Oy. Yeah, so much of it sounds like that.

Here is a video I did with Judaism Unbound a while back, with the same idea:
youtu.be/CSvRezItF1o

Git Shabbos - Shabbat Shalom, and don't sacrifice other people for your own beliefs!

The teaching of the Akedah in these readings seems to be clear: no matter how faithfull you are, sometimes you need to draw a line. Sacrificing others should be one of those lines.

10/11

Whether it is countries and militaries using religion to justify wars, or just families using their beliefs to “sacrifice” their own children, and their relationships with their families.

9/11

> the book that Hashem calls his cherished gift.

Far too often in our lives, especially in religious communities, but also all over the world, we find people who are ready to sacrifice others in the name of their God/s, in the name of their beliefs.

8/11

Rather, the test was whether he will speak up, whether he will draw the line
against Hashem, and say no to being told to sacrifice his child.

Those teachings are clear: he failed, and there were consequences to that as well; he didn’t receive the Torah, >

7/11

> and to save his single one from the fire of coals
He did not have mercy, but you did, O Merciful One.”

This poem, along with many more throughout history, share the same idea:
Indeed, Avraham was being tested, but the test was not whether he would listen to the Divine and sacrifice his son.
6/11

“But on his single one he did not have mercy / and stretched his hand like a cruel man to shed
blood
And all that to fulfill Your will with an honest heart / and he was sure that You are righteous and full of mercy
But he had to beg before You and ask for mercy / >

5/11

> on the topic the Torah
explaining why she was given to Moshe and not to Avraham:
"אבל על יחידו לא קנה רחמים / ושלח יד כאכזר לשפוך דמים
וכל כך לעשות רצונך בלב תמים / ובטוח כי אתה טוב ומלא רחמים
אבל היה לו להתחנן לפניך ולבקש רחמים / ולחשוך יחידו מאש פחמים
הוא לא ריחם לולי ריחמתיה, בעל הרחמים"
4/11

The idea that the real test was whether Abraham would stand up to God and say "no," goes back 2,000 years. Here is from my 2024 sermon, with a source:

An even more pronounced condemnation of Avraham’s failure is found in an additional
Piyyut by Rabbi Yochanan HaCohen from the 8th century, >

3/11

At Torah reading today, I naturally got to get angry, again, on the concept of a parent being ready to, literally, sacrifice their own child for their beliefs.

So obviously, I now gotta share a part from my sermon last year on Rosh Hashanah on the topic of the Akedah, the Binding of Issac.

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