VAYECHI - THE ROOT OF SIN

VAYECHI - THE ROOT OF SIN By Yehonasan Gefen “Reuven, you are my first-born, my strength and my initial vigor, foremost in rank and foremost in power. Water-like impetuosity - you cannot be foremost, because you mounted your father’s bed; then you desecrated Him who ascended my couch. ” Sefer Bereishis ends with Yaakov Avinu’s blessings to his sons, however some of these ‘blessings’ consist of harsh rebuke. This is the case with Yaakov’s first-born, Reuven - Yaakov reproves him for his mida of impetuosity that led to his disturbing Yaakov’s bed . The commentaries explain that as the eldest son, Reuven should have received the special privileges of the Kingship, Priesthood and the double portion of the first-born. However, because of his impulsive behavior Yaakov stripped him of all three privileges. Reuven’s severe punishment seems difficult to understand; Chazal greatly praise Reuven for doing teshuva for his aveiro . Indeed, Rashi in Parshas Vayeishev notes that Reuven was not present during the actual seeling of Yosef because he was in isolation wearing sackcloth and fasting for disturbing his father’s bed - this was several years after the incident took place and Reuven was continually repenting for what he had done. Given Reuven’s sincere teshuva, why did Yaakov not accept that he regretted what he had done and that the effects of the sin were wiped away ?! It seems that the key to answering this question is a Rambam in Hilchos Teshuva. After discussing in great depth how one must repent for his aveiros, the Rambam adds that there is another essential aspect of teshuva. He writes: “And do not say that there is only teshuva for sins that have an action such as immorality, stealing, and theft. Just as one must repent from these, so too he must search for his bad character traits and repent from them; from anger, from hatred, from jealousy… And these sins are harder than those that have an action to them, because when a person is engulfed in them it is hard for him to refrain [from them]. ” We learn from this Rambam that in addition to repenting for one’s destructive actions, one has to do teshuva for his negative middos (character trait). Moreover, he points out that it is more difficult to repent from bad middos than bad actions. The Vilna Gaon points out that every sin comes about as a result of a bad midda , thus when a person sins, he simultaneously displays a bad character trait. Accordingly, every sin requires two levels of teshuva - one for the action, and one for the midda that was at the root of the sin. It seems that Reuven had effectively repented for the maaseh aveiro (the action of the sin) however he was unable to completely erase the negative character trait that caused him to sin. This answer is supported by Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz’ explanation of Yaakov’s rebuke of Reuven. Based on Rashi’s commentary he points out that Yaakov was specifically criticizing on the midda of rashness that caused Reuven to disturb Yaakov’s bed rather than the sin itself. It was this rashness that rendered Reuven unfit for the Kingship and Priesthood . Rav Shmuelevitz gives a further example of a great person repenting for his actual sin but not the midda embodied by the action: Shaul HaMelech lost the Kingship because he failed to observe Hashem’s command to wipe out all of Amalek. Shmuel HaNavi criticized him for being influenced by the people’s entreaties to have mercy on Amalek - it showed that he possessed a misplaced humility which meant that he was not strong enough to follow his own convictions. However, after Shmuel’s lengthy rebuke of Shaul, the King did admit his mistake and repent. Why, then was he stripped of his Kingship? Rav Shmuelevitz explains that he only did teshuva for his actual sin, but he did not eradicate the midda of misplaced humility from his character. This midda prevented him from being an effective King. The examples of Reuven and Shaul are highly relevant to our lives. It is highly praiseworthy for a person to genuinely strive to repent from his aveiros, nonetheless if he does not locate the midda that lies at the source of these aveiros then he will be unable to prevent himself from stumbling in the future. The rebuke of Reuven teaches us further that failure to improve one’s middos has another very serious consequence for his spiritual success. Reuven was destined for greatness - he was supposed to represent the Kingship and Priesthood in Klal Yisroel, however his midda of impetuosity prevented him from fulfilling his true potential in these areas. We learn from here that negative middos do not only cause us to sin, but they prevent us from attaining greatness. Undertaking the difficult task of fixing one’s character traits requires much thought and discussion but the first phase for each person is to gain a recognition of which midda is holding him back. There may be more than one negative trait that harms him, but very often there is one ikar midda which is at the root of much of his negative behavior and is the key factor that holds him back from fulfilling his true potential. Possible ways to help locate and understand this destructive midda include speaking with one’s Rabbi or friends and learning Mussar Sefarim that discuss the various middos. Once a person develops a deeper understanding of himself he can now begin the daunting task of genuinely improving himself. m gg Elul is normally the time when discussion of teshuva and tikun hamiddos is most prevalent, however if one only works on himself for one month a year then he will never truly improve himself. The only way of avoiding sin and removing the obstacles that hold one back is to constantly work on improving himself in a genuine, deep way. May we all merit to be truly better people.

SURPASSING OUR POTENTIAL - VAYECHI

In Parshas Vayechi, Yaakov Avinu elevates his two grandsons, Ephraim and Menashe, to the status of Shevatim (tribes). In the course of the process he bestowed on them a blessing that has become the standard blessing by which we bless our sons to this very day. “So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you shall Israel bless, saying; ‘May G-d make you like Ephraim and like Menashe.” The commentaries ask, why did Yaakov instruct the Jewish people to bless our sons to be like Ephraim and Menashe more than anyone else. This question is strengthened by the fact that we bless our daughters to be like the Imahos (Matriarchs). That being the case, it would seem most logical to bless our sons to be like the Avos (Patriarchs). One of the answers given is that Ephraim and Menashe achieved more than their potential; up to this point, only the sons of Yaakov Avinu merited to be considered among the twelve Tribes. Ephraim and Menashe were not sons of Yaakov, and therefore were not destined to be one of the Tribes. However, because of their greatness , Yaakov elevated them to the status of Shevatim. In this way, they achieved the incredible accomplishment of reaching beyond their potential. Accordingly, we bless our children to emulate Ephraim and Menashe, in that we aspire for them to reach beyond their potential. The Targum Yonasan writes that Yaakov was saying that one should bless their son to be like Ephraim and Menashe, at the bris mila in particular. It seems that this interpretation fits with the idea that we want our son to emulate Ephraim and Menashe in the area of becoming great. We see this in the prayer that we say at the bris; ‘may this kattan become a gadol’. This doesn’t mean that we want this small boy to grow up into a large man. Rather, ‘gadlus’ in this context refers to spiritual greatness. We bless our child to become truly great, as did Ephraim and Menashe. This idea teaches a person that he should aspire to surpass his own potential, but it also educates a parent as to his aspirations for his children. He should not suffice in bringing up his child to be an ‘ordinary’ Jew, rather he should aim to facilitate that his child become ‘great’. Moreover, it is insufficient that a parent merely ‘want’ that his child become great, rather he should try to actively facilitate his child’s path to greatness in how he raises him. Rav Yaakov Kamentsky zt”l expresses this idea based on a lesson in Parshas Shemos. When Moshe Rabbeinu as a baby was picked out of the water by Basya, the daughter of Pharaoh, she tried to have the Egyptian women nurse him, but he refused to drink their milk. Rashi explains that this was because, in the future, Moshe “would speak with the shechina”. Rashi’s explanation has an application in Jewish law. The Rema states that one should not feed a baby with milk from a non-Jewish woman, if possible. The Vilna Gaon comments that the source of the Rema is the fact that Moshe Rabbeinu would not drink from the milk of the Egyptian women. Rav Kamenetsky asks how we can apply Moshe’s case to that of every child. In the case of Moshe, the reason why he wouldn’t drink from their milk was because he would, in the future speak with the Divine Presence, however, that reason is inapplicable to everyone else. He answers, that we learn from here that we must bring up our children as if they could possibly reach the level where they will speak to the Divine Presence. Accordingly, we must raise them in such a way that is congruent with them becoming great people. Rav Kamenetsky applies this explanation to how careful we should be to bring up our children in the most holy and pure fashion, free from negative influences. This is a most pertinent lesson in today’s environment. A parent may feel that there is little harm in exposing his child to all types of modern technology that infiltrates into every part of daily living. However, such exposure can very easily involve his child being exposed to influences and visions that are not conducive to a person achieving spiritual greatness. Thus, even if they don’t spiritually destroy a child (which they often do), then they will surely hinder him from achieving his true potential, and certainly from overtaking his potential as did Ephraim and Menashe. We learn from Yaakov’s blessing to his grandsons, that every parent should aspire for his children to reach and even surpass their potential. This aspiration should manifest itself in actions as well as attitude. May we all merit to surpass our own potential and bring up children to exceed all our expectations.

VAYIGASH – REUNIONS

VAYIGASH – REUNIONS By Yehonasan Gefen Parshas Vayigash is characterized by a number of dramatic reunions between Yosef and his family. It is instructive to analyze the actions and attitudes of the great people who were involved in these emotional occasions. The most powerful of all the reunions was clearly that of Yosef with his father Yaakov. Yaakov surely felt indescribable joy at seeing his beloved son after twenty two years of separation, having believed that Yosef was no longer alive. What did Yaakov do when he finally saw Yosef? Rashi tells us that he said the Shema. Some commentaries understand that he was fulfilling one of the two daily obligatory recitations of the Shema; they discuss why he chose this point to fulfill his obligation of Shema. However, the Maharal writes that Yaakov was not fulfilling the daily obligation of Shema. Rather he was saying Shema as an expression of his great connection to HaShem at this joyous time. Instead of focusing purely on the joy of seeing his son, he tried to direct all his happiness to love of HaShem. He chose Shema in particular, because this represents an acknowledgement of how everything HaShem does is ultimately for the good. Moreover, it involves kabbalas ol Malchus Shamayim, which means that as a result of one’s recognition of HaShem one totally subjugates himself to HaShem’s will. The most striking fact about Yaakov’s actions is that, even on an occasion of such great natural emotion, he strove to connect all his natural joy to HaShem and emphasize his subjugation to HaShem. The Torah writes further that Yosef acted very differently in this same reunion. The Torah states: “Yosef harnessed his chariot and went up to meet his father, to Goshen; and he appeared to him, fell on his neck, and he wept on him excessively.” Rashi explains the clause, “and he appeared to him,” to mean that Yosef appeared to Yaakov. The Ramban asks, that these words seem superfluous – once we know that Yosef fell on Yaakov’s neck it is obvious that Yosef appeared to his father. Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt”l explains the significance of the fact that Yosef appeared to Yaakov: He notes that it is evident that Yosef himself felt great joy at the prospect of being reunited with his beloved father after so many years. However, Yosef approached this reunion with only one intent – to provide his father with as much joy as possible in being reunited with his son. Therefore, Yosef made a conscious effort to ‘appear’ or ‘make himself seen’ by his father when they met . He disregarded his own desire to see his father at that moment of reunion, and his single goal was to provide his father with as much joy as possible . We see from this explanation that Yosef had a very different intent from his father in this joyful reunion. Yaakov focused purely on his connection with HaShem at this time, whereas Yosef concentrated on the Mitzvo of kibud av v’eim (honoring one’s parents) to the greatest degree possible. The common denominator between the two was that the intent of both was purely to do what they perceived to be HaShem’s will at this time. This shows a tremendous level of constant awareness of HaShem, and a permanent desire to do his will, even at the height of one’s own natural emotions. We learn similar lessons in this vein from the earlier reunion in the Parsha between Yosef and Binyomin. The Torah tells us: “Then he [Yosef] fell upon his brother, Binyomin’s neck and wept; and Binyomin wept upon his neck.” Chazal tell us that the two brothers saw through ruach hakodesh future calamaties that would take place in their portions of land in Eretz Yisroel: Yosef cried over the destruction of the two Temples that would be in Binyomin’s portion whilst Binyomin mourned the destruction of the Mishkan of Shiloh that would be in Yosef’s portion. Maran Harav Aharon Yehuda Leib Shteinman shlita, discusses why they had such a vision at this time in particular. He explains that their thoughts and emotions were constantly directed to spirituality. Thus, despite the great emotion they felt at this time, their concerns were only spiritual. Had they only been focusing on their personal feelings, they would not have merited to receive ruach hakodesh. The fact that they did receive it at this time, demonstrates their lofty thoughts even at the heights of this powerful reunion. This is another example of how tzaddikim approach moments of great joy. There is a further lesson in how the two brothers reacted to their sad vision. It is noteworthy that they did not cry over the future destructions that would take place in their own portions, rather over the loss in the other brother’s portion. This shows, that, even in the midst of receiving ruach hakodesh, the brothers maintained a very high level of selflessness and sensitivity for others. We have seen the great righteousness of Yaakov, Yosef and Binyomin, in how they conducted themselves at the height of their emotions. This demonstrates their constant sense of connecting to HaShem and doing His will. Whilst their level seems unattainable for us, there are a number of ways in which we can strive to emulate them in our daily lives. Indeed, halacha (Jewish law) dictates that even at times of great joy, we direct our happiness to HaShem. For example, on the occasion of the birth of a child we say the bracha (blessing) of shehechiyanu or hatov vehametiv. Likewise, we say one of these blessings when we acquire a new item that gives us great joy. We can also emulate the heightened sense of bein adam lechaveiro that Yosef and Binyomin demonstrated at their reunion. Even at a time of great joy, they thought about other people more than themselves. A common example where this can be emulated is when a person is celebrating some kind of happy occasion. At such a time, one can easily become totally absorbed in his own joy and not notice other people. Yet this is an apt time to make the guests and well-wishers feel good by showing them that we are really happy to see them. This gives them a sense of importance and being appreciated. May we all merit to emulate the great personalities in the Torah, by serving HaShem even at times of great emotion.

ויגש – יוסף בתפקיד המשנה יהונתן גפן

בס"ד ויגש – יוסף בתפקיד המשנה יהונתן גפן בתחילתה של הפרשה מתוודע יוסף לאחיו; הוא אומר להם שאל להם לחוש אשמה על מעשיהם, באשר משמים רצו שכך ישתלשלו המאורעות, ובדרך פלאית זו יגיעו בסופו של דבר האחים אל יוסף למצרים. וכך אומר להם: "וישלחני אלוקים לפניכם לשום לכם שארית בארץ ולהחיות לכם לפליטה גדלה" , תפקידו של יוסף היה להבטיח את קיומם הפיזי של בני ישראל במשך השנים בהם היו במצרים. מהמשך הפרשה ניתן ללמוד על אחריותו של יהודה להבטיח את קיומם הרוחני של בני ישראל במצרים; יהודה הקדים להגיע למצרים לפני אחיו על מנת שיוכל לפתוח במקום ישיבות ובתי הוראה . חלוקה זו של תפקידים בין יהודה ליוסף מהווה יסוד החוזר על עצמו שוב ושוב לאורך ההיסטוריה היהודית; יוסף אחראי ליישר לפני אחיו את הדרך מבחינה גשמית, ויהודה אשר בידו המלכות לעתיד לבוא, מוביל את כלל ישראל מבחינה רוחנית. מערכת יחסים זו באה לידי ביטוי ברור מאד בתפקידיהם של משיח בן יוסף ומשיח בן דוד. משיח בן יוסף יילחם וישמיד את כל אויבינו, ובכך יכין את הקרקע לקראת בואו של משיח בן דוד אשר יבנה את בית המקדש השלישי. מאפיין חשוב בתפקידו של יוסף הוא העובדה שבמהותו הוא משני – הוא מסייע ביד יהודה לממש את תפקידו כמלך. אכן, אם נעמיק מעט בתקופת היותו של יוסף במצריים, נוכל לראות שיוסף לאורך כל הזמן היה בעל תפקיד משני: בתחילה הופקד על ביתו של פוטיפר - והיה שני לפוטיפר; לאחר מכן בבית האסורים הגיע למעמד דומה, והיה משנה לסוהר. ובסופו של דבר הפך להיות המשנה למלך מצרים – שני לפרעה. דגם זה מציין את תפקידו של יוסף כמשנה – כטפל ומסייע ביד בעל התפקיד העיקרי. רוב בני האדם יתקשו להיות מרוצים מסוג זה של תפקיד – נשיאת כליו של אדם אחר הינו תפקיד המציב בפני מידותיו של האדם משימה כלל לא פשוטה. חלק עיקרי בגדלותו של יוסף הוא נכונותו לקבל בשמחה את תפקידו כמשנה. שניים מצאצאיו הידועים ביותר של יוסף נתקלו במשימה דומה בה קיבלו תפקיד משני, והם הגיבו כל אחד בדרך הפוכה לגמרי מהשני: יעקב אבינו מרמז בדבריו בפרשת ויחי לשני צאצאים אלה: הוא מציין את גדלותו של אפריים בזכות האדם הגדול שעתיד לצאת ממנו – יהושע בן נון. אולם הוא גם רואה בנבואתו שאחד המלכים הרשעים ביותר שהיו בעם ישראל – ירבעם בן נבט עתיד לצאת מיוסף. לשני אישים אלה ניתנה ההזדמנות ללכת בדרך אותה התווה יוסף הצדיק, אולם רק אחד מהם הצליח והשני נכשל כישלון מוחץ. מדוע בחרו בדרכים שונות כל כך? יהושע בן נון ידוע כתלמידו המובהק של משה רבנו. ישנן דוגמאות רבות ביותר המוכיחות את כניעתו והתבטלותו של יהושע בפני רבו. התורה מכנה את יהושע "משרת משה" , וחז"ל מסבירים שהוא היה מביא מגבת לבית המרחץ בעבורו, וקם מוקדם מידי בוקר על מנת להביא לו את מנת המן הגדולה ביותר. בלימוד התורה הוא הקדיש את כל כולו להבין את רבו ולהלך בעקבותיו, עד כדי כך שמובא בתלמוד ירושלמי שגם כאשר היה מקרה בו לא שמע יהושע ממשה, מסקנותיו של יהושע התאימו במדויק למה שנאמר למשה מסיני . יהושע היה מרוצה לגמרי מתפקידו כנושא כליו של משה רבנו, הוא לא חש שזה ממעיט במשהו מערכו או ממעמדו, אלא להיפך – תפקידו רומם אותו לפסגות רוחניות גבוהות ביותר. המדרש אכן אומר, שזכות כניעתו והתבטלותו הגמורה של יהושע בפני משה היא זו שעמדה לו וזיכתה אותו בתפקיד הנהגת כלל ישראל: " אמר לו הקב"ה [למשה] ... יהושע הרבה שרתך והרבה חלק לך כבוד והוא היה משכים ומעריב בבית הועד שלך הוא היה מסדר את הספסלים והוא פורס את המחצלאות הואיל והוא שרתך בכל כחו כדאי הוא שישמש את ישראל" יהושע קיבל בשמחה את תפקידו כמשנה, וכתוצאה מכך זכה להגיע בסופו של דבר להנהיג את ישראל. השני מצאצאיו של יוסף אליו רמז יעקב בפרשת ויחי הינו ירבעם בן נבט, גם לידיו הגיעה הזדמנות ללכת בעקבות יוסף ולקבל מעמד של משנה, אולם הוא, נכשל בניסיון זה. מדברי הנביא ניתן לראות שבתחילת דרכו הוא היה צדיק גדול ותלמיד חכם . הקב"ה החליט שמלכות ישראל תתפצל לשניים כעונש למלכות בית דוד, אחיה הנביא נשלח להעניק לירבעם את מלכות עשרת השבטים – רוב רובם של כלל ישראל. אחיה אף הבטיח לירבעם שאם ילך בדרך התורה הקב"ה יצליח מאד את דרכו. אחיה אמנם ציין גם את העובדה שהמלכות הניתנת לו הינה רק כתוצאה מחטאי מלכות בית דוד, ובסופו של דבר תשוב המלכות לצאצאיו של דוד המלך. תפקידו של ירבעם היה להיות מנהיג – אולם באופן זמני, מטרתו הייתה להיות מקל החובלים של מלכות בית דוד. לו היה מקבל תפקיד זה בצורה נכונה, הוא היה יכול בעקבות יוסף ויהושע להטביע את חותמו בהיסטוריה היהודית כאחד המנהיגים, וכאחד מהצדיקים הגדולים בעם ישראל. אולם, ירבעם לא אבה לקבל מעמד כזה, מעמד משני, מעמד של מסייע ביד העיקר. הוא רצה להיות מלך בזכות עצמו, ולא הסכים להכניע את עצמו ואת מלכותו כלפי מישהו. הוא היה מודאג מהעובדה שכאשר יקיימו היהודים מצות "הקהל" בבית המקדש, רק למלך יהודה תינתן הרשות לשבת, והוא יאלץ לעמוד. כאשר יראה זאת הקהל, הוא עלול למרוד נגדו ולחזור למלכות יהודה. על מנת למנוע איום זה על כוחו ועל מלכותו הוא הציב שני עגלי זהב – אחד בדן והשני בבית א-ל, ואסר על העם ללכת לבית המקדש. מעשה זה גרם לשבטים אשר תחת מלכות ישראל להיגרר לחטא העבודה זרה, בה חטאו במשך שנים רבות לאחר מכן, ושמו של ירבעם ידוע כמחטיא הרבים מאין כמוהו. גם לאחר שירבעם בעצמו החל לחטוא, העניק לו הקב"ה הזדמנות אחרונה לחזור בתשובה. הגמרא מספרת שהקב"ה תפס את ירבעם בבגדו ואמר לו: "חזור בך, ואני ואתה ובן ישי נטייל בגן עדן" לשמע הצעה גדולה זו לכפר על עצמו ועל חטאיו החמורים, שאל ירבעם: "מי בראש", הקב"ה ענה: ,"בן ישי בראש", מששמע זאת ירבעם סירב לעשות תשובה . ירבעם לא היה מסוגל לקבל מצב בו הוא בתפקיד משני, ולפניו יש מישהו חשוב יותר, למרות שהובטח לו שכר עצום בגן עדן. גאוותו ויהירותו הרסו את נשמתו, הוא רצה להגיע לעמדה של כוח, למלכות אמיתית, אולם חלף זאת סופו היה שהוא אחד המלכים שאין להם חלק לעולם הבא . יוסף הצדיק קיבל במצרים תפקיד גדול מבורא עולם – להיות המסייע, להכשיר את הקרקע למען תפקידו של יהודה. הוא קיבל את תפקידו בשמחה וכך הגיע לגדלות אמיתית. כמוהו יהושע, מימש את הפוטנציאל הגלום בו על ידי נכונותו להתמסר כליל למשה רבנו ולהכניע את עצמו לפניו. ירבעם בן נבט לא נהג כך, ואיבד את ההזדמנות להגיע לגדולה. מונח כאן לימוד גדול; עלינו לשאוף לגדלות עד כמה שאפשר, אולם פעמים, ויד ההשגחה מראה לנו בבירור כי יעדים מסוימים אותם היינו רוצים להשיג – אינם מתאימים לנו ולא טובים בשבילנו. לדוגמא, אדם יכול להשקיע עמל רב בלימוד התורה, שעות על גבי שעות ללמוד עוד ועוד, ובכל זאת לא להגיע להוראה כפי ששאף - עלינו לדעת אל נכון שכל מה שאינו בתחום הבחירה של האדם – הינו תחת ההשגחה העליונה. אנו יכולים לשאוף ליותר ויותר, אולם אין שום תועלת בניסיון להילחם במה שקבע לנו הקב"ה. כל תפקיד בחיינו, הוא הדרך היחידה בה עלינו לעבור על מנת לממש את תכליתנו בעולם.

VAYIGASH: YOSEF - SECOND IN COMMAND

VAYIGASH: YOSEF - SECOND IN COMMAND By Yehonasan Gefen The parsha begins with Yosef revealing himself to his brothers; he informs them that they need not feel guilty for what they had done because Hashem was guiding the course of events that brought them to this incredible situation. “G-d has sent me ahead of you to insure your survival in the land and to sustain you for a great deliverance. “ Yosef’s role was to ensure the physical well-being of the Bnay Yisroel during their stay in Mitzrayim. Later in the parsha the Torah alludes that Yehuda was responsible for ensuring the spiritual well-being of the Bnay Yisroel in Mitzrayim, it was he who preceded his brothers in coming there so that he could set up yeshivas : This division of roles between Yosef and Yehuda established a pattern for Jewish history; Yosef is the facilitator by paving the way in gashmius and Yehuda is the ultimate Melech, leading Klal Yisroel in ruchnius. This relationship is most plainly borne out by the respective roles of Mashiach ben Yosef and Mashiach ben David. Mashiach ben Yosef will fight the wars, destroying our enemies and paving the way for Mashiach ben David to build the 3rd Beis HaMikdash. One important aspect of Yosef’s role is that it is essentially a secondary one - his job is to facilitate Yehuda’s position of Melech. Indeed, a brief analysis of Yosef’s time in Mitzrayim shows the Yosef was mesugal to a role of ’number two’: He first becomes the head of Potiphar’s household - second to Potiphar; then he rises to a similar position in prison, second to the prison warden. And finally he assumes the role of Viceroy in Mitzrayim, second to Pharaoh. This pattern indicates Yosef’s role as the number two, the facilitator. A person could easily find this role unsatisfactory - playing ’second fiddle’ to someone else could pose a considerable challenge to a person’s midos. A key aspect of Yosef’s greatness is his willingness to accept his role as the facilitator with joy. Two of Yosef’s most famous descendants were faced with a similar challenge to accept a secondary role but responded to it in drastically contrasting ways: In Parshas Vayechi, Yaakov alludes to these two people; he notes Ephraim’s greatness because of his future descendant, Yehoshua bin Nun. However, he also prophetically sees that one of the most evil Kings of Israel, Yeravam ben Navat, would emerge from Yosef. Both these men had the potential to follow Yosef’s example of being a prime facilitator but only one succeeded whilst the other failed dismally. Why did they take such divergent paths? Yehoshua is most famous for being the devoted talmid of Moshe Rabbeinu. There are numerous instances of Yehoshua showing his submission to his Rebbe. The Torah describes him as Moshe’s attendant , and Chazal explain that he would take towels to the bathhouse for him and would rise early every morning and select the largest of the manna and give it to Moshe . In Torah learning he dedicated himself to understanding and emulating his Rebbe to the extent that the Talmud Yerushalmi says that even in matters that he had not heard from Moshe, his own reasoning corresponded with what had been told to Moshe at Sinai . Yehoshua was completely content with his role as second to Moshe, he did not feel as though it belittled his own standing, rather it elevated him to incredible heights. Indeed the Medrash tells us that it was the merit of Yehoshua’s submission to Moshe that caused him to become the leader of Klal Yisroel: “Hashem told Moshe, Yehoshua constantly served you and accorded you much honor. He came early to your house of assembly to arrange the benches and spread the mats. Since he served you with all his might, he is worthy of serving Israel. ” Yehoshua happily accepted his role as ‘number two’ and consequently attained the ultimate position of leader of Klal Yisroel. Yosef’s other relative alluded to in Vayechi, Yeravam Ben Navat, also had the opportunity to emulate Yosef and accept a position of facilitator but failed dismally. In Tanach we see that he was initially a great tzaddik and talmid chochom . Hashem decided that the kingdom of Yisroel should be split into two as a punishment for Malchus Beis David, and he sent Achiya HaNavi to grant Yeravam the Northern Kingdom which would consist of the vast majority Klal Yisroel. Moreover Achiya promised him that if he would follow in the ways of the Torah then he would meet with great success. He did however point out that Yeravam’s kingship was only a result of the sins of Malchus Beis David and that ultimately it would return to the descendants of David HaMelech. Yeravam’s role was to be a leader but a temporary one, whose purpose was to be the instrument of punishment for Malchus Beis David. Had he accepted this role then he could have emulated Yosef and Yehoshua and been recorded as one of the great leaders and tzaddikim in Jewish history. Yeravam, however, was unwilling to accept the position of facilitator or ‘number two’. He desired to be the King in his own right and was not prepared to subjugate himself to anyone. He worried that when the nation would perform the mitzvo of Hakhel in the Beis Hamikdash only the Melech Yisroel would be allowed to sit down but he would have to stand up. When the people would see this they would rebel against him and return to the kingdom of Yehuda . In order to prevent this threat to his power he set up two golden calves in the North and banned anyone from going down to the Beis HaMikdash. Yeravam’s action was the catalyst for the constant Avoda Zara that plagued the Northen Kingdom and he is known as the ultimate machti es harabim . Even after he began to sin Hashem gave him one last opportunity to do teshuva. The Gemara says that Hashem grabbed Yeravam by his garment and said to him, “’Repent and I, you and the son of Yishi will stroll together in Gan Eden“ Given this incredible opportunity to redeem himself Yeravam asked, ‘Who will be at the head?’ Hashem answered that Ben Yishi would be at the head - when he heard this he refused to do teshuva . Yeravam could not accept being second to anyone, even though he was offered the greatest reward of Gan Eden. His arrogance was the cause of his destruction, he wanted power but instead he is one of the Kings that receives no Olam HaBa . Yosef Hatzadik was invested with the role of facilitator in Mitzrayim , preparing the way for Yehuda, he accepted his role with joy and was able to reach true greatness. Yehoshua, too, achieved his potential through his willingness to subjugate himself to Moshe Yeravam could not do so and lost his opportunity for distinction. This is a powerful lesson; we should all strive to be as great as possible., however there are times when hashgacha clearly tells us that certain attainments are not best for us. For example, a person may work hard in learning Torah and learn a great deal and yet not attain the teaching position that he would like - what we must realize is that anything beyond the realm of our bechira is in the category of hashgacha - we can strive to be greater but there is not toeles in fighting the hashgacha. Whatever role in life we attain, that is the position through which we can fulfill our potential..

INSIGHTS INTO RASHI: YOSEF’S REUNION WITH BINYAMIN - VAYIGASH

Bereishis, 45:14: “Then he fell upon his brother Binyamin’s neck and wept; and Binyamin wept upon his neck.” Rashi, 45:14: sv. Then he fell upon his brother Binyamin’s neck and wept: Over the two Temples that were destined to be in the portion of Binyamin, and whose end was to be destroyed. Upon the momentous reunion of Yosef with his brother Binyamin, Yosef sees through ruach hakodesh that in the future, the two Temples which will be located in Binyamin’s portion will be destroyed, and this brings him to tears. The obvious question is why Yosef received this vision at this point in particular? In order to answer this question it is necessary to delve more deeply into the saga of mechiras Yosef. It seems clear that there is an underlying connection between the whole episode and the future tragedies that would befall the Jewish people with regards to the destruction of the Temples. The Megaleh Amukos provides the first key to discerning this connection. He writes that all the exiles were caused by the sale of Yosef. In particular, it seems that the sinas chinam (baseless hatred) that was generated in this tragic story was the cause of all the future hatred that caused such damage to the Jewish people throughout history. It seems that Yosef understood the long-term significance of the damage caused by his sale, and this can help us understand his actions when the brothers came to Mitzrayim. The commentaries are very bothered as to why Yosef acted so harshly towards the brothers, thereby causing intense pain to the brothers and to his father, Yaakov Avinu. The Kli Yakar explains in great detail that everything Yosef did to them before revealing himself was carefully planned to bring them to recognize the gravity of their sin in selling him and to rectify it. He did this by inflicting on them, measure for measure, the suffering that they caused him twenty two years earlier. For example, he threw them into a prison to correspond to the fact that they threw him into a pit; and he kept Shimon as prisoner in Mitzrayim because he was the main instigator of the plot to harm him; most significantly he placed them in a situation as similar as possible to the one they were in so many years earlier; where the other son of Rachel stood to be lost – would they now rectify their earlier hatred of Yosef by willing to give up everything to save Binyamin? Indeed it is apparent from the Torah’s account that his goal was being fulfilled as we see that they increasingly recognized that the tribulations they were undergoing now were teaching them of the severity of their sin in selling Yosef, until the point where Yehuda showed how dedicated they were to saving Binyamin. Yet it is clear that he did not succeed in completing his goal of bringing them to complete teshuva; after Yehuda’s passionate plea for mercy, the Torah tells us that Yosef could no longer continue his pretense. The clear implication is that ideally he planned to continue even further. The reason for this is that he realized that he had not yet fully rectified the hatred and distrust sowed so many years earlier. And the ramifications of this failure were enormous – it meant as we said in the beginning, that the remaining remnants of hatred would emerge to plague the descendants of the Shevatim in future generation. We can now approach why Yosef cried at this point in particular about the destruction of the Temples. The second Temple is easier to understand. As is well known, the cause of its destruction was sinas chinam (baseless hatred); accordingly Yosef cried at this moment for its destruction because he now recognized that his failure to continue the rectification process, indirectly facilitated the sinas chinam that resulted in the Second Temple’s destruction. The connection between the first Temple and mechiras Yosef is a little more complicated. The basic explanation is that there was one particular event that began the sequence of events that culminated in the Temple’s destruction; this was the split of the two Kingdoms. This created a situation where the Northern Kingdom quickly deteriorated into idol worship which in the long-term filtered into the Southern Kingdom, culminating in the Temple’s destruction. The person who caused this split to take place in such a destructive way was Yeravam Ben Navat, a descendant of Yosef. This split was essentially an extension of the momentous clash in this week’s Parsha between Yehuda and Yosef. Had that clash been fully resolved then the future split could never have taken place with the disastrous ramifications that ended with the first Temple’s destruction. This was why Yosef was crying at this momentous occasion about events that would take place hundreds of years later. We have developed a deeper understanding of the long-term ramifications of mechiras Yosef – by learning from what transpired we can strive to continue the rectification process that Yosef nearly completed.

- YITZCHAK AVINU - TOLDOS

The Torah devotes three parshios to Avraham Avinu and Yaakov Avinu. In contrast, only parshas Toldos focuses on Yitzchak Avinu. And even in this parsha, there is only one story which involves Yitzchak and no other Av; the story of his time living in Gerar, the land of the Phlishtim. Yitchak is forced by a famine to move to Gerar where he says that his wife, Rivka, is his sister, like his father had done many years earlier. Then the Torah goes to considerable length describing how the Plishtim sealed wells that Avraham had dug, and how Yitzchak re-dug them. He endures considerable hostility from the native Plishtim and finally makes a treaty with their King, Avimelech. On superficial analysis it is very difficult to derive any significant lessons from this story, but in truth, it provides the key to understanding Yitzchak Avinu. The most striking aspect of Yitzchak’s actions is that they very closely followed those of his father. When there was a famine in Avraham’s time he headed for Mitzrayim; Yitzchak planned to do the same thing until Hashem told him not to leave Eretz Yisroel. Then he returned to the wells that his father had dug but were now sealed and he dug them again, and called them the same names that his father had called them . Rabbeinu Bachya statest that from Yitzchak’s actions here, we derive the concept of mesoras avos, following in the traditions of our fathers for all future generations of the Jewish people. Yitzchak did not want to veer one inch from the path trodden by his father. Rav Mattisyahu Salomon Shlita explains Yitzchak’s role among the Avos: Avraham was the trailblazer; he set the precedents and established the guideposts. Yitzchak’s avoda was to consolidate everything that his father had done, to follow precisely in his father’s footsteps and thereby establish for all future generations the primacy of mesora. Yitzchak’s life work was not to seek new ways and new paths but to follow faithfully on the path trodden by his father. Therefore, when a famine comes to the land, he immediately thinks of going to Mitzrayim because his father did so. And when he comes to Gerar he digs the same wells and gives them the same names that Avraham had given them . However, there is another key aspect to Yizchak Avinu that seems to contradict the idea that he followed his father in every way: Chazal tell us that they possessed very different personalities; Avraham epitomizes midos hachesed, overflowing with kindness to everyone. Yitzchak, in contrast, is characterized by midos hadin and gevura. Indeed, a great part of his greatness is the fact that he was not a mere clone of his father; this is illustrated by Chazal’s explanation of why Yitzchak’s tefillas for children were answered before those of Rivka. The Gemara, quoted by Rashi, tells us that there is no comparison between the tefillos of a tzaddik ben tzaddik to those of a tzaddik ben rasha . This is very difficult to understand, a person who overcomes their negative upbringing to become righteous seems to be deserve greater merit than one who is born into a righteous family. The answer is that a tzadik ben tzadik faces an even more difficult challenge - not to become a carbon copy of his father. Avraham was the greatest role model a person could have, and it would have been natural for Yitzchak to try to emulate his father’s every action. However, Yitzchak did not content himself with that; he forged his own path toward Avodas Hashem. We have seen that on the one hand, Yitzchak represents the mesora, not deviating from the path that his father had set. And, on the other hand, he possessed a totally different character to his father! How can we resolve these two aspects of Yitzchak? In reality there is clearly no contradiction here; All Jews are born into a line of tradition that goes back to Avraham Avinu; we are obligated to faithfully adhere to the instructions and attitudes that we receive from this line of mesora. A person cannot mechadesh his own set of values or hanhagos; there is a mesora that guides him how to live his life. But, at the same time, this does not mean that each person in the chain of mesora is identical in every way - there are many ways in which a person can express himself in the fulfillment of the mesora. The Chofetz Chaim zt”l asks why the Torah emphasizes that the Etz HaHcahim was davke in the middle (‘besoch’) of Gan Eden. He answers that there is one central point of truth but that there are numerous points surrounding it, each one standing at an equal distant from the centre. So too, there are many different approaches to Judaism that emphasize different areas and different character traits. However, as long as they remain within the boundaries of the mesora, then they are all of equal validity . There was one Yeshiva in particular that stressed the idea that each person should not be forced into one specific mold - Slobodka. The Alter of Slobodka placed great stress on the uniqueness of each individual. He was very weary of employing highly charismatic teachers in his yeshiva for fear that they would overwhelm their students with their sheer force of personality . Rav Yerucham Levovitz zt”l, the great Mashgiach of the Mirrer Yeshiva, once visited the Alter. On the first day of his visit, the Alter reproved him so vehemently that the whole Yeshiva could hear the shouts from closed doors. This reproof continued day after day for nearly a week. What had upset the Alter? He felt that Reb Yerucham was so charismatic that he was turning the Mirrer bochrim into his ‘Cossacks’ - each one in Reb Yerucham’s image - rather than allowing each to develop their own unique expression . Reb Yaakov adopted a similar approach in the area of hashkafa - he felt that if a person had a tendency towards a certain valid stream of Torah then he should not be prevented from looking into it even if it contrasted the traditional outlook adopted by his family. A family close to Reb Yaakov was shocked when the youngest of their seven sons informed them that he wanted to be a Skverer Chassid. They went together with the boy to Reb Yaakov expecting him to convince their son that boys from proper German-Jewish families do not become Chassidim. To their surprise, Reb Yaakov spent his time assuring them that it was not a reflection on them that their son wanted to follow a different path of Avodas Hashem. Obviously, their son had certain emotional needs which, he felt, could be filled by becoming a chassid and they should honor those feelings. Reb Yaakov even recommended a step more radical than even the parents were willing to consider - sending the boy to a Skverer Yeshiva ! The idea that there are many different valid ways for an observant Jews to express himself is relevant to many areas of our lives, including development of character traits, limud haTorah and hashkafa: There is a tendency in many societies for certain character traits to gain more praise than others. For example, being outgoing and confident is often seen as very positive, whilst being shy and retiring is often viewed in a negative light. An extroverted parent who has a more introverted child may be inclined to see his child’s quiet nature as a character flaw and try to pressure him to change his ways. However, the likelihood is that this will only succeed in making him feel inadequate. It is the parent’s avoda to accept that his child may be different from him, accept him for who he is and work with his strengths. Similarly a child may find it difficult to sit for long periods of time and focus on learning. If a parent or teacher places too great a pressure on the child to learn constantly, then it is likely that when he grows up he will rebel . Even within the curriculum of learning a person may feel unsatisfied if he only learns Gemara all day long. Many people enjoy exploring other areas of Torah such as Navi, hashkafa and mussar. It may be advisable (with Rabbinic guidance) to encourage one’s children or talmidim with such leanings to learn these areas instead of making them feel inadequate for not learning Gemara to the exclusion of everything else . And as we have seen from the story with Reb Yaakov, there is no need to be afraid if one’s child or talmid chooses to express his Yiddishkeit in a different way from his parents. It should be noted that whilst chinch habanim is the area most effected by this message, it also applies greatly to our own Avodas Hashem. We too may experience feelings of inadequacy in some area of our lives because we do not ‘fit in’ with the consensus of the society that we live in. However, sometimes, we may be able to find more satisfaction in our Avodas Hashem, midos or learning, if we allow ourselves to express our strengths. Of course this should be done with guidance and strict adherence to the mesora. How important is it that a person be encouraged to express his individuality in Torah? We said earlier that the Yeshiva that most stressed this idea was Slobodka. If one were to look at the products of all the great Yeshivas he will see that Slobodka produced a great number of Gedolim . And what is striking about these great people is how different they were from each other. By stressing the uniqueness of each individual the Alter was able to bring the best out of each of his talmidim. If we can emulate him then we have a far greater chance of giving ourselves, our children and our students happier and more successful lives.