When Sarah dies, Abraham does what any devoted husband would do - but more so. Not only does he bury her with the honour that was her due; he uses her passing to acquire the first Jewish property in Israel, the country that is called the Land of Life (Eretz HaChaim).

And immediately afterwards, he embarks upon another life-giving mission. He seeks a wife for his son Isaac to ensure the continuation of Sarah's legacy.

And continue it does - when Isaac betroths Rebecca at the end of theparasha - Sarah's tent returns to its former glory and radiance. It is as if Sarah has never died.

Not for Abraham to create a shrine for Sarah's memory - to leave her tent untouched as at the moment of her death. To think that to do otherwise would be a betrayal of her memory. On the contrary, the pall of sadness that such a shrine would cast would truly ensure that Sarah's death was final. Far from being a tribute to Sarah, it would suck the life of the future into the vortex of the past. What Abraham wanted was that the bitter taste of death should propel her life to an even more glorious future. It is for this reason that the parasha of Sarah's death is called Chayei Sarah - the life of Sarah.

It is also for this reason that although Abraham eulogized Sarah, he cried for her but a little. This is indicated in the Torah's using a diminutive letter "caf" in the Hebrew word for crying, "livcota". Miss her, he most certainly would, and so he did cry. But not for long. A far greater tribute would be to ensure that she lived on - and so he immediately got to work.

Abraham, through his personal example, has taught us the true Jewish response to death, and indeed to difficulties of any kind. It is unnatural not to mourn a loss. The Talmud describes such a person as insensitive. At the same time, however, the Talmud criticises a person who cries too much. Rather than allow a tragedy to pull us down to the past, Abraham has taught us to use it to propel ourselves into an even greater future.

May Hashem spare us from all sadness and sorrow. 

With best wishes for a Good Shabbos, on behalf of the Rebbetzen and all of us at South Head.

Rabbi Benzion Milecki OAM

Chief Rabbi of the Commonwealth
Visiting South Head next Shabbat

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We are honoured and delighted to be hosting Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis next Friday night. 

When the former Chief Rabbi of Ireland was appointed to replace Lord Sacks as head of the Commonwealth, one of his fellow candidates, Rabbi Yitzchak Schochet, said Rabbi Mirvis was "the right man for the job". He said: "The present appointment is a critical one confronting the various challenges facing Anglo-Jewry, both in terms of making traditional Judaism relevant and in terms of Israel and anti-Semitism."

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JLI
Changing Lives Weekly

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This week the Joy of Purpose was uncovered through powerful insights and cogent stories and tools were discovered for facing stress with patience, mindfulness and hope. 

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Youth Reports
 

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Hey everybody,

We’ve got a weekend of fun activities!

• Birthday Shabbat is on tonight where we will be celebrating the birthdays of all children whose Jewish birthdays are in  Elul, Tishrei, Cheshvan and Kislev.

• Shabbat morning we have Bless the Kids! We’re very excited to make Avraham and Sarah’s edible tent and to receive a blessing and a treat from the Rabbi.

• And on Sunday to really rev up the excitement we are having our Clothing Drive followed by an exciting Go-Karting adventure for all teenagers who participate! If you would like to donate clothing or help us sort out the clothes please RSVP to Tzemach on 0412 482 770.

And look what's in store for December!

	Visit our Facebook page E:  youth@southhead.org T: 9371 7300 ext 3 Brookie 0404 055 643  Tzemach 0412 482 770 Shaya 0412 542 770

We look forward to seeing you in Shule and at all our activities over the weekend and we wish you a Good Shabbos.

Brookie, Tzemach, Shaya & Shmuli

South Head Youth & Friendship Circle 
Co Present 

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Help a child with special needs whilst giving your children the opportunity to be exposed to a better understanding of the challenges faced by children with special needs. New toys will be collected, wrapped and distributed in mid December ~ watch this space for more details or visit Sydney Friendship Circle

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Community Service Announcement
 

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