Sarah: The Birth of a Nation

22 x 30

Watercolor on Paper

Sarah was barren; she had no child’
Gen. 11:30

Sarah, is a story of infertility, one, which is very present in society today. It is hard to imagine how difficult it would have been for Sarah in a society where the major value that a woman had was her ability to produce a son.

How could Abraham father a nation with a baron wife? In her nineties she still had not conceived. She was still beautiful but that was not the value of a good woman. She needed to have a child.

Desperate she tried everything. In spite of G-d’s promise, in today’s language, she had a surrogate, which only caused emotional turmoil. This emotional turmoil is even evident today with the ongoing violence in the Middle East. 
With modern technology there are many solutions to infertility. Women have had babies that are sexagenarians and it is possible to be even older. “Octomom” which has hit the news in recent times has fourteen children under the age of seven.  Done without the need for a man. Well almost. How can this be good?  Just because it is possible may not mean that we should do it.

Even though she had lost her faith – G-d was true to his promise and blessed her and Abraham with a child.  What seemed impossible to Sarah was not to G-d.  When Abraham was told of the child, he fell on the ground in laughter. That is why he named is son Isaac which means laughter. Perhaps Sarah’s laughter had originally been one of doubt.