The Lord rained upon Sodom and Gemorrah sulfur and fire out of heaven. He annihilated those cities and the entire Plain, and all the inhabitants of the city and the vegetation from the ground ... Next morning, Abraham hurried to the place where he had stood before the Lord, and, looking down towards Sodom and Gemorrah, he saw the smoke of the land rising like the smoke of a kiln
(Genesis 19:24-27)
As a resident of Southern California this week, these words could as easily be ones from the daily news as they are from this week's Torah portion, Va'Yera. The numbers are staggering - 14 different fires, 665 square miles burnt, more than a half a million people displaced from their homes, over 1500 homes destroyed, dozens injured, and several lives lost – and the effects more devastating than any other firestorms in history and affecting more people than any one single phenomena in our country. As the news reports continue to come in, as my family negotiated with my mom to get her to leave the home she lives in with my sister when the fire was only eight blocks from them (Thank God the fire near them has been partially contained and they are no longer in danger), I can't help but wonder - are we witnessing the cataclysmic destruction of our cities and plains as did the inhabitants of Sodom and Gemorrah? Are we, like Abraham, set to return to our place – the same place we stand before God - where we will look out our windows or stand in our streets to see clouds of smoke and burning ashes rise like the smoke of a kiln?
In Hebrew, Sodom implies selfishness and Gemorrah means a ruined heap or pile. According to the Torah reading, these names were given to the two cities after they were destroyed by God for their sinfulness. Throughout the generations, readers of the text have asked and offered possible answers as to the nature of their sin that may have been so grave that it warranted total destruction.
In an awe-inspiring scene, Abraham negotiates with God over the fate of the cities saying: "halilah lecha me-asot kadavar hazeh - far be it from you to do such a thing." Abraham demands that God not destroy the people of Sodom and Gemorrah on account of the righteous who surely dwell therein. Yet, although many specific behaviors have been identified, the truth is the Torah does not specify the wrongdoings. Still, Sodom and Gemorrah are held to be the epitome of evil, and both cities are destroyed because they are understood to be wicked places. The destruction of these cities has to be retroactively justified.
We, however, live in different times. And although there will be some misguided fundamentalists who, after the embers of fires have long been extinguished, will want to hypothesize what the people of Southern California did that was so terrible that God punished us with these fires, I don’t believe that is our question. Nor is it the real and enduring lesson that we should learn from Sodom and Gemorrah, that it can also instruct us during this time of historic destruction in our country.
So what is that lesson?
The biblical narrative tells of the strangers (in the form of angels) coming to visit Abraham’s nephew, Lot. Torah scholars explain that these angels were not treated with respect and hospitality by the people of Sodom. As you may recall, the Sodomites demanded access to the strangers, and Lot denied them access. And as the story goes, the Sodomites were struck with blindness, allowing Lot and his family, who were instructed to leave the city, to escape, while Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed in God's fire.
Reading the story in the bible, it is amazing to note that Lot's need to protect the strangers came even before the protection of his own family. What Lot did was act as his culture expected him to. This was the norm. Hospitality, in these times, meant that if a person asked for assistance, you were completely obliged to help and protect your visitor—even if that meant sacrificing something of yourself. So, the real lesson for today is that God expects us to stand up for the stranger, to respond to those who may need help.
As we watch the news and hear the stories of the fires, I pray that we can respond as Lot did. There are many who will need help – today, next week, next month and for some time to come. Our culture and values demand that we make helping our norm and that we respond to others’ needs with offers of love, generosity, and help. Near or far, in California or any other place, the people of Southern California call out to you for protection and help. As the prophet reminds us God wants us to love those who are outsiders, and protect those who are defenseless.
My friend and teacher, Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, teaches: "There is nothing so glorious, nothing so rewarding, and nothing so needed as reaching out to a needy stranger. In caring for an anonymous creature in the image of God, we uncover a new reflection of God's precious love, and we illuminate our own lives by the light of that beauty."
We have the opportunity to uncover that new reflection of God's love and to light our own lives with the beauty of that light. May the people who find themselves outside their homes soon return and find the strength and faith to rebuild their homes. And may our protection, and God's, provide shelter and reassurance.
Shabbat Shalom.
Organizations around the country have opened emergency relief funds. To donate, contact your local Jewish Federation or American Red Cross. Or, you can donate to the Los Angeles Jewish Federation Fire Emergency Relief Fund. Call (323) 761-8200 or send a check to The Jewish Federation, 6505 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles CA 90048, made payable to The Jewish Federation with the words "Fire Relief Fund" in the memo line.