called a gevir but to truly be gevir, on must have four traits:
1. That person must be a doer of good deeds. This means that one must act kindly toward others.
2. That person must be humble. Even though that person may have done many charitable deeds, he should not feel important. Rather he should feel that he has not done enough. He must also be humble in not lording it over the poor, not shouting at them and not making them feel like beggars. He must speak to them pleasantly.
3. That person must be upright (yashar). All of his dealings should be honest.
4. Finally, he must be merciful (rachaman). He should be kindhearted toward everyone.
Only a person such as this can be called a gevir. If a person does not have these traits, no matter how wealthy he is, he is not a geiver.
The Sages decreed that we should wash hands before and after eating bread, as a form of ritual purification, similar to partial immersion in a mikve. The rabbinical decree to wash hands before meals is based on the purification the kohanim (priests) underwent before eating their teruma offerings.
Washing after Meals
The Talmud, however, gives a rather odd rationale for "mayim acharonim", washing hands after the meal. The Sages explained that this washing removes the salt of Sodom, a dangerous salt that can blind the eyes. [Chulin 105b] What is this Sodomite salt? What does it have to do with purification? How can it blind one's eyes?
The Selfishness of the Sodomites
In order to answer to these questions, we must first understand the very source of Sodom's immorality. The people of Sodom were obsessed with fulfilling their physical desires. They concentrated on self-gratification to such a degree that no time remained for kindness towards others. They expended all of their efforts chasing after material pleasures, and no energy was left for helping the stranger.
Purifying the Soul When Feeding the Body
A certain spiritual peril lurks in any meal that we eat. Our involvement in sensual pleasures inevitably increases the value we assign to such activities, and decreases the importance of spiritual activities - efforts that truly perfect us. As a preventative measure, the Sages decreed that we should wash our hands before eating.
Performing this ritual impresses upon us the imagery that we are like the priests, eating holy bread baked from teruma offerings. The physical meal we are about to partake suddenly takes on a spiritual dimension. Despite this preparation, our involvement in the physical act of eating will reduce our sense of holiness to some degree.
To counteract this negative influence, we wash our hands after the meal.
With this ritual cleansing, we wash away the salt of Sodom, the residue of selfish preoccupation in sensual pleasures. This dangerous salt, which can blind our eyes to the needs of others, is rendered harmless through the purifying ritual of "mayim acharonim". A careful reading of the Torah's account clearly indicates that Lot did not deserve to be saved on his own merits alone:
"When God destroyed the cities of the plain, God remembered Abraham; and He sent out Lot from the upheaval when He overturned the cities in which Lot lived." [Gen. 19:29]
Why wasn't Lot saved on the basis of his own merits? He certainly did not participate in the infamous Sodomite cruelty towards visitors. Why was he allowed to escape only because "God remembered Abraham"?
The Ideology of Sodom
The purpose of destroying Sodom was to show the importance of chesed (kindness) in our world. It demonstrated the extent of destruction generated when society lacks this trait. When there is an ideological conflict, opposition to a particular position can take one of two forms. Some people may reject a position on the basis of its expected consequences. But if they only denounce and point out its negative aspects, they are only partially confronting the objectionable position. True opposition is only achieved when we can present a positive alternative that promises to govern society in a better and more just fashion.
The problem with Sodom was not just that the people of Sodom were cruel. Rather, the very fabric of the Sodomite society was corrupt, based on their abhorrence of kindness. They based their municipal regulations on an ideology of selfishness and self-interest.
The Difference between Lot and Abraham
To combat Sodom, it was not enough to merely reject their philosophy. It was necessary to present a comprehensive system that outlines a society guided by the traits of kindness and generosity. Lot rejected the cruel ways of Sodom. By virtue of his association with Abraham, Lot recognized the importance of chesed. On a private level, he invited strangers and tried to protect them. But Lot was unable to present an alternative vision of society based on kindness.
Abraham, on the other hand, was a different story. His whole life revolved around developing and promoting the ideal of chesed. Abraham established chesed as a fixed and organized trait for both the individual and the community.
As God Himself testified,
"For I have known (Abraham), that he will command his children and his household after him, and they will keep God's ways, doing righteousness and justice." [Gen. 18:19]
For this reason, Lot did not deserve to be saved from Sodom on his own merits. Unlike his uncle Abraham, he presented no alternative vision, and did not properly contest the Sodomite ideology of cruelty.
How to Fight Evil
This is an important lesson for us. Our rejection of ideologies that contradict the Torah's ethical ideals should not be limited to negative criticism. It is insufficient to merely point out the harmful or false aspects of an ill-conceived plan. Rather, we need to open an offensive front by presenting a positive outlook based on true values or life’s lessons as depicted in Torah. Just as Abraham and his vision of chesed stood in direct opposition to the Sodomites' philosophy of egocentric cruelty our lives should stand in to opposition to those things that are not right, just and fair.
The Phases of Abraham’s Life.
By looking at this and the previous parasha, we are left with the impression that Abraham repeated in parashat Vayeira virtually everything he did in parasha Lech Lecha.
Both open with him experiencing:
1. A revelation of God.
2. The promise of progeny.
3. His wife being abducted by a gentile king.
4. He fathers a son.
5. He banishes Hagar.
6. He enters into treaties.
7. His righteous life is contrasted with the Immoral behavior of his nephew Lot.
8. He defends the cities of the planes. The first from human assailants and in the second against divine decrees brought about their own moral corruption.
It is as if Abraham had to repeat everything he experienced in his first level of being but on a different level, in order to infuse his past accomplishments with a new level of Divine consciousness.
The name of each parasha embodies the essence of its content, thus the essence of each of the two phases of Abraham’s life must be reflected in the name of the parasha describing that phase. The event that divides Abraham’s into into two distinct spiritual periods is his circumcision. His first phase was to Go to himself, (Go to your true self, the one who God created him to be) His life after circumcision was one of vayeira, God appeared to him.
In parasha Lech Lecha, Abraham progresses on his own, steadily ascending the ladder of spiritual progresses on his own, as far as human efforts can take him. In Parasha Vayeira, God appears to him and elevates him to a level of spiritual life beyond the reach of human effort. Until circumcision, Abraham’s progress was limited by the constraints of his own human nature.
He could only go as far as his mind and heart could take him and he could only see God through the lens of his own being.
It was therefore impossible for God to reveal Himself to Abraham “directly”.