Why did Ruth want to be Jewish? The Megillah tells us nothing about her motivation. People often assume that Ruth converted to marry one of Elimelech’s sons, but the Midrash explains that Ruth only converted after she lost her husband. So, what was it? What inspiring experience did Ruth have that made her decide to dedicate her life to being a member of the Jewish People?

Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm, zt”l, argues that although the Megillah is called Megillas Ruth, Ruth is not the real heroine nor the real focus of the story. The real heroine is Naomi.

Naomi enters the scene with a life filled with abundant blessings. She is married to Elimelech, who, Chazal explain, was a leader of his generation. She has two sons who were leaders in their own right. And as the name Naomi implies, her life was pleasant and sweet. But then challenges start to pile up and very quickly everything starts to fall apart. Her children marry out of the faith, and then both they and Elimelech pass away. Naomi has gone from the woman who has it all, to the woman who has nothing.

By the end of the first chapter of the Megillah, our pleasant and sweet matriarch is bitter and depressed.

אַל תִּקְרֶאנָה לִי נָעֳמִי קְרֶאןָ לִי מָרָא כִּי הֵמַר שַׁדַּי לִי מְאֹד

“Do not call me Naomi; call me Marah, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.”

And yet, this is the last we hear of Naomi’s complaints. Somehow, Naomi finds the fortitude to bounce back. From that moment, she never speaks about herself again. She now has a singular focus: helping to ensure her loyal daughter-in-law finds a suitable husband and lives a stable life. And it is only because of Naomi’s singular focus, resilience and ingenuity that Ruth and Boaz eventually marry.

In fact, it was so clear to everyone that Naomi was the force behind Ruth’s marriage that when Boaz and Ruth are blessed with a child, the townspeople call out:

יֻלַּד בֵּן לְנָעֳמִי

“A son has been born to Naomi.”

With that, let us return to our initial question: Why did Ruth do it? Why did Ruth abandon her past, convert to Judaism, and travel to settle in a foreign land with a people she never knew? The answer, in one word, is Naomi. It was Naomi who showed Ruth the beauty of Judaism, and the indomitable spark that burns inside each and every Jew. She showed Ruth the ability for a person to have literally lost everything and rise from that moment; not to focus on oneself but instead to build up someone else. Naomi became a symbol of what resilience and chesed can look like and Ruth wanted that for her life. In short, Ruth became Ruth because she saw how Naomi had become Naomi.

Perhaps Chazal didn’t decree that we read the story of Ruth only because it is a story about a woman who chooses a life of Torah and mitzvos. Maybe it is because it is a powerful reminder about the potential that we each hold to be a Naomi.

Sometimes we feel we have suffered so much that there is no way forward. The story of Naomi is the story of a woman who decided that when it seemed like she had lost her way, her own path forward was found in helping someone else find theirs.

And this story is perhaps just the right story for our people right now. We are a people who have felt so lost, at times, over the past 20 months. And yet, this terrible challenge has provided us with the opportunity to get back up and invest in others and find ourselves in the process. From IDF reservists who have fought for 300 days on multiple fronts with the support of their wives and children, to hostages who have spent their torturous moments in captivity encouraging others who are with them, from American college students standing up for their people to community members packing and shipping thousands of duffel bags of supplies, the list goes on of “regular” heroes who have confronted personal and national crises by choosing to be there for someone else.

The story of Ruth and Naomi reveals the potential in each of us to rise up in moments of challenge; to find our own way by being willing to help someone else find theirs. On this Shavuot, let us remind ourselves that even in times that feel dark, our way forward is found in our willingness to be there for each other. Because no matter the difficulties we face, we can all be a Naomi.

Rabbi Beni Krohn is the rabbi of the Young Israel of Teaneck and Mashgiach Ruchani at Yeshiva University. Rabbi Krohn and his wife, Chani, are the future Rabbi and Rebbetzin of the Eden community in Beit Shemesh.