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ויפל על צוארי בנימין אחיו ויבך ובנימין בכה על צואריו

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Vayigash

Then he fell upon his brother Binyamin’s neck and wept; and Binyamin wept upon his neck. (45:14)

Rashi explains that Yosef wept over the two Batei Mikdash, situated in Binyamin’s portion of Ertez Yisrael, which would be destroyed. Binyamin wept over the Mishkan Shiloh, which was in Yosef’s portion, that would be destroyed. The question is glaring: Did they have no other time to weep over these churbanos, destructions?  There is a time for everything: a time for dance; ‘a time for eulogy; a time for weeping’, and a time for joy. This was the moment for which they had both longed. It should have been filled with heightened joy-not weeping. HoRav Mordechai Pogremonsky, zl, cites the…

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Home -> Vayigash -> 5785

ואת יהודה שלח לפניו אל יוסף להורת לפניו גשנה

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Vayigash

He sent Yehudah ahead of him to Yosef, to prepare ahead of him in Goshen (46:28)

Yaakov Avinu sent Yehudah ahead of the family to make the proper arrangements for their transition to Egypt. Yehudah was the definitive leader of the brothers, having proven himself in his confrontation with the Egyptian “viceroy.” Rashi quotes Chazal, who delve into the word l’horos, to teach, that Yehudah was actually destined to establish a yeshivah, so that when they arrived they could immediately continue their Torah study. It also shows the Patriarch’s profound insight into Jewish values. Without Torah as the foundation and lodestar for navigating life, the journey is untenable. The Torah is our inspiration and guide, especially…

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Home -> Vayigash -> 5785

ויעל לקראת ישראל אביו.....וירא אליו

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Vayigash

And he (Yosef) went up to meet his father…..He appeared before him. (46:29)

Yaakov Avinu could not wait to see his long-lost son, Yosef. Yosef had left home a boy, and now he was viceroy over the people of Egypt. He went from challenge to travail and emerged as righteous as when he left home. The image of his father had kept him holy. Now, after all this time, after all the tzaros, troubles, that Yosef had endured, he was finally going to embrace his father. This would be the script as presented by a secular author, a playwright who seeks to capture the drama of this face-to-face interaction between father and son….

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Home -> Mikeitz -> 5785

ויהי מקץ שנתים ימים ופרעה חלם והנה עמד על היאור

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Mikeitz

It happened at the end of two years to the day: Pharaoh was dreaming that behold! He was standing over the river. (41:1)

Chazal (Bereishis Rabbah 69:3) distinguish between: the wicked who stand over their gods, such as Pharaoh, who dreamt that he was standing over the Nile River, which is the Egyptian godhead; and tzaddikim, the righteous, such as Yaakov Avinu, over whom we see that Hashem stood protectively.  Horav Simchah Wasserman, zl, explains that idol worshippers seek a god that will fit into their comfort zone, who will serve them without making any undue demands on them.  The Egyptians viewed the Nile River as their god, because it provided for their needs.  Pharaoh stood over the river, because this is their…

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Home -> Mikeitz -> 5785

וישלח פרעה ויקרא את יוסף ויריצהו מן הבור

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Mikeitz

So Pharaoh sent and summoned Yosef, and they rushed him from the dungeon. (41:14)

Regardless of the circumstances surrounding one’s eis tzarah, period of trouble, when the designated time for geulah, redemption/deliverance, arrives, he will not spend one extra moment in travail.    Yosef was incarcerated with no immediate hope for release, but, when the Heavenly-appointed time for his liberation was reached, he was rushed out of prison.  Likewise, explains the Chafetz Chaim, when the time for Klal Yisrael’s redemption from exile arrives, we will immediately be freed.  Nothing will impede our release. Two types of redemption exist: collective redemption; and personal redemption.  We must remember that, however bleak things may appear, this darkness will…

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Home -> Mikeitz -> 5785

אתה תהיה על ביתי ועל פיך ישק כל עמי

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Mikeitz

You shall be in charge of my palace and, by your command, shall all my people be sustained. (41:40)

How often do we attempt all avenues to resolve an issue that is plaguing us — economic, health, shidduchim —  and everything that we do leads to a solid, impenetrable wall?  All of a sudden, out of the blue, the issue is resolved in a manner that we least expected, or even thought possible.  When we take the time to relax and introspect throughout the journey from travail to deliverance, we must ask ourselves: Was this Hashem’s plan from the very onset, that nothing we attempt works, so that we ultimately recognize, realize and acknowledge that: Hashem has a plan;…

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Home -> Mikeitz -> 5785

חי פרעה כי מרגלים אתם

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Mikeitz

By Pharaoh’s life – surely you are spies. (42:16)

Why of all accusations that Yosef could have leveled against his brothers, did he choose calling them spies?  Furthermore, the responses they gave to confirm the veracity of their mission to Egypt misses the mark.  How does it explain why they are not spies?  “All of us are sons of one man.”  “Your servants have never been spies.” “The youngest son is now with our father, and one is gone.”  Last, what did they mean when they said, “We have never been spies”? Who ever mentioned the past?  Horav Elyakim Schlesinger, Shlita, explains this based upon a Midrash that relates…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5785

וימאן להתנחם

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Vayeishev

But he refused to be comforted. (37:35)

Refusing to be comforted is understandable. When a person sustains a tragedy (regardless of the circumstances, the age, or the well-being of the deceased, it is still a tragedy – to someone) it is personal; it is painful; the loss feels like an endless void which cannot be filled with words alone. This is especially true when the mourner had been especially close with the deceased. Accepting comfort may feel like a step towards moving on or letting go – something the mourner refuses to entertain. Others may feel guilt over the death of a loved one, wondering if they…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5785

ויכר יהודה ויאמר צדקה ממני

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Vayeishev

Yehudah recognized; and he said, “She is right; it is from me.” (38:26)

In the brachos, blessings, which Moshe Rabbeinu conferred upon the various shevatim, tribes of Klal Yisrael, Reuven’s blessing is juxtaposed upon Yehudah’s blessing. Chazal (Bava Kamma 91A) explain that, during all the forty years that the Jews journeyed in the wilderness, the bones of Yehudah, which the nation took with them to be interred in the Holy Land, were rolling around in the coffin. Moshe came and asked Hashem for mercy on Yehudah’s behalf. He said, “Yehudah was the impetus for Reuven to confess to his sin/error concerning his tampering with his father’s bed.” When Reuven saw that Yehudah made…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5785

וימאן

Sruly Schnair
In 5785, Vayeishev

But he (Yosef) adamantly refused. (39:8)

Chazal (Yoma 35:13) teach that, if a wicked person (his neshamah, soul) comes before the Heavenly Tribunal and is asked, “Why did you not engage in Torah study?” and he replies, “I was handsome and preoccupied with my evil inclination,” we reply to him, “Were you any more handsome than Yosef who did not neglect Torah, despite his beauty?” Chazal go on to describe Potifar’s wife’s various machinations to entice Yosef to be with her. He rejected it all because of his abiding devotion to Hashem. This may be good and well, but Chazal (Sotah 36B) add something to the…

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