Maureena’s Torah Reflections
Parashat Vayera. Genesis 18:1-22:24
God promised Abram that through Isaac he would become a mighty nation (Gen 15:1–5). Yet later, God seemed to contradict that promise by commanding Abram to sacrifice his beloved son (Gen 22:1–2). Without hesitation, Abram bound Isaac and placed him on the altar.
Before reading further, pause and ask yourself: if God asked you to take the life of your child, sibling, or loved one—would you do it? My own answer is no.
According to Midrashic tradition, Sarah died from the shock of learning that her son had been offered as a sacrifice (see Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer 31). Abram and Isaac never saw her again. This painful aftermath invites a deeper question: did Abram truly pass the test? Some interpreters, such as Søren Kierkegaard (Fear and Trembling), see him as the model of faith; others, like Jewish scholar Avivah Zornberg, suggest he failed to listen to the divine voice that speaks through compassion and conscience. Faithfulness to God cannot mean betrayal of one’s deepest self.
Prepared by Prof. Sr Maureena Fritz
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“Since the spiritual patrimony common to Christians and Jews is thus so great, this sacred synod wants to foster and recommend that mutual understanding and respect which is the fruit, above all, of biblical and theological studies.”
Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions: Nostra Aetate, No. 4