In Parashat Lech L’cha, God calls Abraham to embark on the journey that will create the Jewish people. Abraham is the first Jew, and rabbinic midrash teaches that Abraham’s readiness to enter into a covenant with God was in part because of his rejection of the idolatrous society into which he was born. In other words, Abraham was able to step outside of his own society and see that there was something taken for granted in its culture which prevented it from living by its own ideals. In America, we rely on artists, writers, and activists to fulfill a similar role, including the mid-20th century beat poet Allen Ginsberg in his poem, “Howl”.
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