This month marks the 16th Yahrtzeit of Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin. Parshat Toldot deals with the life of Rabin's Biblical namesake. While the Torah tells us that the Biblical Yitzchak survives his father's hand at the Akeda, our modern Yitzchak was tragically murdered on the  alter of fanaticism. I dedicate this D'var Torah to the memory of Prime Minister Rabin.
  
Of the three Biblical Patriarchs, Yitzchak is the least defined and truly the least charismatic.  He is often portrayed as the victim.  His life was a difficult one.  He was nearly sacrificed by his father.  He was caught in the cross fire of Sarah and Hagar's jealousies.  His children feuded and were unable to live together.  His wife and son conspire against him at the end of this week's Parsha with the apparent approval of God, in order to deceptively obtain Yitzchak's blessing for Jacob.  His faith is continually tested.

In Chapter 26, Yitzchak is given one specific command.  Remain in the land.  At first glance this might not seem to be so difficult a request to comply with for the sake of the Master of the Universe.  However, if we consider the circumstances it was, perhaps, the outstanding example of Isaac's faith and devotion to God.

Yitzchak was aware that famine was not an unusual occurrence in the land of Israel.  His father had experienced famine.  The solution chosen by Abraham was to move to Egypt and return only after the economy improved.  Yitzchak was probably also aware that the Philistines viewed his father, Abraham, and the entire family with awe and fear, but not love.  To remain in the land and allow himself to become dependent upon the goodwill of Avimelech was precarious.  True to the faithfulness exhibited at Mount Moriah, Yitzchak resisted the temptation to flee and remained in the land of Israel his entire life.  By doing so he established the precedent for the unbreakable link which continues to bind us, the Children of Yitzchak, to the land of our ancestors.  Like Yitzchak, even during difficult economic and political times, we, too, are commanded to resist the temptation to find the easier path and must remain firmly committed to the maintenance of Jewish life in Eretz Yisrael, our homeland.  For this reason alone, Yitzchak, the first native born Jew and a worthy symbol of Jewish nationalism, is deserving of God's blessing.

Unlike his father and son, Yitzchak represents the average Jew.  He is neither a great chieftain, like his father, nor the charismatic, dashing rogue that his son, Jacob, is becoming.  He is a man of faith who struggles with himself and the world to create a positive life.  He is portrayed in the Midrash as a man desirous of peace who is willing to make compromises in order to avoid human conflict.  Yet in his interaction with the Philistines in Chapter 26, he assertively makes his claim to his portion of the land. 

Yitzchak, the first Sabra, set an example that Yitzchak Rabin, the first Sabra Prime Minister of modern Israel, followed in 1993 by seeking an accommodation with the Palestinians whose name is the Latin form of Philistine.  Rabin, like his Biblical namesake, realized that along with our right to live in the Land we have a responsibility to seek out a secure peace with our neighbors. 

In Chapter 26 we have an example of a negotiated settlement between our Biblical ancestors and the antecedents of the Palestinians. Today, we await a Palestinian leader who will follow the example of Avimelech and respond the outstretched arm of peace that the Children of Yitzchak, the State of Israel, continues to offer. 

Overall, despite his fear and trembling, Yitzchak, the  most human of our Patriarchs -- is a figure with whom I can identify.  Rather than seeking to enforce radical change, he strives for peaceful co-existence.  He is the average man who overachieves.  He met the test by patiently choosing faith in God and an active determination to preserve Jewish tradition and provide for the continuity of Jewish life.  In memory of both the Biblical Yitzchak and Yitzchak Rabin may each of us do the same, by continuing our support, both financial and political, of Israel's efforts to establish a Brit Shalom, a true peace treaty with the Palestinians.