The Name of the Parsha - Chayei Sarah

Chayei Sarah means "the life of sarah" - an inappropriate name, it would appear, for the passing of Sarah. How does this name reflect the theme of the Parsha?

Our sages teach that Sarah passed away she heard that her son had almost been slaughtered at the Akeida. why is it that Sarah could not withstand the notion of the Akieda, whereas Avraham was able to cope with it?

This point reflect the difference in disposition between Avraham and Sarah. Avraham was willing to slaughter his son, and he carried out the process with joy, since he knew that he was following God's Will. He was connect with a spirituality which requires a person to negate the world, and escape from normal existence.

Sarah, on other hand, could not cope with this idea, since her focus was to serve God Within the world. As far as Sarah was concerned, Yotzchak's soul needed to stay in his body so that he could make the world a better, holier place.

Thus, Sarah's purpose in life was most aptly expressed by the events in this Parsha, when two fundamental elements of the Jewish nation became established in the world for the first time:

a.) The Jewish People. Yitzchak - the first person born a Jew - marries Rivkah, who matches his ethical and spiritual caliber; a woman who is an appropriate replacement for Sarah as a mother in Israel.

b.) The Jewish Land. In our Parsha we read how Avraham purchases the first plot in the Land of Israel which was now openly and indisputably under Jewish ownership. This was the first expression in the world of the Jewish right to the Land of Israel.

So, even though our Parsha describe events after Sarah's passing, it is nevertheless called "the life of Sara," for in it we read how Sara's true purpose in life begins to be fulfilled: the beginnings of the Jewish nation ant their Land, here in the physical world.

(Based on Sichas Shabbos Parshas Chayei Sarah 5748)