Giving |
Giving
After
the near sacrifice of Yitzchok (Isaac), Avraham realizes it is time for Yitzchok
to get married. From
the sequence of events which lead up to the marriage of Yitzchok, we can glean
many valuable insights into the ideas of love and marriage. Avraham
instructed his servant, Eliezer, to find a wife for Yitzchok (Eliezer, besides
being a trusted aide to Avraham, was also a tremendously pious and perceptive
person; finding a spouse in such a fashion is certainly not a recommended
procedure for this generation). How would Eliezer know who would be a fitting
bride for Yitzchok? Let us look to the narrative of the Torah: “She (Rivka,
also known as Rebecca) said, ‘drink my lord’, and quickly she lowered her
jug to her hand and gave him a drink. When she had finished giving him drink,
she said, ‘I will draw water even for your camels until they have finished
drinking.’ Later, Rivka tells Eliezer: “Even straw and feed is plentiful
with us as well as a place to lodge” (Gen. Ch. 24). Rivka was a young girl,
and as we know, camels are extremely thirsty animals. This, obviously, was very
strenuous work, especially for a stranger! Yet Rivka does this work happily.
This shows she has a very giving nature. When
Yitzchok is introduced to his future wife, the Torah tells us the sequence of
events: “And Yitzchok brought her (Rivka) into the tent of Sarah his mother;
he married Rivka, she became his wife, and he loved her” (Gen. Ch. 24 V.67).
The sequence of events is seemingly out of order. Shouldn’t Yitzchok have
loved Rivka before he married her? Rabbi
Eliyahu Dessler has a classic piece in his seminal work “Strive for Truth”.
He explains that “the world is comprised of givers and takers.” It is of
utmost importance, and in reality it is the key to our happiness, both with in
our relationship with our spouses, family, friends and with G-d, to strive to be
givers. Being a giver is the antithesis of being selfish. Logically
it would seem that a person loves someone because of what he could get
from him. In reality, the exact opposite is the truth. Think of the relationship
between a parent and a child. What does a child, certainly in the first couple
of years of life, give a parent? Yet which normal parent does not have boundless
love for his child? It
is giving that develops and increases love.
In modern society, pop culture and movies often portray people as
“falling in love” within the
first few times they meet. This is obviously false and should more
appropriately be proclaimed as “falling in lust”.
One of the main reasons for the tragically high divorce rate is that
people don’t understand that relationships take work, and above all giving
leads to love, not vice versa. This
is how Yitzchok was able to marry Rivka, because he knew she was a giver. And
through understanding the principle of giving, we see why only after he married
her, and would have the opportunity to give to her, would he love her. Let us
all undertake to work on being givers and to improve our relationships with our
loved ones and with G-d.
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