Responsibility for One's Family

In Genesis, the theme of responsibility for one’s siblings is very great. From the story of Cain and Abel to the story of Joseph and his brothers who sold him into slavery, God upheld a certain standard of responsibility for not only oneself but also his brother. God expected brothers like Cain and Abel to work together as a team, helping each other along the way and contributing to each other’s success. When Cain killed Abel because he had fallen into the coveted favor of God and was then questioned by Him about the whereabouts of his brother, Cain responded indignantly, “I am not my brother’s keeper.” Not only was God angry with Cain for ending his brother’s life, God was upset with him for disregarding the expectation that he would look out for his brother’s safety being a member of the family. There was a core belief that since a blood of a brother is the same blood that you carry, you have a familial obligation to treat that brother as you would treat yourself by caring for and protecting. In the story of Joseph and his brothers, the wrongdoing brothers were eventually punished because they had breached the idea of trust responsibility that was bestowed upon them by God because of the inherent fact that they were the older brothers, and thus the caretaker of Joseph. In our lives this relationship is relevant because our parents for the most part expect us not only to be responsible for ourselves but also responsible for our siblings to some degree, whether they are older or younger. For instance, if a younger sister or family member were to lose her path and get in trouble, most of us would feel obliged to have a certain degree of responsibility to help her out. The ideas of familial unity, responsibility and strength were very closely related as they are today.