Parashat Shelach Lecha and The Catcher was a Spy

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Yoga Class THIS Sunday at 10 am – June 30 at Beth El. FREE and open to all – led by Rachel!

Song filled and joyful services! Tonight @ 7PM! Cantor Ben-Moshe’s Weekly Message. This week we read Parshat Sh’lah L’kha-which tells the story of the spies who were sent to scout the Land of Israel, and the condemnation of the People of Israel to wander in the desert for forty years. The parshah though closes with a completely different subject-the commandment to wear tzitzith, the ritual fringes on the corners of the tallith. The commandment of course is for the fringe to include a royal blue (t’cheleth) thread. This royal blue dye was derived from a marine snail, a species of murex, but is indistinguishable from indigo to the naked eye. Since unscrupulous dealers were passing off indigo as the more expensive murex dye, the Sages decreed that the blue thread was optional. The murex dye has recently been rediscovered (and can be distinguished from indigo by chemical analysis), but t’cheleth threads in tzitzith are still uncommon. The color is now most recognizable in the blue star and stripes of the flag of the State of Israel. Shabbat Shalom.Hazzan Yitzhak Ben-MosheShabbat candle lighting at 8:19 p.m.

Our next Chai Mitzvah adult class is Thursday July 25 at 7PM at Beth El. Please join us. Come learn about the Jewish perspective on Leadership. The class is free and open to all and you will leave inspired! Scott and Shereen are amazing Leaders of this program! Our Next Sisterhood Book Club Selection is The Catcher was a Spy! A fascinating book & Movie! Tuesday August 27 at 7 PM Location at Doris’s home.Parashat Hashavua with Rabbi Peter Tarlow: The name of this week’s parashah is “Shalach” or “Shalach l’chah. You will find it in the Book of Numbers 13:1-15:41. This section is an example of how difficult it is to translate the Hebrew text into a foreign language. The non-Hebrew reader will miss the irony of this section. The word following “shalach/send forth” is the dative “l’chah” meaning approximately “for your own sake”. To the non-Hebrew reader this use of the dative case may seem superfluous but the Hebrew reader will immediately connect this section to the section in Genesis called “Lech l’chah” In Lech l’chah (Go forth and get out of there for your own sake) G-d sends Abraham into the land of Canaan with the words “Lech l’chah” now in the current parashah G’d tells Moses to “send them (the spies) out into the land for your own sake”. Despite their linguistic similarities there are, however, great differences between the two statements. In Abraham’s case, he owns the challenge, and seeks to fulfill the mission. In the case of the spies, ten of them flee from the challenge. Lech l’chah is about trust, the basis of the relationship between G-d and His people. This week’s parashah Shalach l’chah is about seeing only part of the story and living a life of negativity. It reminds us that facts are the basis of reality and not feel-good policies that in the end do more harm than good. The text illustrates this point in the majority report (given by ten of the spies). They state (13:33): “Vanhi v’eiyneynu k’Chanavim v’chen hayiny b’eineyhem”. The Hebrew once again is hard to translate into western languages, but we might render it as “we made ourselves (we chose to see ourselves) as grasshoppers (insignificant pests) and they saw us in the same way. Here pessimism abounds. Police is to be made on the basis of feelings rather than facts. Perhaps the text is stating: do not assume, G-d has demonstrated numerous reasons for you to trust Him, but once again, there is a return to negativity and the “sky is falling” mentality. How directly is this week’s parashah speaking to us today? How many of us assume the worst, and live in a world of doomsday? Shalach l’chah then is more than a command given by G-d to Moses, it is also a question and a challenge. The Hebrew is stating: send yourself out, dare to explore, and remember that negative thoughts often result in negative actions. Perhaps the difference between Abaham’s Lech l’chah and the spies’ Shalach l’chah is that Abraham was a man who trusted G-d; the spies on the other hand, were pessimists who chose to react rather than act. Are you a person who trusts G-d or is a slave to fear?

In the Sands of Sinai

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Services tonight @ 7PM! We’ll light candles together just before services.

Cantor Ben-Moshe’s Weekly Message.

This week is Parshat Sh’mini as well as Shabbat Parah, one of the four special Shabbatot that lead up to Passover. The parshah and the maftir both deal with death-the death of Aharon’s elder sons, Nadav and Avihu in the parshah, and the ritual of the Red Heifer in the special reading. The purpose of the maftir reading is to prepare us for Pesah-in ancient times, we would have been required to be in a state of purity in order to partake of the Paschal sacrifice. To participate in the ritual without the proper preparation was a grave offense-perhaps as grave as the offense of Nadav and Avihu in offering an unauthorized incense offering. The Temple no longer stands, the sacrifices are no longer offered nor are the laws of purity in force. Nonetheless, we should prepare ourselves for Pesah-not only physically by cleaning our homes, but also spiritually by cleaning out that which is stale in our lives, coming to the Season of Our Liberation refreshed and light. Shabbat Shalom.

March 31 – 12:30 PM Whole Wheat Challah Baking Class – learn to make the softest, most delicious whole wheat challah and learn about the Jewish blessing of Eshet Chayil. With Iris Kohn-Wiener

April 7th – Men’s Club BBQ @ Beth El @ 3:30 PM

April 14 – Beth El Passover cleaning day at 12 noon. “All hands on deck” – “many hands make light work”…you get the message! PLEASE come out and lend a hand as we clean the shul for Passover.

April 20 – Beth El Annual Second Night Seder – RSVP ASAP to bethelaustin@yahoo.com to reserve your spot.

Wednesday May 1- 7 PM at Beth El – Author Yitzhak Brooks – Israeli soldier and physician. See below. 
Sunday school is this Sunday at 10, followed by a whole wheat challah making class and Eshet Chayil Study! Please join us.

Coomunity News! Come to IGNITE at the J! April 14. www.shalomaustin.org/ignite!

Parashat Vayyehi

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Friday night services this week at 7:00 p.m

Shabbat morning Services – Saturday December 22 at 9 a.m. Torah service at around 9:45 a.m., with children’s services running concurrently. The lunch is generously sponsored by Javis (Sarah) and this week features super healthy salads in addition to cholent, homemade wholewheat challah, and delicious apple crisp for desert. Thank you Shabbat Chefs Claudia, Iris, Shereen and Miriam.

Please Mark Your Calendars!

January 10 Adult Chai Mitzvah Class at 7 PM

January 17 Sisterhood Mandala Painting & Meditation Class with Miriam at 7PM

January 20 Tu B’Shevat Seder at 4:00 PM with AIC

February 1 Friday Night Shabbat Dinner & Service at 6:30 PM

February 7 Chai Mitzvah Class at 7 PM

February 16 PJ Havdallah & Movie Night at 6 PM

February 28 Sisterhood: Book Night – The Boston Girl

March 1 Friday Night Shabbat Dinner & Service at 6:30 PM

March 14 Chai Mitzvah Class at 7 PM

March 17-18 Congregational Camping Trip at Tejas Park

March 20 Purim Party
Cantor Ben-Moshe’s Weekly Message:

Our parshah, Vayyehi, concludes Sefer B’reshith, the Book of Genesis, with words of blessing-specifically the blessings of Ya’akov/Yisrael for his children (which are echoed in Moshe’s blessings for the People of Israel). Many of these blessings include comparisons of the sons to animals-Yoseph is a bull, and Asher is a snake, for example. Amusingly, the comparison of Benyamin to a wolf led to a legend in the Midrash that he was actually a werewolf. The most famous of these of course was the comparison of Yehudah to a lion. The Lion of Judah appears on the seal of the City of Jerusalem, and indeed on the mantles of our sifrei Torah. Our Sages used the lion as an exemplar of courage-“Be brave as a lion”,

“Be a lion’s tail rather than a fox’s head”. May the strength and courage of our ancestor Yehudah, who gave his name to the Yehudim, the Jews, reside in us as well, and let us live up to the words which we will chant on Shabbat at the conclusion of the reading of Sefer B’reshith-“Hazzak, hazzak v’nit’hazek”-Be strong, Be strong and we will strengthen each other. Shabbat Shalom.
Hazzan Yitzhak Ben-Moshe

Shabbat candle lighting times are at 5:17 p.m.

Thank you Anat Inbar and Reagan De Marines for an amazing class this last Sunday. Anat taught us the most delicious burekas recipe and Reagan about the benefits of high quality oils, like Do Terra essential oils. We all made our own relaxation sprays or rollers and left feeling amazing.

Parashat Hashavua by Rabbi Dr. Peter Tarlow

This week, we conclude our yearly reading of the Book of Genesis with the parashah named Vayechi (Meaning: “He lived”). Just as in the case of the section called “Chayei-Sarah (Sarah’s Life) that tells of Sarah’s death, so too does this week’s parashah ironically called “He lived” speaks about Jacob’s death,

You will find this portion in Genesis chapter 47:28 – 50:24. The section is a summary of the Joseph stories, and also in a some sense, it functions as a summary of for the entire Book of Genesis.

Called “Vayechi” meaning “he lived” the parashah deals with Jacob’s death, the blessings of his (Jacob’s) sons and grandson’s (Joseph’s sons), the mourning period for Jacob, the reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers, and finally the death of Joseph.”

Genesis ends as it began. It is a book of wanderings. From Adam and Eve’s expulsion from Eden through Abraham’s journey to the land of Israel to Joseph’s death in a foreign land, the theme of wandering, both physical and psychological, is an ever-present constant. Genesis’ often unstated but always present, leitmotif is: how do we find order in a chaotic world?

Genesis is a realistic book open to a myriad of interpretations. One possible interpretation of the book is the notion that to live creatively is to realize , that life is a dynamic process always pushing us ahead.

This first book of Hebrew Scripture teaches us that for actions produce reactions, and to be alive is to struggle and to grow. Life’s successes come from our desire to push forward, never to be satisfied with our accomplishments but rather always to strive for more. Truly to be alive is to do no less.

Genesis argues that creation and creativity come from the depths of “tohu va’vohu” (total chaos). The book suggests that one way to understand the force that is G’d is by understanding the divine principle of: “reverse entropy.” Genesis teaches us that G-d is able to take the chaos that is life and create order from it.

The book then ends with the same question that it began: Are we so satisfied with our lot that we are afraid to move forward? How do we take the chaos out of our lives and turn that chaos into creative order? What do you do?

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Hanukkah Party Sunday

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IMG_4964Friday night services this week at 7:00 p.m

Shabbat morning services at 9 a.m. this Saturday December 8. Torah service at 9:45 a.m. and children’s story time/theatre with Morah Shereen at 10:30 a.m. Delish kidish lunch at 12 noon courtesy of Bob Halperin and his famous cholent!

Sunday school class December 9 at 10 a.m.

The Hanukkah party of the year! December 9,
THIS SUNDAY @ 5 p.m.
Be there or be square!

Cantor Ben-Moshe’s Weekly Message:

This Shabbat has a triple reading from the Torah-it is Parshath Mikketz, Rosh Hodesh Teveth, and Shabbat Hanukkah. Mikketz always falls during Hanukkah-perhaps a coincidence, but there is a link between the two. In our parshah, Yoseph is brought out of the dungeon and before Pharaoh. He emerges from darkness into light. Similarly, this week we light our hanukkioth to bring light into this darkest time of year-and indeed, the sun is once again starting to set later. There may be darkness in our lives, but light always returns. And even in the darkness, as God was with Yoseph in the dungeon, God is with us. Even in the Valley of Death’s Shadow, God’s presence never leaves. May our homes and our lives be filled with light. Shabbat Shalom, Hodesh Tov, and Hag Urim Sameah, a joyous Festival of Lights.

Hazzan Yitzhak Ben-Moshe

Shabbat candle lighting times are at 5:12 p.m.
We want to encourage our community to seek support in each other during this time of grief and pain. In particular, synagogues around the country are encouraging their congregants to make a special effort to attend services this week, in an act of solidarity and strength. Congregation Beth El will be having Friday night services this week at 7:00 pm and we hope you can join us.
This week’s parshah, Vayyeshev, picks up the story of the sons of Ya’akov/Yisrael, in particular Yoseph and Yehudah. We know the story of Yoseph of course-the boy with the “technicolor dreamcoat” who is sold into slavery in Egypt. But this parshah is also the story of Yehudah, one of his brothers who sold him into slavery (or not-the text of the Torah is somewhat unclear). Why these two brothers, out of the twelve? Obviously, Yoseph would save his entire family (and the nation of Egypt) from starvation. However, it is perhaps more significant from the Torah’s point of view that these two would be the ancestors of the two dominant tribes of Israel-Ephraim and Yehudah. Indeed, Yehudah would eventually be the ancestor of King David, and of the Messiah. The story of these two brothers would become the story of our People. Shabbat Shalom.This week’s parshah, Vayyeshev, picks up the story of the sons of Ya’akov/Yisrael, in particular Yoseph and Yehudah. We know the story of Yoseph of course-the boy with the “technicolor dreamcoat” who is sold into slavery in Egypt. But this parshah is also the story of Yehudah, one of his brothers who sold him into slavery (or not-the text of the Torah is somewhat unclear). Why these two brothers, out of the twelve? Obviously, Yoseph would save his entire family (and the nation of Egypt) from starvation. However, it is perhaps more significant from the Torah’s point of view that these two would be the ancestors of the two dominant tribes of Israel-Ephraim and Yehudah. Indeed, Yehudah would eventually be the ancestor of King David, and of the Messiah. The story of these two brothers would become the story of our People. Shabbat Shalom.

THIS SUNDAY – Finally: the Hanukkah bash of the year.

Sunday December 9th at 5 p.m. at Beth El. Live music from KLEZ AUSTIN, latkes, food, our famous Israeli sufganiot, more live music, fun and games for the whole family, plus the candles burnin’ on our menorahs. We can’t wait for the fun to begin. Free and open to the community. See you there.

NEXT SISTERHOOD EVENT:

DECEMBER SISTERHOOD EVENT: December 16 at 1 pm – Burekas with ANAT Inbar @ CBE! Don’t miss one of Anat’s famous cooking classes! Essentials Oils mini class in addition. Two for one! You can’t miss this fun afternoon!
The Author of Our Lives – Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks

It was Joseph’s first real attempt to take his fate into his own hands, and it failed. Or so it seemed.
Consider the story so far, as set out in last week’s parsha. Almost everything that happens in Joseph’s life falls into two categories. The first are the things done to him. His father loves him more than his other sons. He gives him a richly embroidered cloak.

His brothers are envious and hate him. His father sends him to see how the brothers are faring, attending the flocks far away. He fails to find them and has to rely on a stranger to point him in the right direction. The brothers plot to kill him, and sell him as a slave. He is brought to Egypt. He is acquired as a slave by Potiphar. Potiphar’s wife finds him attractive, attempts to seduce him, and having failed, falsely accuses him of rape, as a result of which he is imprisoned.
This is extraordinary. Joseph is the centre of attention whenever, as it were, he is onstage, and yet he is, time and again, the done-to rather than the doer, an object of other people’s actions rather than the subject of his own.
The second category is more remarkable still. Joseph does do things. He runs Potiphar’s household. He organises a prison. He interprets the steward’s and baker’s dreams. But, in a unique sequence of descriptions, the Torah explicitly attributes his actions and their success to God.

Here is Joseph in Potiphar’s house:

God was with Joseph, and He made him very successful. Soon he was working in his master’s own house. His master realised that God was with [Joseph], and that God granted success to everything he did. (39:2-3).
As soon as [his master] had placed him in charge of his household and possessions, God blessed the Egyptian because of Joseph. God’s blessing was in all [the Egyptian] had, both in the house and the field. (39:5)

Here is Joseph in prison:

God was with Joseph, and He showed him kindness, making him find favour with the warden of the dungeon. Soon, the warden had placed all the prisoners in the dungeon under Joseph’s charge. [Joseph] took care of everything that had to be done. The warden did not have to look after anything that was under [Joseph’s] care. God was with [Joseph], and God granted him success in everything he did. (39:21-23).
And here is Joseph interpreting dreams:
‘Interpretations are God’s business,’ replied Joseph. ‘If you want to, tell me about [your dreams].’ (40:8)

Of no other figure in Tanakh is this said so clearly, consistently and repeatedly. Joseph seems decisive, organised and successful and so he appeared to others. But, says the Torah, it was not him but God who was responsible both for what he did and for its success. Even when he resists the advances of Potiphar’s wife, he makes it explicit that it is God who makes what she wants morally impossible: “How could I do such a great wrong? It would be a sin before God!”(39:9)
The only act clearly attributed to him occurs at the very start of the story, when he brings a “bad report” about his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah the handmaids. (39:2) This apart, every twist and turn of his constantly changing fate is the result of someone else’s act, either that of another human or of God (as for Joseph’s dreams – were they a Divine intimation or a product of his own imagination? – that is another story for another time).

That is why we sit up and take notice when, at the end of the previous parsha, Joseph takes destiny into his own hands. Having told the chief steward that in three days he would be pardoned by Pharaoh and restored to his former position, and having no doubt at all that this would happen, he asks him to plead his cause with Pharaoh and secure his freedom: “When things go well for you, just remember that I was with you. Do me a favour and say something about me to Pharaoh. Perhaps you will be able to get me out of this place.” (40:14)

What happens? “The chief steward did not remember Joseph. He forgot about him.” (40:23) The doubling of the verb is powerful. He did not remember. He forgot. The one time Joseph tries to be the author of his own story, he fails. The failure is decisive.
Tradition added one final touch to the drama. It ended the parsha of Vayeshev with those words, leaving us at the point that his hopes are dashed. Will he rise to greatness? Will his dreams come true? The question “What happens next?” is intense, and we have to wait a week to know.

Time passes and with the utmost improbability (Pharaoh too has dreams, and none of his magicians or wise men can interpret them – itself odd, since dream interpretation was a specialty of the ancient Egyptians), we learn the answer. “Two full years passed.” Those, the words with which our parsha begins, are the key phrase. What Joseph sought to happen, happened. He did leave the prison. He was set free. But not until two full years had passed.

Between the attempt and the outcome, something intervened. That is the significance of the lapse of time. Joseph planned his release, and he was released, but not because he planned it. His own attempt ended in failure. The steward forgot all about him. But God did not forget about him. God, not Joseph, brought about the sequence of events – specifically Pharaoh’s dreams – that led to his release.
What we want to happen, happens, but not always when we expect, or in the way we expect, or merely because we wanted it to happen. God is the co-author of the script of our life, and sometimes – as here – He reminds us of this by making us wait and taking us by surprise.

That is the paradox of the human condition as understood by Judaism. On the one hand we are free. No religion has so emphatically insisted on human freedom and responsibility. Adam and Eve were free not to sin. Cain was free not to kill Abel. We make excuses for our failures – it wasn’t me; it was someone else’s fault; I couldn’t help it. But these are just that: excuses. It isn’t so. We are free and we do bear responsibility.

Yet, as Hamlet said: “There’s a divinity that shapes our ends/ Rough-hew them how we will.” God is intimately involved in our life. Looking back in middle- or old age, we can often discern, dimly through the mist of the past, that a story was taking shape, a destiny slowly emerging, guided in part by events beyond our control. We could not have foreseen that this accident, that illness, this failure, that seemingly chance encounter, years ago, would have led us in this direction. Yet now in retrospect it can seem as if we were a chess piece moved by an invisible hand that knew exactly where it wanted us to be.

It was this view, according to Josephus, that distinguished the Pharisees (the architects of what we call rabbinic Judaism) from the Sadducees and the Essenes. The Sadducees denied fate. They said God does not intervene in our lives. The Essenes attributed all to fate. They believed that everything we do has been predestined by God. The Pharisees believed in both fate and free will. “It was God’s good pleasure that there should be a fusion [of divine providence and human choice] and that the will of man with his virtue and vice should be admitted to the council-chamber of fate” (Antiquities, xviii, 1, 3).

Nowhere is this clearer than in the life of Joseph as told in Bereishit, and nowhere more so than in the sequence of events told at the end of last week’s parsha and the beginning of this. Without Joseph’s acts – his interpretation of the steward’s dream and his plea for freedom – he would not have left prison. But without divine intervention in the form of Pharaoh’s dreams, it would also not have happened.
This is the paradoxical interplay of fate and freewill. As Rabbi Akiva said: “All is foreseen yet freedom of choice is given” (Avot 3:15). Isaac Bashevis Singer put it wittily: “We have to believe in free will: we have no choice.” We and God are co-authors of the human story. Without our efforts we can achieve nothing. But without God’s help we can achieve nothing either. Judaism found a simple way of resolving the paradox. For the bad we do, we take responsibility. For the good we achieve, we thank God. Joseph is our mentor. When he is forced to act harshly he weeps. But when he tells his brothers of his success he attributes it to God. That is how we too should live.

Parashat Vayeshev

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Hanukkah Party 1Friday night services this week at 7:00 p.m

Sunday school class December 2! We can’t wait to see our BERS. Lots of Hanukkah fun and learning! Rachael is coming to play Hanukkah songs with the children, and we will be making Hanukkiot!

Cantor Ben-Moshe’s Weekly Message:
This week’s parshah, Vayyeshev, picks up the story of the sons of Ya’akov/Yisrael, in particular Yoseph and Yehudah. We know the story of Yoseph of course-the boy with the “technicolor dreamcoat” who is sold into slavery in Egypt. But this parshah is also the story of Yehudah, one of his brothers who sold him into slavery (or not-the text of the Torah is somewhat unclear). Why these two brothers, out of the twelve? Obviously, Yoseph would save his entire family (and the nation of Egypt) from starvation. However, it is perhaps more significant from the Torah’s point of view that these two would be the ancestors of the two dominant tribes of Israel-Ephraim and Yehudah. Indeed, Yehudah would eventually be the ancestor of King David, and of the Messiah. The story of these two brothers would become the story of our People. Shabbat Shalom.
Hazzan Yitzhak Ben-Moshe

Shabbat candle lighting times are at 5:12 p.m.
We want to encourage our community to seek support in each other during this time of grief and pain. In particular, synagogues around the country are encouraging their congregants to make a special effort to attend services this week, in an act of solidarity and strength. Congregation Beth El will be having Friday night services this week at 7:00 pm and we hope you can join us.
This week’s parshah, Vayyeshev, picks up the story of the sons of Ya’akov/Yisrael, in particular Yoseph and Yehudah. We know the story of Yoseph of course-the boy with the “technicolor dreamcoat” who is sold into slavery in Egypt. But this parshah is also the story of Yehudah, one of his brothers who sold him into slavery (or not-the text of the Torah is somewhat unclear). Why these two brothers, out of the twelve? Obviously, Yoseph would save his entire family (and the nation of Egypt) from starvation. However, it is perhaps more significant from the Torah’s point of view that these two would be the ancestors of the two dominant tribes of Israel-Ephraim and Yehudah. Indeed, Yehudah would eventually be the ancestor of King David, and of the Messiah. The story of these two brothers would become the story of our People. Shabbat Shalom.
This week’s parshah, Vayyeshev, picks up the story of the sons of Ya’akov/Yisrael, in particular Yoseph and Yehudah. We know the story of Yoseph of course-the boy with the “technicolor dreamcoat” who is sold into slavery in Egypt. But this parshah is also the story of Yehudah, one of his brothers who sold him into slavery (or not-the text of the Torah is somewhat unclear). Why these two brothers, out of the twelve? Obviously, Yoseph would save his entire family (and the nation of Egypt) from starvation. However, it is perhaps more significant from the Torah’s point of view that these two would be the ancestors of the two dominant tribes of Israel-Ephraim and Yehudah. Indeed, Yehudah would eventually be the ancestor of King David, and of the Messiah. The story of these two brothers would become the story of our People. Shabbat Shalom.

SAVE THE DATE: the Hanukkah bash of the year. We’ve been waiting patiently all year. And finally…… ONLY ONE WEEK AWAY
Sunday December 9th at 5 p.m. at Beth El. Live music from KLEZ AUSTIN, latkes, food, our famous Israeli sufganiot, more live music, fun and games for the whole family, plus the candles burnin’ on our menorahs. We can’t wait for the fun to begin. Free and open to the community. See you there.

NEXT SISTERHOOD EVENT:

DECEMBER SISTERHOOD EVENT: December 16 at 1 pm – Burekas with ANAT Inbar @ CBE! Don’t miss one of Anat’s famous cooking classes! Essentials Oils mini class in addition. Two for one! You can’t miss this fun afternoon!

Family Reunions and Beyond – My Jewish Learning.

Isn’t Jacob’s peace with Esau as important as Joseph’s reconciliation with his brothers? BY HANAN SCHLESINGER

The Book of Genesis is nothing if not a story of dysfunctional families.
Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Hagar, Sarah and Abraham, Isaac and Rebecca, Leah and Rachel: again and again we read of strife and acrimony, miscommunication, jealousy, even fratricide.
We shall focus here on two of these unfortunate cases.
1.Esau and Jacob are locked in struggle literally from before birth. The climax of their tragic relationship is when, at his mother’s urging, Jacob deceives his blind father and steals the blessing intended for his sibling Esau. Esau vows to kill his brother.
2. Jacob favors one son over all the other 12. Spoiled Josephhas illusions of grandeur that he cannot keep to himself. His brothers come to hate him; they ultimately try to kill him. Leaving Joseph for dead, they lie through their teeth as they present to their father “evidence” that a wild animal has devoured him.
This is not however the whole story. These two conflicts end up turning out very differently from the way they began.
As the Book of Genesis nears its end, Jacob and his sons are reunited with Joseph and we see Joseph’s brothers expressing true remorse. He forgives them. Peace and harmony are restored. We learn that our forefathers were not perfect. Their greatness lies in their ability to recognize their sins, to repent and to make amends. Like all of us they are broken, but they know — and they teach us — how to put the pieces back together again.
Earlier, in Parashat Vayishlach, Jacob and Esau are reunited after two decades. Forgetting his past enmity towards his sibling, Esau runs towards his brother Jacob, falls upon his neck, embraces and kisses him, and they both weep tears of joy. Jacob offers lavish presents to his brother, explaining that they represent the blessing that he had stolen from his brother and that he is now returning. He asks to be accepted in forgiveness. A beautiful verse reveals Jacob’s inner thoughts as he says to himself, “If I request atonement with this gift, perhaps he will forgive me.” And indeed Esau accepts both the gift and his brother’s penitence.
Our ancient interpretive tradition (known as Midrash ) lauds the reconciliation and unity of Joseph and his brothers, yet it by and large ignores and even denies the wrong done by Jacob to Esau and the repentance and reconciliation that transpire in the relationship between these two brothers. Why?
The answer is clear: Joseph and his brothers is a story of “all in the family,” while Jacob and Esau is a tale of us and them. Joseph and his brothers make up the tribes of Israel. Unity is our desideratum. But while Jacob is our patriarch, Esau is by all accounts outside of the Jewish covenant, a different family and ultimately a different nation. He is the father of the Edomites, but he is not our father.
Furthermore, in later Jewish thought Esau represents the Roman Empire and Christendom and by extension, the whole non-Jewish world. These associations were created at times of conflict and cruel persecution, of anti-Semitism. They were founded on a forced, adversarial reading of the text that was suggested by reality as experienced by our forefathers.
Until this very day many of us still refuse to let go. Too many traditional Jews — and I am talking primarily about religious Jews in Israel where I live — won’t let go of their enmity towards Esau and won’t let the relationship between Jews and gentiles move towards understanding and reconciliation.
There is something in our collective Jewish psychology that is preventing the healing of past wounds. As a nation we have been traumatized. Almost 2,000 years of anti-Semitism have left their mark on us. Our wounds are still raw and painful. We say at the Passover seder that “in every generation they come to destroy us,” and we yet cannot find it in ourselves to accept that today this is not necessarily always the case.
We unconsciously read our fears back into the Bible, which then ends up confirming them. We refuse to let ourselves see reality change, and we certainly will not take proactive steps to change reality, because we believe the text says it cannot and will not change. As hard as it may be to admit, we suffer from a culture of victimhood that prevents us from understanding the other as he really is today and from taking responsibility to improve our situation.
Vicious cycles are not vicious for nothing. It is extremely difficult to break out of them. What is needed is a two-pronged approach of opening our eyes to see a different reality, and at the same time opening our foundational texts and rereading them to see the inspiring reconciliation of erstwhile enemies that they depict.
Reality can change; perception can change. And so can the meaning of the text. And a change in perception and a change in interpretation will help encourage us to make practical changes that will shape a better future for the Jewish people and for all those who come in contact with us.