Ever hear of the concept- opposites attract? In this week’s Parsha, Parshat Toldot, we see this concept with Yitzchak and Rivka. Yitzchak was a Tzadik and a very quiet, soft spoken and humble man. He use to sit alone all day long and learn Torah. Rivka, on the other hand, was a loud and outgoing person. In Yitzchak’s mind, this was the key trait that he was missing.
When Yitzchak met Rivka, he felt as though Rivka completed him. Years later, when Yaakov and Esav were born, both Yitzchak and Rivka noticed that each of their sons embodied one of these traits. Yaakov was just like Yitzchak. He was a quiet and soft spoken person and would also sit at home and learn Torah all day. Esav, on the other hand, was extremely energetic, loud and outgoing and would spend his days out hunting for food. Yet again we see how these opposite traits attract.
Rivka loved Yackov more because she saw the same gentle characteristic in him as she did in Yitzchak. The same applies with Yitzchak. He favored Esav because he saw the same outgoing personality in Esav that Rivka had. We can apply this to our NCSY experiences. NCSY Shabbatons are there to not only to help us become closer to G-d, but to give us the opportunity to meet new people. On each Shabbaton, there is an atmosphere that allows us to build relationships with advisors and new friends. It’s important to know that in NCSY we aren’t there just to meet people that are like us, but to go out of our way and connect with people that are different than us.
Shabbat Shalom,
Simcha Peretz