Shalom Friends;
This week, our Parshat HaShevua — Parshat Vayechi is being sponsored by Yitzchak and Leyla Gross of Wynnewood, PA to commemorate the Yarhtzeit of Yitzchak’s Mother: Chaya Yita Sarah Bat Aharon and for total victory of the IDF, eradicating Hamas and for the safe return of the Chayalim and ALL of the hostages, physically, mentally and spiritually. To Mishpochat Gross, many thanks for your sponsorship, your kindnesses through the years in helping facilitate Sefer Torah recycling and for your continued kindnesses.
You can celebrate a Simcha — a birth, a Bar/Bat Mitzvah, a Chassuna or other Simcha event in your life, or commemorate a Yahrtzeit of a loved one, or for whatever other reason by sponsoring a Parshat HaShevua.
Please forward to your relatives and friends and encourage them to sponsor a Parshat HaShevua. And please be in contact with me with any questions, or for further details.
Best Regards,
Moshe Burt
olehchadash@yahoo.com
skype: mark.burt3
******************************************************
In approaching our parshat, we note a phenomenon unique in Torah; the “Closed Parshat” where the beginning of Parshat Vayechi is separated from the conclusion of Parshat Vayigash by a mere single space, rather than by a number of blank spaces as separate the other parshiyot from each other.
Rabbi Shmuel Goldin provides a retrospective regarding the Patriarchal era and it’s impact on the nascent [adjective: beginning to exist or develop] nation — Am Yisrael in his sefer “Unlocking the Torah Text” on Sefer Breish’t (pages 281-284):
Judaism’s history effectively starts twice. An introductory, pre-national era is launched when Avraham journeys to Canaan at Hashem’s command. This era, the patriarchal era, comes to an end with Yaakov’s passing.
Our story begins again with the birth of the nation of the Jews — as we journey from the cauldron [noun: a large kettle or boiler] — [this author would also render as the kor barzel] of slavery, through the… Yetziyot Mitzrayim and the Revelation at Sinai.
In light of the cataclysmic [adjective: of, relating to, or resulting from a cataclysm: any violent upheaval, especially one of a social or political nature] events of the vicious, wild beastly attacks on Am Yisrael by Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other terror groups based in Gaza on Simchat Torah 5784, and the explosion of antisemitic rioting and in the world’s streets, university campuses, media and more, are we seeing Judaism history start anew, yet another era?
Rabbi Goldin continues his retrospective (ibid) :
At least three foundations essential to our national character are laid during the patriarchal era. These… serve as the best arguments… for the inclusion of this seminal period in the chronicle of Judaism’s history.
The patriarchal era establishes the significance of the individual. The patriarchal era is a time where there is literally no one else, when the sum total of Judaism’s experience is defined by the lives and dreams of Avraham, Sarah, Yitzchak, Rivka, Yaakov, Rachel and Leah. Their stories are recorded to remind us, even after the dawn of the national era, of the continuing importance of each individual.
The patriarchal era establishes the importance of the family in Judaism…. The journey of the patriarchal households to that moment teaches us that before we could become a nation we had to be a family.
The patriarchal era establishes a preexisting national legacy.
Because of the patriarchal era, our nation is born with a preexisting… legacy. By the time the Yetziyot Mitzrayim and the Revelation [at Har Sinai] launch the national era, we already possess a history. Our dreams reflect the dreams of our forefathers and our goals represent the fulfillment of their hopes. The Land of Israel is not an unknown destination, but a cherished land of which we have already heard countless tales, a land promised to our ancestors centuries before. The Torah and its commandments are not foreign concepts but the expected realization of covenants already contracted between Hashem and those who preceded us. From the very beginning, our mission is personal, a mission shaped not only by Hashem’s will but also by the memories of people and ages gone by. Those warm memories, together with countless others created across the years, form the ever-growing human dimension essential to the mesora process, a dimension originating in the patriarchal era.
As we consider Parshat Vayechi, and the current War of Simchat Torah, as well as the myriad of crises we currently face, we need to stay united as family, as the Yaakov’s “twelve quarreling stones” merged in unity and Yosef and his brothers finally found unity in family.
But alas, and this is as uncomfortable to write as it may be to read or hear: that along with the unity of purpose of the masses in rallying around our Chayalim, in every way possible as they fight to eradicate and forever rid Gaza of all manner of terrorism, and to find and Liberate all of our brethren held hostage by these wild beasts, we see disunity. We see the Israeli government which, as of the writing of this vort, seems equivocating on its earlier pledge to eradicate all terrorists in Gaza by seemingly caving to Hamas demands of a substantial period of ceasefire, fuel and other supplies as well as release of hundreds of terrorists in Israel’s prisons in exchange for a limited number of women and children held hostage. .
As of the writing of this vort, the government’s equivocation seems due to three-pronged pressure; from the US who pressure for a ceasefire of substantial time period as they (the Biden administration) estimates will defuse international tension and the university campus antisemitic demonstrations and riots as well as to attempt to facilitate release of a limited number of hostages (seemingly the US priority for release of US dual citizens) in exchange for hundreds of terrorists, from the families of the hostages who want their family members “freed now” and at any cost. Do they realize that their demands are even at cost of giving these wild beast terrorists new life thus possibly jeopardizing the lives of many Chayalim in the field of battle? And there are many Israelis, including the evacuated residents of the southern border towns who want Gaza cleared of all terrorists in order that they can return home and rebuild their lives, who demand that the government stick to it’s guns — eradicate Hamas and all Gazan terror groups, liberate the hostages by the hands of our Chayalim and re-assert Israeli control over Gaza. Could we say that contemporary Am Yisrael might be in comparable position to a “closed parshat”?
This author recently saw an email from “Women In Green” with the subject line: “Flatten+Annexation=Victory.” A responding email was sent with the subject line: “Flatten plus Liberate Hostages plus Annexation = Victory!” In fairness to “Women In Green,” their one word response to this author was “Clearly.”
The point is: All of Jewry needs to unify behind behind common goals during and after this war ends. Victory consists of destroying and eradicating ALL terrorism and terrorists, Liberating All hostages and returning them to their families — meaning NO negotiations, NO ceasefires, NO freeing of even a single terrorist currently held in Israeli prisons and NO release of captured terrorist POWs. Post-war, Gaza reverts back to
Israel’s military control and Jewish settlement.
A few years ago Rabbi Harry Greenspan said over a vort on our Parsha which could be understood to amplify on a topic repeated on this blog numerous times over the years — that Jewish unity is prerequisite to bringing about a Halachic, Just State of Israel, the prerequisite to bringing about the Geula Shlaima — the Ultimate Redemption.
Rav Greenspan’s vort, spoken in the name of his Rebbe in Yeshiva University, R’Nissan Alpert z’l, spans some 40 years. R’ Alpert was a Shul Rav on the Lower East Side and gave shiurim at YU. It is said that he was the top Talmid of R’Moshe Feinstein, z’l.
R’ Greenspan related that while Torah, Rashi and other commentators rendered that Yaakov Aveinu called his sons together to tell them of “The End of Days” and then lost his Ruach HaKodesh, R’ Alpert suggested that one could perhaps say that Yaakov did actually tell his sons when the Geula Shlaima would occur.
Sefer Breish’t Perek 49, posuk 1 reads:
Hei-afsu — “Gather [Hei-afsu is rendered by Shimshon Inbal’s English-Hebrew, Hebrew-English Dictionary published by S. Zack & Co,: collect, gather, aggregate, provide shelter, public meeting] and I will tell you what will happen to you in The End of Days.”
Posuk 2 then reads:
Hi-kavtzu — “Gather [rendered by the same English-Hebrew, Hebrew-English Dictionary as; collect] and listen, sons of Yaakov, and listen to Yisrael, your father.”
The two loshonot of the word “Gather” could therefore be understood to mean come together as one.
A number of years ago, this author was zocha to have been handed a little Chabad booklet “Dvar Hamelech” dated in 5760 with Divrei Torah from the Lubavitcher Rebbe for the Torah Sedras. The Rebbe makes a point (Dvar HaMelech 5760, Parshat Vayechi, pages 16-23) which should be self-evident to all of us; basically that “Yaakov is Alive” for “His Descendants are Alive.” Yaakov is alive because his people, who bear his name, Yisrael lives.
In the booklet, The Lubavitcher Rebbe cites Talmudic gemora tractate Ta’anit, page 5b which states:
“Yaakov, our ancestor, did not die.” When a protest is raised, “Was it in vain that he was eulogized, embalmed, and buried?”, the gemora replies [citing Sefer Yirmiyahu Perek 30, posuk 10]:
It is written, “‘Do not fear, My Servant Yaakov,’ says Hashem, ‘Do not become dismayed, O Israel, I will save you from afar and your descendants from the land of captivity.'” An equation is established between Yaakov and his descendants.
This author harkens back to a Yom Kippur vort and a paradigm of the way things ought to be: the Aish Kodesh, the Rebbe Piazecna, R’ Kalonymus Kalman Shapira:
…Every single Jew, even the most belligerently anti-religious, is a spark of Jewish soul that needs only to be reached, opened and ignited in the right way. Rebbe Kalonymous knew how to do this. After several meetings with him, these hard socialist leaders admitted their difficulty arguing with him…
Rebbe Kalonymous was indeed a most devoted leader, both in the spiritual and material sense. “A rebbe who is not willing to enter Gehinom to save a follower is not a rebbe,” he used to say…
Only when there is perfection in unity amongst kol klal Yisrael, as well as a consensus of Halacha and Halachic fences, of checks and balances, of oversight, of transparency, of V’Ahavtah L’rei’cha Kamocha — wanting for your brother, for your brethren, what you want for yourself; will we have the courage to move to change Israel’s governance to a Torah governance. Only then will we be zocha Moshiach, the Ge’ula Shlaima before its time; for our bed will be, as the Lubavitcher Rebbe cites Rashi: “perfect” and as one may understand R’ Greenspan in citing his Rav, Rabbi Alpert: “coming together as one.”
May we, the B’nei Yisrael be zocha that our brethren — the refugee families from Gush Katif be permanently re-settled in Gush Katif, once the IDF, by the Yad Hashem, destructs and eradicates the wild beasts of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, all other terror entities, and if necessary Iran, and that our brethren be made totally whole — be totally restituted for all that was stolen from them, that the thrice expelled families of Amona be restored to their rebuilt homes and the oft-destroyed Yeshiva buildings in Homesh be rebuilt, as well as the buildings of Yishuv Elchanan, all at total government expense. May our Chayalim return from battle unharmed — physically, mentally and spiritually and may all of the hostages brutally taken by the wild beasts of Hamas be liberated and returned to their families. Baruch Hashem that our dear brother Jonathan Pollard is in his third year at home in Eretz Yisrael and has embarked on a new chapter in his life. May Esther Yocheved bat Yechiel Avraham have an aliyah in Shemayim and may her spirit and memory continue to lift Jonathan to at least 120 years. May the MIAs be liberated alive and returned to us in ways befitting Al Kiddush Hashem — as with the return in April, 2019, via Russia, of the remains of Zachariah Baumel, as should the remains of the two chayalim from the Gaza War of nine years ago. May we have the courage and strength to stand up and physically prevent the possibility of Chas V’Challila any future eviction of Jews from their homes and prevent Chas V’Challila the handing of Jewish land over to anyone, let alone to enemies sworn to Israel’s and Judaism’s destruction and eradication. May we see, in 5784, the REAL Jews from the Ukraine and Russia make Aliyah enmass — via thorough review by Misrad HaPanim. And may we soon and finally see the total end to the Communist Chinese Wuhan Lab corona virus pandemic and all like viruses and variants. May we fulfill Hashem’s blueprint of B’nei Yisrael as a Unique people — an Am Segula, not to be reckoned with as with “the nations” and may we be zocha to see the Moshiach, the Ge’ula Shlaima, as Dov Shurin sings; “Ki Karov Yom Hashem Al’Kol HaGoyim”, the Ultimate Redemption, bimhayrah b’yamainu — speedily, in our time”, — Achshav, Chik Chuk, Miyad, Etmol!!!
Good Shabbos!
———————————————————
Moshe Burt, an Oleh, is a commentator on news and events in Israel and Founder and Director of The Sefer Torah Recycling Network. He lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh.
***************************************************************