Friday, December 20, 2019

Parsha Vayeishev Part 1, Video, Story and news


Please add Leah bas Sara to your prayer list.





Parsha Vayeishev Part 1





Yacov went through Lavan and Esav. Finally, at the age of 108, Yacov is resting and reviewing Torah with his son, Yosef as the other 10 sons take to running the family business. They are studying the laws from Devarim and Egel Arufa (the calf who has its neck broken when a dead person is found near a town). But an incident in our Chapter will make Yacov depressed that the Shechina leaves him and G-D does not appear in our Parsha unto Yacov but he is busy making Moshiach ben David and Moshiach ben Yosef.





37:1 And Jacob dwelt in the land of his father's sojournings, in the land of Canaan.



Rabbi Mimran Shlita opened up a private conversation with me about last week’s and this week’s Parsha. If you recall last week the following: 5 And he commanded them, saying: 'Thus shall ye say unto my lord Esau: Thus says thy servant Jacob: I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed until now.

Sojourned in the text “Garti גַּ֔רְתִּי” which is the Gematria for 613. Rashi comments about this saying “I observed the 613 commandments”. This would include Shabbos, Kashrus, Teruma, Ma’aser, Shmita, etc. but he had to have been exempt from not marrying two sisters in the lifetime of the other.

The Baal HaTurim states that Yacov was worried about Esav because of two Mitzvos. For Yacov desired to perform them but Chutz L’ Aretz could not perform them properly. 1) To live in Eretz Yisrael and 2) Honoring his parents. Now despite all the Aluf this and that of the end of the Parsha, Yacov was not afraid of vengeance from Esav or family as he was now complete with the Mitzvos. For now, he was living near Yitzchak in Eretz Canaan.



2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren, being still a lad even with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives; and Joseph brought evil report of them unto their father.



What was so special about Yosef that when we learning about his generations that we only learn about Yosef? Yosef was only 17 so obviously he was too young at the time. The answer can only be that he was the first born of Rachel and for her he and Benyamin were the special sons.





3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a coat of many colors.



The Medrash says not to give priority to any child. However, there seems to be one child in every family who takes on the role of “black sheep” of the family. Sometimes, in larger families it can be two.



4 And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.



Jealousy and hatred or ungrounded suspicion have gotten people killed. In the case of Yosef, he would escape death but Yacov would think him dead for 22 years. Horrible and tragic our Parsha.



5 And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brethren; and they hated him yet the more. 6 And he said unto them: 'Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: 7 for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves came round about, and bowed down to my sheaf.' 8 And his brethren said to him: 'Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us?' And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. 9 And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said: 'Behold, I have dreamed yet a dream: and, behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me.' 10 And he told it to his father, and to his brethren; and his father rebuked him, and said unto him: 'What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down to thee to the earth?'



The 17year old teen did not know when to be quiet and keep his pride to himself. Had he only told his father, his brothers would not have hated him so.



11 And his brethren envied him; but his father kept the saying in mind.



Yacov thought it would be wonderful if my son rose to such heights but he should have kept the dream between father and son.



12 And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem. 13 And Israel said unto Joseph: 'Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them.' And he said to him: 'Here am I.'



Even though he knew that his brothers hated him, like Avraham before the Akeda, both said ‘Here am i.’



Shimon wanted to kill him but Reuven and Yehuda save him but Yehuda makes the wrong decision to sell him but is willing at the risk of losing his life to pay for his mistake and that shows standing up to one’s mistake and not passing on the blame. …



36 And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, the captain of the guard.



The Torah breaks off the narrative with Yosef while Potiphar breaks in his new slave and we see what goes on with Yehuda.



38:1 And it came to pass at that time, that Judah went down from his brethren, and turned in to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2 And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua; and he took her, and went in unto her. 3 And she conceived, and bore a son; and he called his name Er. 4 And she conceived again, and bore a son; and she called his name Onan. 5 And she yet again bore a son, and called his name Shelah; and he was at Chezib, when she bore him. 6 And Judah took a wife for Er his first-born, and her name was Tamar.



After dealing with Lavan and family, Yacov realized that he would have to have his sons marry somebody from Shem or Ever. Yehuda marries one of the few monotheist women and has three sons from her.



7 And Er, Judah's first-born, was wicked in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD slew him.



Tamar was one of the most beautiful women of her time. I don’t know what Er or the fashion of the time considered beauty. The Medrash suggests that Er does things to prevent her from getting pregnant and I conclude this is essentially preventing Moshiach.



8 And Judah said unto Onan: 'Go in unto thy brother's wife, and perform the duty of a husband's brother unto her, and raise up seed to thy brother.'



Onan does not want to do Yebum and essentially spills his seed outside of Tamar so that she does not become pregnant and he too dies. This time the Torah states it is not the same wickedness of his brother but the fact that he feels that the children will be called by his brother and not him.



9 And Onan knew that the seed would not be his; and it came to pass when he went in unto his brother's wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest he should give seed to his brother. 10 And the thing which he did was evil in the sight of the LORD; and He slew him also.



The two boys were lacking something in their education and they did things that was evil and wicked. This was hidden from Yehuda and he feared for Shelah.



11 Then said Judah to Tamar his daughter-in-law: 'Remain a widow in thy father's house, till Shelah my son be grown up'; for he said: 'Lest he also die, like his brethren.' And Tamar went and dwelt in her father's house.



Yehuda is scared that Shelah will die like his brothers at the hand or body of this vivacious looking woman. (Actually, she was dressed very modestly like a Bedouin woman dresses not like a woman in shorts and body armor but she must have had the figure that was visible enough to Er and maybe Yehuda.) But if she does not marry Er and she is supposed to be an ancestor of Moshiach who will sire a son with her?



Although this Parsha ends with us wondering about Yosef. I have over-worked myself this week. Next week is pure vacation and a more quality relaxed continuation with the help of HASHEM. …





Hidden Miracles and unknown merits. This week three men were supposed to be taking a morning bicycle ride. One got a flat and told his two friends to go ahead. These men were in their forties responsible drivers by the side of the road. A fellow with a special propulsion system in his car drove under the influence of long term and immediate use of cannabis. The two men as safety conscious as they were could not stop their fate. The question is what merits or deeds did the third man have that he got the flat that day?


Now what does this have to do with Yosef and Hanucha? It is obvious that the man did not think himself different from his companions but he was. Yosef thought himself or dreamed himself different from his brothers but they though him not different. In both cases HASHEM was working behind the scenes.



On Hanucha the Maccabees did everything for the sake of heaven. Like Yosef did not expect a reward. It was only after they had won the war and were purifying the Temple did the evidence of the miracle of the oil show that HASHEM was at their side all the time.





Video of Hanucha in Bergen Belsen




Yud Tet Kislev from Father to Son by Yerachmiel Tilles



Rabbi Moshe, the youngest son of the Alter Rebbe of Chabad, Rabbi Shneur Zalman, was born in Liozna, in 5544/1784. He was exceptionally intelligent, and during the lifetime of his father would repeat verbatim all the explanations of Torah that he had heard from his lips.

The Alter Rebbe was especially fond of Rabbi Moshe. He was fond of saying that, through a rare act of divine grace, his mental capacities had been increased tenfold over those of his great-grandfather, Rabbi Moshe, after whom he was named. This apart, his memory was a cemented cistern from which no detail escaped.[1]

The sixth Rebbe, R. Yosef-Yitzchak [Shneursohn], writes:



"My grandmother[2] passed on to me a vast amount of information concerning Rabbi Moshe, the son of the Alter Rebbe, which she in turn had received from [her father-in-law, the third Rebbe, known as] the Tzemach Tzedek…concerning events when the Governor of Mogilev presented R. Dov-Ber[3] and Rabbi Moshe to Czar Alexander the First, when the latter visited Babinovitch, in the vicinity of Lubavitch. Then, much to Rabbi Moshe's chagrin, he did not show them the respect that was their due.

What happened was that the Governor presented various nobles to the Czar first, and only then did he present the sons of the Alter Rebbe. Rabbi Moshe took his grievance directly to the Governor, aided by his fluency in a number of languages.

The Archbishop of Smolensk happened to be present at the time and, considering his behavior to be effrontery, lashed out both at Rabbi Moshe and the Torah. Rabbi Moshe made a stinging retort and there ensued a heated debate on religion, culminating in the decision to arrange a disputation-to be held in MarCheshvan 5576/1815.

The disputation took place in the church of Yartsava, near Smolensk, in the presence of the bishops of Smolensk and Niezhin, and lasted an entire month. Rabbi Moshe emerged triumphant. Chagrined at their defeat, the ecclesiastical authorities decided to confine him in one of the churches in Kiev or Vladimir, in the interior of Russia.

On the fourth day, he was already en route to Vladimir, escorted by two clergymen and a detachment of armed soldiers. As they spent the night in the vicinity of Moscow, a deep sleep fell upon the party. Seeing his chance, Rabbi Moshe took flight.

G-d gave him strength he did not normally possess and, impervious to the cold and the massive snowdrifts, Rabbi Moshe forged on until he came to Aryal. There he took refuge with Rabbi Moshe Leib Jacobson, who hid him in his house for several days. Then he set out for Wolhinia.

Rabbi Moshe's escape took place on the night of the 19th of Kislev, 5576/1815 [exactly 27 years after his father's miraculous liberation]. Some time later his family left for Eretz Yisrael and he went into exile from 5576/1815 to Sivan 5638/1878."

Rabbi Moshe passed away [at age 94] in Radomislya, near Kiev, in 5638/1878, and is buried there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Footnotes:
1.See Pirkei Avot 2:9
2.Rebbetzin Rivka, wife of the fourth Rebbe, R. Shmuel Shneursohn.
3.Rabbi Moshe's eldest brother, who eventually succeeded his father to become the second Rebbe.

Source: Adapted and supplemented by Yerachmiel Tilles from "Days in Chabad" (Compiled by Rabbi Yosef Y. Kaminetzky; translated by Yosef Cohen; based on Sefer Hatoldot Admor Hazaken, p. 1191).

Biographical note:
Rabbi Moshe Shneuri [of blessed memory [5544-5638 (1784-1878)] was the youngest son of the Alter Rebbe of Chabad.He was known to be exceptionally brilliant with an astounding memory. Also fluent in several languages, at the young age of 16 he was his father's translator for some of the interrogations during his second arrest in 1800. He lived the last decades of life in self-imposed exile, after having his sent his family to live in the Land of Israel. He passed away at age 94 near Kiev.

Appendix: Divine Providence:
(1) Note from the administrative assistant, Sima-Devorah Siev, who graciously typed the text for me:
Reb Moshe is my alter-Zeide (great-great-plus grandfather). When I read this I wondered if this incident hadn't happened and his family moved to Hebron, if I would be here at all, let alone living in Israel!

(2) Editor's note:
When I first moved to Israel and Tsfat in 1978, there were three religious elderly brothers - alas, all never married -- living together. They were direct descendants of Rabbi Moshe.



From Barbara and I say May HASHEM be with you. Star Wars Hanucha. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRGlpowJQeM

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Lieberman charges that Blue & White has a deal with the Charedim after the election. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ryYc00oNAr

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Man dies while sitting Shiva for infant son. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/By5eolERH



School teacher nearly dies but students do CPR. Second story same day. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273288

Book in English on Rav Edelstein soon. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273297

If you live long enough it could happen to you too. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273357

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IDF Magazine closes down after 85 years. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273428




Inyanay Diyoma




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Ed-Op Netanyahu’s autumn has passed. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ByA6u3kCr

It was prior to Putin’s time but in the past when called upon, Israel has shot down Russian or Soviet Aircraft. Russian Bombers patrolling Iran. https://www.debka.com/russian-bombers-now-transit-irans-airspace-to-syria-rejoinder-for-us-israeli-air-force-cooperation/

Refugees a continuing hoax. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ryFSCc70S


Israel sells to Montenegro weapons. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ByO77CNAH

Brits to pass an anti-BDS Bill. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/SJj00fp40S


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Austria foils an Xmas Market attack. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273263

Dr. Sherman on Dysfunctional electorate. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/24876



3 Jews attacked by 11 men Indiana U. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ryRqxcm0H

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BDE Geula Cohen. I stood with her with umbrellas on the Sinai accord with Egypt. She was a woman of principle. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273365



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Ukraine reinstates antisemitic diplomat. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273372

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FOR MEASURE: Sometimes HASHEM punishes quickly but the receiver is too dense to see the relationship. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273401

Cyprus arrests 3 workers for Israeli firm. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/SJWCJ8tCS

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Jewish woman dies of Skilla (stoning)! Why did she merit an “accidental” Beis Din punishment? http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273427

Hamas member to be denationalized from US Citizenship. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/273389


Good Shabbos and happy Hanucha all,

Rachamim Pauli
Posted by Rabbi Rachamim Pauli at 12:21 PM