Rabbi
Dr. Yehuda Krohn
It is common practice to search for a theme shared by Weekly and
Holiday Torah Readings that coincide with one another. The following
D'var Torah, which highlights a connection between Parshas Vayeshev
and Chanukah, is a case in point.
Parshas Vayeshev is filled with instances in which clothing is
used to link someone to a particular event. Yoseph's brothers submit,
to their father, his blood drenched cloak as evidence that he has
been killed. The wife of Potiphar claims that the owner of the
cloak she is holding attempted to seduce her. Tamar asserts that
the owner of the cloak, ring and staff, currently in her possession,
is the father of her as yet unborn twins.
At first glance, it would seem that the first two of these narratives
differ vastly from the third. Potiphar's wife is trying to deceive
her husband into believing that Yoseph had approached her. Yoseph's
brothers are, likewise, trying to mislead Ya'akov Avinu into believing
that Yoseph was attacked by a wild animal. Tamar, in contrast,
is not trying to deceive. Rather, she is trying to inform Yehuda
that it is his children in her womb. In short, whereas the intentions
of Pothiphar's wife and Yoseph's brothers are to hide the truth,
the intention of Tamar is to reveal it.
It thus comes as a surprise that, when presenting their evidence,
Yoseph's brothers use terms of speech that are identical not to
those of the Potiphar's wife… but to those of Tamar. Tamar, on
the brink of a painful death, pleads “Haker Na – Please recognize.” Advocating
not only for herself but for the Messianic seed within her, she
implores Yehuda to fully recognize the garments he once
gave her. Tamar's sense of urgency, along with her desire for Yehuda
to acknowledge his ownership, is clearly reflected in her choice
of words. 1 Why, though, do the brothers of Yoseph, when submitting,
to their father, Yoseph's cloak, say “Haker Na?” Do they truly
wish for Ya'akov to discover their role in Yoseph's disappearance?
It seems that the use of linguistic terms that aim toward concealment
would have better suited their needs.
In addition, it is ironic that the cloak the brothers of Yoseph
use to identify him for Ya'akov is the Kesones Pasim .
This is the very garment that the brothers view as the symbol of
inequity between themselves and Yoseph. Why would they select an
article of clothing that is, presumably, invested with such negative
and painful emotions?
Based on the above, it is conceivable that Yoseph's brothers are
communicating with their father on more than one level. On the
surface, by altering the cloak to give the appearance of a mauling,
they are deceiving Ya'akov. On a deeper, more subtle
level, though, they are confiding to him what, they sense,
is the primary cause for Yoseph's dispatch. “Haker Na – Please
recognize. Is this not the garment you gave only to Yoseph? Haker
Na – Please consider. The preferential treatment you accorded him
sowed the seeds of jealousy and mistrust between us. Haker Na – Please
understand. When we stripped Yoseph of his cloak, together with
his dignity and freedom, you, our father, may have shared in the
responsibility.” What is remarkable about the two levels of communication – manifest
and subtle; deceiving and confiding – is that they reflect diametrically
opposed intentions.
The idea that a person (or group of people) is capable of displaying
two opposing intentions or two conflicting emotions can be understood
from within a developmental framework. Oftentimes, a young child
runs away from his mother, even while glancing over his shoulder
to see if she is following. When this occurs, the child is balancing
his sense of dependence on her with the competing desire to become
autonomous. As the child traverses the road to adulthood, this
balancing act, along with the relational dynamic it implies, does
not fully disappear. Rather, it is experienced and expressed in
a less obvious fashion. That Yoseph's brothers could subtly reveal to
their father the perceived roots of their misdeed, even as they
were apparently concealing from him its details, is consistent
with this notion. 2
The above can, likewise, be understood in spiritual terms. We
are taught that even at the moment a person transgresses his Heavenly
Father's commandments, he experiences an innate desire to relate
to Him. 3 This is reflected, to an extent, in a person's interactions
with his flesh and blood parents as well. When the brothers try
to deceive Ya'akov about their role in the sale of Yoseph, they
are delivering the second blow to a relationship with him that
has already been wounded (in a spiritual-existential sense) by
the actual sale. Yet, even as Ya'akov's children are misleading
him, they are secretly confiding to him – not only that they played
a role in Yoseph's disappearance, but also their deep seated emotions
regarding the antecedents to their misdeeds. This represents a
step, however small, being taken by the brothers toward healing
their relationship with their father.
A parallel can now begin to be drawn to Chanukah. The assault
of Antiochus on the Beis Hamikdosh is viewed by many as being the
outward manifestation of a more insidious invasion – that of Hellenistic
ideals into the minds of practicing Jews: Faith and belief were
replaced by empirical rationalism. The pursuit of physical pleasure
no longer served as an instrument of spiritual health; it became
an end unto itself. (The concept of) G-d was both splintered and
reduced from a unique, transcendent Being, to a pantheon, decidedly
human in character. By the time Antiochus defiled the Beis
Hamikdosh , Jewish sensibilities had themselves degraded and
lost their clarity.
It is this spiritual decline that serves as the backdrop for the
miracle of the Pach Shemen – the jar of oil. According
to the S'fas Emes, the sealed Pach Shemen , found on Temple
grounds, symbolizes a small compartment of the Jewish mind that
was as yet untainted. Even as the Hellenizers largely abandoned
the ideals of Judaism, there remained in their heart of hearts
a “Pintele Yid”, desiring to believe, yearning for spirituality
and understanding that Hashem is One. The Pach Shemen and
what it symbolizes is what fueled the Jews' recovery of political
sovereignty and spiritual integrity.
The emergence of the Pach Shemen from within a dominant
spiritual climate of defilement is not an accident. Similarly,
the articulation of “ Haker Na ” from within a larger
communication pattern of deception is not a coincidence. Even as
Hashem allows for the possibility of our straying from Him, He
guarantees that there will always be a small corner of the soul
that still yearns for closeness to Him. Similarly, even as some
children move away from the ideals of their parents, Hashem ensures
that they retain (in the least) a faint attraction to those ideals,
along with a need for closeness to their parents. By identifying,
nurturing and responding to the subtle strivings for intimacy of
otherwise estranged people, we become partners with Hashem in allowing
those people to reenter the systems and contexts they have left.
Notes:
1. See Rashi Bereishis 22:2 for a discussion of the term “ Na ”.
2. The intention here is not to reduce the Torah's account
regarding Yoseph and his brothers to its emotion-based components.
At the same time, it is important not to reduce the Biblical
narrative to a dispassionate dispute over Halachic issues such
as Ever min Hachai . Rather, the emotional and rational
strands of the event, each deriving from its own layer of textual
meaning, complement one other.
3. See Rambam: Hilchos Gerushin 2:20
Rabbi Dr. Krohn, an alumnus of the Kollel, learns regularly
at the Kollel. He is also a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, who
works with individuals and families in the community.
Rabbi Liberman, an alumuns
of the Kollel, learns daily with the Kollel Boker program.
Halacha Encounters
Lighting the Ner Chanukah
Rabbi Ari Friedman
“The Mitzvah of Ner Chanukah is very beloved to us.” (Rambam)
However, being that lighting the Menorah is a mitzvah which
is best performed during a specific time period, it is
prone to oversight. Chazal therefore initiated certain
laws and customs to preserve the sanctity of the mitzvah
and to ensure that its observance be in its proper time.
Note: The actual time of hadlakah , lighting,
may depend on an individual's personal custom. If one is
unsure as to when to light, a halachic authority should
be consulted.
The One Who is Lighting
Beginning with one half hour before the time of hadlakah one
may not engage in any form of activity which might cause
him to lose sight of the mitzvah at hand 1 . Such activities
include any form of business, manual labor, or paperwork
which could extend itself into the time of hadlakah .
One who is in the midst of his regular work schedule and
finds it difficult to return home to light may continue
working, but he must request of the people at home to remind
him to light 2 . Once he has returned home, the menorah
should be lit without delay. Sitting down to a meal is
not permitted one half hour prior to hadlakah .
However, one who is hungry may eat some fruit or a light
snack. 3 One should not lie down to sleep, even for a short
nap. One who is studying Torah as the time for hadlakah approaches,
must interrupt his studies to light the menorah. However,
for Torah study the poskim permit one to calculate the
half hour prior to hadlakah based on the later
time frame in which hadlakah begins, at tzeis
hakochavim (nightfall, as defined by the “coming
out” of three medium-sized stars in the sky). 4 Whether
or not Maariv is davened before or after hadlakah would
depend on when one normally davens Maariv. If one normally
davens Maariv before tzeis hakochavim , he may
do so as well on Chanukah, provided that there remains
time to light before tzeis . It is advised that
the Menorah be prepared beforehand so that upon returning
from Maariv the Menorah may be lit right away. If one normally
davens Maariv after tzeis , then the Menorah should
be lit first and Maariv afterwards.
Members of the Household
The above halachos apply as well to those members of the
household who will be included in the lighting of the menorah,
since they too must be careful not to neglect the mitzvah.
5 In cases of necessity, they may be lenient 6 . One who
is unable to interrupt his activities, or must eat or sleep
prior to lighting the menorah, must have someone remind
him to light or leave himself a reminder at home such as
a sign or a prominently placed Menorah which will be noticed.
7
Following the Lighting
After the menorah is lit, it is proper to remain nearby
for a half-hour so as to absorb and appreciate the “ pirsum
hanes ,” the publicizing of the miracle, that the
Menorah is there to symbolize. 8 There is a centuries-old minhag that
for the first half-hour after the lighting of the menorah,
women refrain from doing household work. 9 The “work” included
in this minhag are activities which require concentration
and/or exertion such as mending, cleaning, etc. Some refer
to the activities prohibited on Chol Hamoed as those which
are included in this minhag . 10 The simplest
explanation for this minhag is that since traditionally
women do not light their own menorah, but rely of the lighting
of their husbands, an extra measure of awareness of the
mitzvah is displayed by not being preoccupied with other
matters. 11 A second reason quoted by many seforim is that
the beheading of a Greek general, Helifornis, by a Jewish
woman, Yehudis, began the downfall of the Greeks and the
victory of the Jews. To commemorate this turning point
women exercise an extra level of observance on Chanukah.
12 A third explanation is to celebrate our victory over
the Greeks who attempted to abolish Rosh Chodesh – another
time in which women customarily refrain from “work”. 13
______________________________
1 Magen Avrohom 672-5
2 Nitei Gavriel 4-4
3 Shulchan Orech O.C. 232-3 and M.B. there
4 Shaar Hatzeyun 672-14 and Btzel Hachochma 3-95
5 Nitei Gavriel 4-3
6 Btzel Hachochma 4-58
7 Nitei Gavriel 4-4
8 Mekor Chaim 672
9 O.C. 670
10 Nite Gavriel 38-1, see footnote 4
11 Sefer Moadim Lisimcha P. 213-214, see footnote 13
12 Magen Avrohom 670-1 and others
13 See O.C. 417
Rabbi Friedman learns full time in the Kollel and
is a frequent contributor to Halacha Encounters.
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