When the Moment Calls

I had a weekend packed with love, simcha, and nachas. My children were all home, family and friends joined us, and many wonderful community members stepped up to help us celebrate our simchas to the fullest. As I looked around, I felt surrounded by angels. When we open the Chumash to this week’s parsha, we also encounter angels. When Avraham was recovering from his Bris Milah, angels also joined him, and they too were dressed as humans. The Torah describes the visitors as אֲנָשִׁים, men.  Later, when two of them arrive in Sedom, it calls them מַלְאָכִים, angels. The change is not that the men became angels. Rather, the Torah first describes how the visitors appear to Avraham, and later identifies them by their role as messengers.

Why the shift from their appearance to their purpose? 

The three visitors had distinct responsibilities: one came to bring news to Sarah, one to heal Avraham, and one to overturn Sedom. This relates to the principle, ״אין מלאך אחד עושה שתי שליחות״, “one angel does not carry out two missions.

The Maharal points out that, “the essence of an angel is its unique mission.”  

The visitors do not become angels by taking on a task; their identity as מַלְאָכִים is the mission they were sent to fulfill.

That gives us a more precise question to carry into our own lives. Not “How does a person become an angel?” but “How do we recognize the potential missions in front of us?” Hillel’s teaching in Pirkei Avos offers a human parallel: ״וּבְמָקוֹם שֶׁאֵין אֲנָשִׁים, הִשְׁתַּדֵּל לִהְיוֹת אִישׁ״, “Where there are no people, strive to be a person.” 

Hillel is speaking about stepping forward when others are absent, not about becoming angelic. Both direct our attention to a task that needs someone to answer it.

We may not always know why we have certain abilities, relationships, experiences, or opportunities. Sometimes a moment brings their possible purpose into focus: a conversation, a skill developed long ago, or a responsibility we never expected may become exactly what someone needs. That doesn’t mean we have to answer every need. It means living with enough awareness to recognize when an opportunity is truly before us.

We are extremely grateful to our community for coming out to celebrate with us. Every person has their unique talents and adds so much to our lives. May we all merit celebrating many happy occasions together.

Reader’s Reflection:
What can you make an extra effort to show up for?