Hello and welcome back to Torah Thoughts from Adas Israel the Jewish Congregation of Northern Iowa which is based in Mason City. I hope you had a wonderful and meaningful Chanukah. A reminder that services will be this Friday the 10th at 7:00PM and our Midrash will take place on Shabbat (Saturday) the 11th at 10:00AM at the shul.
This week we read Parsha Vayigash - Genesis 44:18 - 47:27 (Vayigash is Hebrew for "he approached".) "Then Judah approached him (Joseph) and said..." What Judah, the brother that sold Joseph into slavery, does not know is that he is about to speak to his...brother. It's an amazing story as Judah makes the plea that he, rather than young Benjamin, should stay in Egypt as a captive slave, while the others go back to Canaan and bring their father Jacob to Egypt.
It is quite the speech and then something dramatic happens.
Everyone Out
The Torah has spent the past two readings leading up to this moment when Joseph revels himself to his brothers. But, before he does so he commands that all the Egyptians leave the room. Why?
There is a well-known tradition in Judaism that there are four levels of existence in the physical world: 1) inanimate objects (e.g. rocks) 2) living objects (e.g. plant life) 3) things that live and breathe and move about (e.g. wildlife) 4) animate objects that have the power of speech – mankind.
Speech is such a powerful ability that only humans have. With that power comes great responsibility. It is said that the very first act of evil was when the snake "spoke" to Eve and convinced her to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. In our world the use of speech to spread a false story is called "gossip". It's interesting that even that word sounds a bit like a snake hissing.
Loshon Hora
According to the Talmud (Arachin 15b) gossip is considered a more severe transgression than the three “cardinal sins” of Judaism: 1) murder 2) idol worship 3) illicit sexual relations. Loshon Hora is Hebrew for the "evil tongue" and is absolutely insidious, and yet the almost uncontrollable desire to repeat it is universal. In fact, the Talmud laments that nearly everyone one is guilty of some form of gossip.
Why is gossip so evil? Because it is so often untrue and the person who is the object of the loshon hora is unable to defend him/her self because often it is something not actually said to...them. And so it can circle around in public without being confronted. Loshon hora then is much different than a public lie known as motzi shem ra or slander. Why? Because the outright lie can be struck down when made in public...or so it would seem. Our nation has been going through the "Big Lie" for months and even though it is false there are still some who believe.
Back to Joseph
In this week’s Torah portion, we find the climactic confrontation between Joseph and his brother Judah. This dramatic scene is the conclusion of a story line that spans three Torah portions and describes the somewhat uneasy reunion of Joseph and his brothers, and later, an emotional reunion with his father who thought him dead for twenty-two years.
But before the big revel Joseph does something interesting: Joseph could not endure the presence of all those that stood before him and he commanded; “Remove everyone from before me!” Therefore there was no one with him when Joseph revealed himself to his brothers (45:1).
Why does he do this? The great commentator Rashi suggests that that Joseph could not bear the thought of all the people who were normally in a king’s presence being present when he revealed himself to his brothers because they would be mortally embarrassed by their shame (for having sold him into slavery). He therefore ordered them all out of the room prior to revealing himself to his brothers.
But There Is A...But
Meanwhile, the 16th century sage known by his acronym – Maharal, in his commentary on Rashi, is bothered by Rashi’s assessment that Joseph was concerned about their potential embarrassment once he revealed himself to them. Maharal seems to conclude that Rashi is wrong and he suggests an alternative reason for their embarrassment, and why Joseph asked all the Egyptians to leave. He notes that in last week’s Torah reading we find that Benjamin was accused of stealing Joseph’s “magic” goblet. Maharal therefore concludes that their embarrassment was rooted in the accusation that they were common thieves. It is for this reason, he explains, that they were embarrassed and that Joseph ordered all the Egyptians out of the room.
The Answer Is...
As Rabbi Zweig writes: "Rashi didn’t agree with Maharal’s assessment of what happened with Joseph and his brothers. Being accused of stealing the goblet, while terribly unpleasant and outrageous, wouldn’t lead to embarrassment. After all, they knew they didn’t steal it and that it was a false accusation.
However, being faced with their treachery of selling Joseph into slavery, which would clearly become public information when Joseph revealed himself, would lead to an incredible humiliation for their past misdeeds and this shame would be particularly magnified if anyone else were present. That’s why Joseph ordered everyone out before he revealed himself to his brothers."
This also gives some insight into Joseph’s remarkable character: he ignores the fact that he was so incredibly wronged by his brothers and could have called them out, but Joseph wasn’t interested in teaching them a lesson – all he wanted was reconciliation.
The Reunion
Of course the brothers are shocked. They suspect Joseph’s intentions, but accept his offer to bring the extended family to Egypt. Jacob is initially numb and disbelieving of the news, but becomes very excited to see his son.
The Torah recounts the 70 members of Jacob’s family who went down to Egypt. Jacob reunites with Joseph, meets Pharaoh and settles with the family in the Goshen district. During the famine, Joseph buys up all of the property and people in Egypt for Pharaoh with the grain stored during the seven good years.
Shul News
It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Sharon Kropman who died this past week in Mason City. Sharon, the sister of David and Elliott, had been in ill health for some time. An accomplished nurse, Sharon had removed herself from many public gatherings but when I would visit with her she continued to be upbeat. Funeral arrangements are in process.
A reminder that services will be at the shul starting at 7:00PM on Friday and our Midrash on Shabbat starting at 10:00AM.
Thank you for reading and Shabbat Shalom.
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