TRUITY Spiritual Mentoring

Abraham replied, "If you agree to let me bury my dead in your land, please ask Ephron to let me buy the cave of Machpelah, which he owns, as a burial place." ... And so the cave of Machpelah, and the field that surrounded it was sold to Abraham. After this, Abraham buried Sarah in the cave, facing Mamre; and the field and the cave became the burial ground for Abraham’s family.
~ The book of Genesis 23:1-20

"Abraham mourned for Sarah and wept for her."

A short, simple sentence filled with poignancy and deep resonance for most of us. The death of a loved one is powerful beyond words, the loss indescribable, the emptiness of life without this one yawns before us like a dark cavern. Our hearts know the ache that Abraham felt. It is the common human experience that reminds us we are all one people, one tribe, one nation.

Abraham mourned and wept — as people have always done; as people will always do. Then there came a time when he "arose from his mourning."

He arose. Had Abraham been kneeling beside Sarah’s body? Was he prostrate with grief for weeks on end? Had this man, who was not afraid to argue with God, spent days or weeks or months in prayer? We do not know.

And we do not know what caused him to arise. Something brought Abraham up out of the pit of despair. Somehow he found a way to go on despite the loss.

But it was not easy. Abraham asks for a place to bury his dead, "out of my sight." It seems as if to look upon what was lost to him was unbearable; to see the traces of one who was no longer there was to be drawn down into sadness.

The people of the land seemed to understand. They spoke respectfully to the widower, offering him a place to bury his beloved wife "in any of our cemeteries."

But Abraham did not want to bury Sarah in any of those places. He came to them asking for the rights to a specific location, which he identifies by name: the cave of Machpelah.

Why? Why that place? There were many, many caves throughout the region — as there are to this day. Surely one was as good as another. Why was Abraham so insistent in claiming that site? And he refused to accept it as a gift or as an act of charity, but made a point of having witnesses that he paid the full value of the property. He made every effort to ensure that it was his, and no one could take it from him.

Over the years there has been much speculation about this choice of a burial site to which — so far as we know — the family had no previous association. It obviously mattered a great deal to Abraham. It was important that Sarah and he and their descendants would go to their rest not just anyplace, but in that particular place.

I wonder.

I believe this location, and this action by Abraham is a part of why he can arise from his grief. The answer is not in what will be "out of his sight" in the cave, but what can be seen from there.

We are told that Abraham laid his beloved wife to rest in this secure and quiet womb of the earth "facing Mamre."

On the hill of Mamre Abraham built an altar after receiving the Beloved’s promise of descendants that would number "as many as the stars in the sky" (Gen 13:18) — as impossible as that seemed. In that place he and Sarah had entertained angels who brought them the Holy One’s promise of a son in their old age — as impossible as that had seemed (Gen 18:1-12). There he and his family had dwelled in peace and safety. At Mamre Abraham had spoken with God, even argued with God, and lived — as impossible as that seemed (Gen 18:23). It was there that the Eternal One had promised to be faithful; to protect and to love Abraham and his descendants forever and ever — as impossible as that seemed.

Mamre was the Hill of Promise: the site where the God of History made extravagant, nearly unbelievable, promises that came true.

Is it any wonder that Abraham chose the cave of Machpelah as the resting place for his family?

God’s love never ends. The Holy One’s faithfulness, mercy and compassion are not only to the young, the strong, or the cheerful. Abraham, full of age and wisdom and sorrow, could rely on the Promises that the Beloved gave to the young Abram.

I think that knowledge — that memory, that hope — was what caused Abraham to cease his mourning and weeping. It was his confidence in God’s goodness that made it possible for the aged patriarch to "arise" and come forth into life again.

Wherever he traveled Abraham would look toward Mamre, remembering the extraordinary things that happened there. He would recall Sarah’s amusement at the idea of a baby so late in their lives. He would remember her laughter of joy and delight as she held Isaac in her arms. He would know that she, too, was facing toward Mamre. He would remember God’s Promise of eternal love and protection.

"And Abraham arose from his mourning."

Virtual hugs and real-time blessings,

Deborah +

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This Week’s Suggested Spiritual Exercise: What place or experience reminds you of God’s goodness and faithfulness? Where is "the Hill of Promise" in your life? How can you keep the memory of this promise alive in your everyday living?

What place or experience reminds you of God’s goodness and faithfulness? Where is "the Hill of Promise" in your life? How can you keep the memory of this promise alive in your everyday living?