Saturday morning services will begin at 8:45 am.
Following a noontime Kiddush, Landers Playspace will be open. Talmud will convene at 4:00 pm. Mincha will be in our Rabb Chapel at 3:39 pm. My Mincha and Metaphysics topic will be "Jealousy's Test on the Tenth of Teveth." Havdallah takes place no earlier than 4:54 pm.
Most of us love a good story. The Book of Genesis is filled with
elaborate stories with convoluted plots full of deception and
intrigue. Parshat Vayigash is no exception and begins with the
dramatic reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers. The Torah
has provided much room for the development of this story culminating
in the emotionally charged reconciliation that we read at the
beginning of this parsha. The story does not end here, but continues
until the end of the Book of Genesis with the dramatic and tearful
scene in which Joseph grants his brethren forgiveness and promises to
sustain them and their children in Egypt after his death.
Why does the Torah devote so much space to narrative while employing
brevity when prescribing mitzvot? For example, we are told to do no
work on Shabbat but we are not told what exactly constitutes work. By
giving so much room to the development of stories, is the Torah
acknowledging the power of the narrative to transform our actions and
our lives?
Jewish literature is replete with Agadot, Chasidic tales, and
speculative ruminations by rabbis and scholars concerning our history
and its various characters. Reconciliation is a theme that appears
more than once in the Torah especially in the Book of Genesis.
Forgiveness and the ability to forgive is a recurrent theme in
Judaism. Each one of us can certainly think of at least one powerful
example in our own lives of a strained relationship that has never
been resolved. It is most painful when this occurs between family
members. The story of Joseph and his brothers spans many years and
goes into great detail to both describe and define the nature of the
resentment, the wrong-doing, the estrangement, the reconciliation,
and the final forgiveness.
Though Joseph has every right to punish his brothers for the crime
they committed against him, he demonstrates the ability, one we all
possess, to transcend his bitterness. Rather than focusing on
revenge, which may certainly have been his right, he chooses
reconciliation. The ability to transcend one's more basic instincts
represents the development of mature reason and action - in essence
the ability to rise to the occasion.
Here are a few rabbinic comments on forgiveness:
Rabbi Asher ben Yechiel taught: "Each night before going to sleep,
forgive whoever wronged you." (Hanhaga, c 1320)
Raba taught: "He (she) who forgives ..will himself (herself) be
forgiven." (Yoma 23a)
Within great literature (and the Torah is no exception) the reader
often discovers a theme or situation that relates to his or her life.
Identifying with a narrative and with the characters in a story adds
legitimacy to our own stories. This identification can be especially
powerful when the story with which we identify contains a difficult
or painful situation that is finally resolved. The power of the
narrative can then give us the push we may need to resolve
outstanding grievances in our lives.
SHABBAT SHALOM
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