We
wouldn’t necessarily know it from the weather, but if anyone has been to the
malls they are certainly aware that it is “the most wonderful time of the
year”. It is the time of year that the Jews go to Florida, and on one day
during this week; eat Chinese food and perhaps go to the movies. Since we are not going to Florida, our family
will have the Chinese food. Our family has one other tradition. On December 24th,
we light a fire and watch It’s a Wonderful Life. One of the themes of It’s
a Wonderful Life is that an individual’s life touches many other lives.
Sometimes we explicitly affect others’ lives, sometimes we implicitly affect
other lives. Perhaps we may never know the extent to which we affect and
influence others' lives. However, as George Bailey watches people from his town
give a few dollars to help him out of a difficult financial bind, he becomes
acutely aware that everything he did, every decision he made, every trial and
tribulation, every joyous moment and every difficult moment were necessary
parts of his life. All of which allowed him to arrive at this final moment; a
moment in which he was able to experience the holiness of an act of Loving
Kindness.
This week’s Parshah, Vayechi is the conclusion
of the book of Breishit (Genesis). Because this is the last Parshah of the
Sefer B’reishit, we read of the passing of the mantle of power from one
generation to the next. Yaakov is 147 years old and it is time for him to bless
his children and his grandchildren. To each of his twelve sons, he offers a
blessing. To Yosef’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, he not only offers a blessing
but he reserves the blessing of the first born to the younger brother,
Ephraim. This is fitting. Yaakov also
received the blessing reserved for the first born. He also leaves Yosef with
one last mission. Yaakov tells Yosef of the covenant that God made with
Avraham, Yitzchak and himself. He also made Yosef swear an oath that he would
bring him out of Egypt and bury him with his father and grandfather. Yosef
accepts this oath. He and his brothers leave Egypt and bury their father.
Because the famine remains pervasive throughout the land, they return to Egypt.
Now the brothers fear Yosef’s wrath. Although he has not expressed any anger
towards them, the brothers believe now that their father is dead; Yosef’s anger
will not be contained. First they sent servants to Yosef in order to plead on
their behalf. Then the brothers plead to Yosef and prostrate themselves before
Yosef. Yosef’s response indicates his maturity, his spiritual contentment and
his peace with himself and his environment. Vayomer Aleihem Yosef Al Tirau Ki Hatachat Elohim Ani -“But Joseph said to them, ‘Fear not, for am
I instead of God? V’Atem Chashavtem
Alai Ra’ah Elohim Chashava L’Tovah L’Ma’An Asah KaYom HaZeh LHaChayot Am Rav - Although you intended me harm, God
intended it for good: in order to accomplish, it is as clear as this day, that
a vast people be kept alive. V’Atah Al Tirau Anochi Achalkeil Etchem
V’et Tapchem Vayinachem Otam Vayidaber al Libam -So now fear not, I will sustain you and your young ones.’ Thus he
comforted them and spoke to their heart.” (Gen: 19-21) Yosef bears no
animosity towards his brothers. The tears he shed in last week’s parsha,
VaYigash, were genuine. The joy of re-uniting with his family without rancor
and bitterness overwhelmed any negative or bitter feelings. Yosef understands
and accepts his place. Yosef understands that he had to experience all the
tsuris and all the simcha of his life in order to arrive at that point in time
and in that manner. Yosef arrived at that moment without bitterness. He chose
not to have bitterness. Rather, his faith and sense of self provided enough
strength for him to make peace, achieve contentment, and appreciate the path
that his life had taken.
It
took George Bailey to sink to his lowest point, wishing he “had never been
born” in order to understand that by living life, by working hard, by trying to
make a difference, he ultimately did. Like most of us, we don’t always get to
see how our deeds and actions make a difference to those lives we touch. Like
George Bailey, Yosef understood all this. He too had to go through all kinds of
difficulty, namely an estrangement from his family for more than twenty years,
in order for him to learn the lesson that that everything has to happen in
order for us to arrive at this point in time. Both George Bailey and Yosef
teach us to try hard, to do our best, never lose faith and don’t allow negative
feelings to overwhelm us to the point of becoming embittered souls. Ultimately
we need to learn and eventually accept that everything unfolds the way it does
in order for us to be here at this moment in time.
Peace,
Rav Yitz
No comments:
Post a Comment