Vayigash: Coming Close
Dear Friend,
Just a few days ago we had prepared a lovely, positive note about the connection of Chanukah, the 10th of Tevet and the weekly Torah portion, and how they all reflect our nation’s incredible ability to bounce back after the worst horrors. It felt just right as Chanukah, the joyous festival of lights, was reaching its eight-candle climax.
Then a madman took 26 lives and shattered countless others. Words about strength and resilience rang hollow.
In our magazine, there are a number of thoughtful responses to the massacre. We have Aviva Deren’s heartfelt thoughts penned as she drove back home from the high school where she was asked to meet with bereaved families, Sarah Esther Crispe’s reflections on talking about the shooting with her child (and herself), and Yvette Miller’s personal list of lessons she took from the tragedy.
Together, let us pray for the day when “death will forever be swallowed up, and G‑d will wipe away the tears from every face.”
Menachem Posner,
on behalf of the Chabad.org Editorial Team
Joseph had suffered horribly. No one would have been surprised had these assaults on his person and spirit left him with a twisted personality, determined to take his every revenge on a cruel world . . .
Exile is a crucible; the challenges and difficulties of thriving in a hostile world provide the optimal setting for personal and national growth. However, if we become comfortable in our exile and feel that we are in a “home away from home,” we become vulnerable . . .
Joseph reveals his identity to his brothers, who are overcome with remorse. They return to Canaan and bring their father, Jacob, to be reunited with his son after 22 years. Joseph becomes wealthy, and Pharaoh gives his family the fertile land of Goshen as their own.
We were asked to help because as bereaved parents ourselves, several times over, perhaps we had something more to offer . . .
We just saw what two minutes of utter terror could do. We cannot underestimate what two minutes of goodness will do...
how could I respond to such tragedy? After some serious soul-searching, here are some concrete ways I thought about . . .
President’s remarks are called stirring and heartfelt
Pharaoh meets Jacob and asks him how old he is. What is the meaning of his question?
The events of King David’s later years, starting with the famous story of his relationship with Bathsheba. We also learn of the rebellion of his son Absalom. The class ends with the anointing of David’s 12-year-old son Solomon as his successor.
Your home is defined by its contents. Aside from those who live there, the most significant items are the Torah books lining the shelves and scattered about.
The Tenth of Teves commemorates the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of Jerusalem, the first stage in the sequence of events which led to the destruction of the city.
When the librarian told me that I could take out as many books as I wanted, I was thrilled. Every couple of weeks my mother would bring me to the library, and I would lose myself in its quiet, cozy aisles.
“You are the most despicable, disgraceful and rude person! I think you need to change your attitude, and I wish you luck!” she yelled, and slammed down the phone.
Driving away, the image of the candlesticks for sale on that dining room table stayed in my mind. Why am I still thinking about them? I wondered. Soon I felt more clarity: I had completely missed an opportunity!
The rebbe’s grandson became gravely ill. Everyone in the extended family was praying for him. Nevertheless, his condition grew worse from day to day.
“Thieves came upon us in the night, took a silver flask, and left us a golden one . . .”
If Tevye’s Judaism is anything to go by, don’t you think it’s time for an updated version?
The Chanukah Lights remind us that illumination begins at home,
within oneself and one's family. Only then is one able to illuminate the world.
The last night of Chanukah. The last chance to listen to the flames, until next year… (Esther Rosen)
More than 1,700 years in advance, the author of the Zohar predicted a revolution of science and technology around the year 1840. There he describes the fountains of wisdom bursting forth from the ground and flooding the earth—all in preparation for an era when the world shall be filled with wisdom and knowledge of the One...
