"And Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. And the Lord saw that Leah was hated."
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT AMEN.
Today my dearly beloved Orthodox Christians we hear in our Old Testament Reading the story of Jacob's two wives: Leah and Rachel. They were not simply rival wives. Much worse. They were two rival sisters. The older sister is ugly. The younger sister is well lets say, "a knock-out!" And the younger sister was sure to let her older sister know:
"Now Laban had two daughters. The eyes of Leah were weak. But Rachel was beautiful in appearance and exceedingly fair in countenance. And Jacob loved Rachel...// ...and Leah conceived and bore a son and said, The Lord has looked on my humiliation."
Yes that was the problem - 'Humiliation'. How horrible for a sister, any woman, to feel humiliated because of her appearance! For rival sisters, oh my, this is nothing less than hell on earth.To know that your sister is preferred and loved over you? Can anything prick the tender soul of a young 'ugly duckling' more than a 'beauty contest' that she loses before it even starts? What can give her a victory over her preferred sister? What?
When growing up little Leah sees [she watches oh so closely] her father kissing her sister goodnight. "He seems to have more feeling with Rachel than when he kisses me," little Leah observes to herself.
For years and years this kind of thing goes on and then one day "PRINCE CHARMING APPEARS!" Who's gonna get him? Leah is determined. "He's mine." she vows to herself. But we read, "Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah." Poor 'weak-eyed' Leah.
What is the meaning of this story for us my dearly beloved Orthodox Christians? We know that Leah, 11 babies later, had tried to 'earn' Jacob's affection. But Rachel? She simply had to just 'be.' That was enough to send Jacob into a 'tizzy' and Leah into a 'frenzy.'
Can we simply just 'be?' Can we simply just repeat the verse, "Be still and know that I am God saith the Lord?" If we do, we will soon hear the Lord say, "You will not have to fight in this battle."
No. It doesn't have to be a struggle any more:"You will not have to fight in this battle dear..."
sincerely, nathaniel
"Stories My Rabbi Told Me"
("write to me dear... " ) bronathaniel@yahoo.com