When Avraham set out on his journey to Eretz Yisrael, his nephew Lot travelled with him.
Lot and Avraham were very different. They did not share the same lifestyle, beliefs, ideologies, priorities, interests or values. Whilst Avraham was on a spiritual mission and focused on serving G-d, Lot was interested in the pursuit of material wealth. The commentators teach that Lot could not stand the faith of Avraham or his Divine sense of morality.
Things came to head when they returned from Egypt. A fight erupted between Lot’s shepherds and Avraham’s shepherds. This was not just a petty dispute, but a clash of values. Lot saw himself as the inheritor of the land and was happy for his sheep to graze in other people’s fields. But Avraham, careful to avoid any theft, would only allow his sheep to graze in ownerless pastures.
Avraham turned to Lot and said, “let there not be fighting between us, for we are brothers." Avraham proposed that they separate and go their own ways. “The whole land is before you, let us separate. If you go the left, I shall go to the right and in if you go to the right, I shall go to the left."
Once he was free to choose, Lot chose Sodom, a place of sin and immorality - the antithesis of the home and values of Avraham.
Even though Lot was Avraham’s nephew, in this verse, Avraham said “we are brothers". Rashi tells us that contextually it means that we are relatives. Nonetheless, the Torah’s use of the word “brothers" is deliberate.
The relationship of brothers is a very close bond, with a deep love that connects them. Even when brothers disagree and even if they live completely different lifestyles, their love transcends their differences.
Avraham was saying that because we are brothers, there should not be fights between us.
Their differences were irreconcilable and if they were to continue living together, there would be more clashes and strife. For the sake of peace and to preserve their relationship, Avraham and Lot would have to part ways. This way, they could each live their lives in the manner that they chose, without imposing on the other, and without their differences becoming a constant source of friction.
Later in the Parsha, Lot is described as Avraham’s brother for a second time.
In the War of Kings, the city of Sodom was attacked, and all its inhabitants, including Lot, were taken captive. The Torah relates that “Avraham heard that his brother had been taken captive."
Immediately on hearing this news, without a moment of hesitation, Avraham armed himself and went out to battle. He did not think about the size and strength of his opponents, and he did not give regard to the danger to his own life. He knew one thing. His brother had been taken captive and was in danger, and he had to do something to try to save him.
Abrabanel explains that the verse describes Lot as “his brother" because in that moment, when Lot was taken captive and was suffering, Avraham’s feelings for him and his closeness became so strong, that he felt like it was his actual brother.
Avraham was ready to risk his life for the very same Lot whom he had separated from, the same Lot who lived and believed so differently from him and whose own choices had led him to Sodom.
Separating himself for Lot was not an abandonment. It was not out of hatred or to sever his ties and stop caring about him. It was driven by his brotherly love for Lot, so that they would not end up fighting with one another. The same brotherly love that had led Avraham to separate himself for Lot, now drove Avraham immediately to his rescue.
Like all the Torah’s teachings, this lesson is eternal. It is especially relevant today in a time as we head to elections in Israel, a time where our differences are highlighted and tensions can run high.
The Jewish people are diverse. We differ in our religious levels and lifestyles, and we hold many different world outlooks and political views. You don’t have to look further than the spectrum of parties running in the election to see just how many different streams there are, with diametrically opposing platforms on so many critical issues.
Each of us holds our values and beliefs strongly and passionately. And when others do not think, live or believe as we do, tensions can run high. Like the shepherds of Lot and Avraham, when we live on top of one another, these differences can unfortunately spill out into open rifts, strife and even fights.
But even in these moments of heightened tensions, we must remember that like Avraham and Lot, “we are brothers". And so there should not be fights between us, despite our differences and fiercely held beliefs.
Even when we disagree on significant issues, our discourse must always be respectful and civil. Our words must be measured and the way that we campaign and debate must be within the context of a sense of genuine love for one another, like members of our own family. We need to respect that they may “go left" while we “go right" or vice versa.
In extreme circumstances, the only way to keep our brotherly peace and coexistence is often to live separately, in separate communities.
But even when we live our separate and very different lives, we cannot forget that at all times, we remain one family, we are brothers.
The proof of this is in times of crisis, when our brother is taken captive.
In the aftermath of October 7th, all of the differences that separate us fell away. Without any regard to lifestyle, beliefs, religiosity or political allegiances, in that moment, we all knew one thing. Our brothers and sisters had been taken captive and we must do something to help save them. Jews in Israel and around the world rallied as one behind the army, the victims and the captives.
This is the true spirit of the Jewish unity and the uniqueness of our people. We may argue and disagree. We may seem so different and distant from one another. But we are brothers and we would do anything for one another in a time of need.
Just as Avraham succeeded in rescuing Lot, Baruch Hashem all of our hostages are home and crisis has subsided. As we move forward, it is so easy to slip back to old habits as the rifts emerge and threaten to pull us apart once again. We need to retain this sense of brotherly love and responsibility in the forefront of our hearts and minds, and most importantly to see one another as our brother in our daily interactions.