Go To Yourself, Find Your People

Posted on October 23, 2026 by Rabbi Noah Diamondstein

Dear friends,

This week’s Torah portion is Parashat Lech L’cha, where Abraham (his as-yet-uncovenanted name still Abram) enters the action and becomes our story’s acting protagonist. We are told almost nothing of Abraham’s childhood, instead entering into his story with one of God’s most intriguing utterances in the entire Torah: “Lech l’cha,” “Go for yourself from your country, and from your birthplace, and from your father’s house, to the land that I will show you.” (Gen. 12:1) Those words, “Lech l’cha,” literally “Go to yourself,” or “Go for yourself,” have been the source of myriad commentaries and midrashim and could be understood in many different ways.

My favorite interpretation comes from the wisdom of Chassidism. R. Zushya of Hanipol said, “When I get to heaven, they will not ask me, Zushya, why were you not Moses? They will ask me, ‘Zushya, why were you not Zushya?’” “Go to yourself” implies a command to engage in self-discovery and the pursuit of authenticity. As R. Lord Jonathan Sacks puts it: “Abraham was being asked to leave behind all the things that make us someone else – for it is only by taking a long and lonely journey that we discover who we truly are.”

I would quibble slightly with Rabbi Sacks; I disagree that such a journey must be a lonely one. Abraham did not travel alone, and his ultimate destination led him to build a family and community. We don’t journey alone, either. It is in relationships that we discover so many of the most fundamental truths about ourselves.

I want to highlight a few opportunities to be in relationship with one another soon:

• Tomorrow, we will have our first MORNING Shabbat Mishpachah (Family Shabbat) of the year. It will be joyful, musical, filled with Torah, and a great opportunity to gather, pray, and eat together.
• Tuesday night, October 27 at 7:30 p.m. is our first Song Circle of the year. I’ll lead it, and through learning and singing some new songs (both Jewish and secular) together, we’ll open our hearts to one another. Register here and come sing with me!
• Sunday morning, November 1 at 9:00 a.m., I’ll be hosting a rabbi’s breakfast where we’ll debrief the results of the Israeli Elections. The votes will be rolling in as we sing on Tuesday night, and hopefully by Sunday we’ll have a clearer picture of where things stand, and where things might be headed.

It’s not a simple or easy thing to “go to yourself,” but it is perhaps the most worthwhile journey any of us can take. I’m grateful to be walking that path alongside you.

In the words of Drew Holcombe, whose song, “Find Your People,” we’ll be singing next Tuesday night:“You got to find your people / The ones that make you feel alright / That tell you the truth then wish you well / You gotta find your people, then you’ll find yourself”

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Noah Diamondstein