Mission Statements – V’Heyeh Bracha

Rabbi Maury Grebenau

There was a time when mission statements had a pithiness to them. They were a succinct
message of the goals and aspirations of the organization. The heart and soul of the company laid
out in a line which expressed action and was goal-oriented. Today, it seems that mission
statements have become long winded and verbose. The clean terseness seems to have gotten lost
amongst the jargon and pontification.

However, if we look to the Torah we find that the mission statements for the Jewish
people are clear and concise. One of the oft quoted ones is in Yeshaya (42:6), Hashem instructs
us to be a light unto the nations, ohr lagoyim. Here volumes are spoken in just a couple of words.
This is the national mission statement of the Jewish people. We are expected, as a people, to hold
ourselves to a higher standard. We really do answer to a higher authority.

This week Avrohom is told by Hashem to be a blessing, ‘VeHeyeh Bracha.’ My father-

in-law, Rabbi Levi Meier, was very fond of quoting this phrase. He even used it as the title of
one of his books. The centrality of this phrase in his life leads me to believe that he viewed
VeHeyeh Bracha as the individual mission statement of a Jew. As a nation we are a light unto the
nations, but each one of us is to be a blessing. What exactly does that mean?

The Seforno writes that it means we should be a blessing to Hashem in all of our actions.
When we do things which are in line with what Hashem expects of us we are indeed a Bracha to
Him in this world. A mission statement is meant to be a guiding principle in major and minor
decisions. It is a direction and a goal which orients us in the maze of life. I think that the phrase
‘VaHeyeh Bracha’ certainly qualifies. Avrohom is the father of the Jews and a role model to
each of us. As we go through our day to day, we would do well to keep his mission statement in
mind. Be a blessing.