Weekly Torah Portion

Growing up I fondly recall Pesach Seder nights at my grandparents with guests around the table, usually including those who didn’t have a family or anywhere else to celebrate the Seder.

My own parents also made a point of inviting guests who benefited from an invitation. There were times when my father met a Jewish individual on the street who was in need of a place to stay and without hesitation invited them to our home.

But the gold standard in hospitality in our family was always my aunt and uncle just a few streets away. Every single week, without fail, they hosted an eclectic mix of guests, many of whom became regulars at their Shabbos table. It’s difficult to do justice to the level of hospitality they accomplished, but suffice it to say that they often had people who were not so welcome elsewhere, whether because they had special needs, couldn’t read social cues or were just people who were unusual company.

Even subsequent to my uncle’s untimely passing, nothing has ever been too much for my aunt. Her home continues to be open wide, and not just at mealtimes. She has often hosted individuals and even entire families for days or weeks at a time. She has made celebrations in her home for people who were without means to make their own. At all her own family celebrations we can be certain that there will be a contingent of the needy present.

Growing up surrounded by this left an impression and something to strive for in my own life. Though I certainly fall very short of such lofty levels of hospitality, it has always been powerful to have these role models nearby, illuminating the paths to nobility.

One does not have to look far to discover the roots of such magnanimous behavior. It derives from the very first Jew, our patriarch Avraham. In this week’s Torah portion we find him, while recovering from circumcision, sitting in front of his tent, eagerly watching the roads for passers-by to invite. Finally he sees three men in the distance. After rushing to meet them, he begs them to visit so he can serve them a fresh meal.

Though they were actually angels dispatched by G-d, these men appeared in the guise of Arabs, idolaters whose worship was very different to Avraham’s. Yet he eagerly and ardently welcomed them into his home, where he served and waited upon them.

Why were angels disguised as Arabs? Wouldn’t it have been more befitting for them to have appeared as noblemen or princes?

The mitzvah of welcoming guests is most praiseworthy when extended to someone undistinguished, such as someone poor and simple, even dirty and disagreeable. A person who opens their home only to important people will still receive merit for welcoming others, but to a lesser degree, because they are really trying to benefit themselves through their guests.

The Torah highlights this point. Avraham’s hospitality was of the highest form because he hosted undistinguished and even lowly people – and then gave them the very best, tastiest food.

True kindness is when we take care of those in need, when we are helpful to others for no personal gain. Each of us can aspire in our own way to push ourselves and do that little bit extra, to be like those who excel in being welcoming of others into our homes and into our lives.