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Dear CBO Family,
In last month’s Torah portion, Bereshit, we learned that at the beginning of time, there were no humans to pray for rain, so a Divinely-orchestrated mist welled up from the earth, to water the garden. Rain is a sign of Divine abundance – shefa; but it is also one of those unpredictable things that no matter what we do, even as we work towards a sustainable way of living, remains in the hands of God.
And so, we pray for rain.
As humans, we are dependent on water. Our bodies are literally made up of it. And that means constantly hydrating ourselves and being conscious of water around us: What we drink, what’s the weather, and spiritually – how we care for and nourish ourselves.
Our Matriarchs, the foremothers, feature throughout the Torah in relationship to water. This week’s Parsha showcases the first of many narratives where a woman at the well becomes a future mother of our people. Rivkah (Rebecca) meets Avraham’s servant in this week’s Torah portion of Chayei Sarah; and later, Rachel meets Yaakov (Jacob) at the well. Moshe finds his wife Tsippora at the well; and his sister Miriam is the catalyst to bring water to the people throughout their desert sojourns. It's not incidental that the feminine presence in our tradition is deeply associated with water.
In the mystical tradition of Kabbalah, the ‘feminine waters’ are described as all the waters that well up from the depths of the earth, not unlike the waters of the womb and female sexual desire. These are the waters that are in the rivers and the lakes; that erupt as springs and flow into waterfalls, and receive the ‘masculine waters’ of rain coming from above. These waters, buried beneath the surface, rise to nourish us, water our fields to bring us food, and are the fresh springs that quench our thirst.
In our tale this week, Avraham’s servant is at the well, intent on his mission to find a suitable wife for his master’s son. He sets up a test, deciding that the right woman is one who will respond to his request for water. Not only does the young Rivkah offer him to drink, she proceeds to water all the camels. It’s in Rivkah’s approach to water, to nurturing, to showering abundance, that we understand why this woman’s character is so integral.
How do we find the strength to pour water, and fill up someone else’s cup, while also making sure our own pitcher remains full? How do we feel that we have the capacity to turn to another and say, please, sip and drink your fill! How can we become the channel, a conduit for water flowing through us, knowing that when we are running dry, we can be replenished by the Divine Source of all abundance?
How can we continue to hold that prayer, knowing that the Source is ever-replenishing?
I wonder, and I believe that we can hold this prayer, just as our ancestors did. The Torah tells us that not long after this story, Rivkah leaves her parents’ house and meets her intended, Yitzchak. He brings her to the tent of his mother, and he loves her. There, he is comforted from his mother’s death, and likely, though the text doesn’t specify it, the trauma of his near-death sacrifice not long before.
The waters are not only replenishing, rejuvenating and nourishing. They are healing and cleansing. They are purifying, in a way that can comfort us, heal our trauma, and allow us to grow into becoming who we truly are.
I bless us all that we can hold this prayer, and learn to nourish ourselves as we provide water to others,
May we experience a world that is nourished, healed and blessed
Where there is water for all beings to drink, physically and spiritually
Where all beings are hydrated in body, soul, spirit and mind,
And where we are constantly connected to the never-ending Source of water and abundance.
With blessings for a Shabbat of healing and nourishment,
Reb Rishe
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Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism