Page:A Jewish Interpretation of the Book of Genesis (Morgenstern, 1919, jewishinterpreta00morg).pdf/187

 The Death of Sarah Judaism has ever

Abraham came But was

tells,

it

spent,

grief

is

laid great

to

mourn

emphasis.

for

169

The

Bible

that

tells

Sarah, and to weep for her.

too, that after the first strong passion of grief

"Abraham

rose up from before his dead".

beautiful and sacred.

It

appreciation of the rich blessing,

is

the token

of

True

thankful

which God has given us

for a time in the love of our dear ones; our tears are the

who might be with us and ennobles and clears the vision, so that we may see deeper and with greater understanding and broader sympathy into the problems and sorrows and needs of life. But grief, indulged in too long, becomes base, ignoble and It loses its sanctifying power; it narrows and obselfish. structs the vision, and confines and stunts the soul. We become self-centered we think only of our own grief and our own sorrow, and indulge ourselves in them, until this becomes the normal course of our life, and to depart therefrom is difficult and painful, and causes unrest and discontent. We refuse to believe that others have grief and sorrows, too, like ours, or even surpassing ours, and we cease to feel for them and to think of them. We wrap ourselves up in the dark, forbidding cloud of our grief, and live apart by ourselves, and lose entirely the consciousness of brotherhood with our fellowmen and of the duty of serving them. We forget that God has created us for a purpose, and that tender tribute of affection for those but a while.

True

grief hallows



this

purpose

is

not to indulge ourselves in grief, but like

Abraham, after the first bitter pain of sorrow has passed, to rise up from before our dead, and resume the ordinary tasks and duties of life, to live in the world among our fellowmen, and bring unto them help and cheer and blessing.

We

are here on this earth, not to grieve too much, but to

serve.

And though

our grief pletely,

is

sincere

nevertheless

our loved ones were precious to us, and

and deep, and can never cease comit

is

our duty to thank

God

for

the