Parshat Vayeshev-Chanukah
This week's Torah portion opens with the story of Yosef and his brothers. Yosef was his father's favorite and was resented for it. The Torah tells us how Yosef had two dreams and shared it with his brothers. The first dream takes place as they are in the field gathering wheat. Yosef's sheaf of wheat stands up, and all the other sheaf's bow to it. The second dream was how the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed to him. Suffice it to say, that these dreams didn't bring him more love or admiration from his brothers. While Yosef ultimately did have everyone bow to him as a ruler, the road getting there was fraught with many challenges.
Looking closely at this story we see something extraordinary. While Yosef was sharing his dreams of grandeur, not only did his brothers not validate or seriously entertain his thoughts, but they actually hated him for it. Later on in the story, when they leave Yosef to die in a pit filled with snakes and scorpions (before selling him into slavery), the Torah tells us (Bereishit 37:24-25) "Then they took him, and cast him into the pit; the pit was empty, no water in it. They sat to eat food"!
What is so shocking is not only do they do this terrible crime of leaving their brother to die, they actually have no problem sitting down for lunch! Did they have no moral conscious? No guilt for what they had done?! Most of us get queasy from the sight of blood, let alone leaving someone to die.
The Seforno (Italy 1475-1550) explains that this verse shows us that they felt they were doing the right thing. They knew through prophecy that Yehudah would be king, they therefore viewed Yosef as a usurper of power and kingship. They therefore viewed him as the bad apple in the family. Just as Abraham had Yishmael, and Yitzchak had Esav, now Yakov had Yosef and he needed to be expunged from the family. They were sure they were doing the right thing. While their actions were wrong and cruel, we need to appreciate their absolute conviction in what they were doing.
During the times of the Chanukah story (165 BCE), the Jews that fought for liberation and religious freedom, aka the Maccabees, were in the minority. The majority of Jews had assimilated or were silent bystanders to the terrible things happening. It was a few "radicals" that challenged the status quo, and fought back. These "religious zealots" were absolute in their conviction and dedication. They were appreciated by Hashem, and He performed miracles for them.
Feelings are important and our convictions are a very powerful thing. Sometimes, we are on the money, doing the right thing. Other times, our convictions may be simply wrong, no matter how righteous we think we are. But not having dedication and strong convictions is even worse. We must raise our children with strong moral convictions, a sense of right and wrong, and absolute dedication to what they believe. While they may be sometimes off the mark, they will have the courage to reevaluate and readjust.
The story of Chanukah teaches us that we must do everything in our power to do the right thing, even if we can't possibly imagine success, and Hashem will take care of the rest. Our Parshah teaches us that even when our convictions may be off mark, when our hearts are in the right place, with time and guidance, we will come to reevaluate them and find the correct path, as Yosef's brothers eventually did.
Shabbat Shalom & Chanukah Sameach!
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