Dvar Torah - VayigashRabbi- Leonard Cohen

Friday, December 25, 2020 happens to coincide with the Jewish fast day of Asarah b’Tevet - the tenth day of the month of Tevet. On this day, in 587 BCE, Babylonian armies under the reign of the evil King Nebuchadnezzar surrounded Jerusalem and laid siege to the city. This event marked a tragic milestone leading eventually to the conquest of Judea and Israel by the Babylonians, and the first forced exile of our people from our Holy Land. The day is marked with fasting from sunrise to sunset, and is one of the rare occasions where a Jewish fast day occurs on a Friday.
In this week’s parsha, Vayigash, Joseph and his brothers are reconciled. As Egyptian viceroy, he sends his brothers back to Canaan in chariots to come gather their father Jacob to bring him down to Egypt. “When they [the brothers] told him [Jacob] all of Joseph's words that he had said to them, and he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob was revived” (Bereshit 45:27). Rashi comments that the chariots (agalot) were an allusion to the laws of eglah arufah (the broken-necked heifer) - the very Torah laws that Jacob studied with Joseph prior to his being sold into slavery and sent to Egypt. When Jacob saw the chariots, it signalled to him that Joseph had never forgotten his Jewish learnings even in all his time in Egypt.
Upon their arrival in Egypt, Joseph invites several of his brothers along with their father Jacob to present themselves to the Pharaoh. Pharaoh asks Jacob his age (“how many are the days of the years of your life?”) and Jacob answers that he is 137 years old, and astonishingly adds that the days of his life were “few and unhappy” and that he did not — and would not — reach the age of his fathers before him.
Years ago, my rabbi, Ronnie Cahana, shared with me his insights on this section. Jacob had just experienced the elation of reuniting with his beloved son and the reconciliation of his family, so how could he portray his life in such a negative light? According to Rabbi Cahana, although the Pharaoh showed goodness to Joseph and his family, he nonetheless tended to be highly acquisitive of wealth and power. When he saw the evidently aged Jacob, Pharaoh sought to find out how he could acquire the one thing — great old age (length of years) — that eluded his control. Jacob’s response was intended to show Pharaoh that the attainment of old age can prove meaningless, and that one’s years can indeed seem “few and unhappy”, if one lives their life in vain pursuits.
While Jacob may have provided an instructive lesson to Pharaoh, the Chachamim (Jewish Sages) note that he missed an opportunity as well. Jewish insight holds that a person is meant to be thankful to Hashem for bad events in their life as well as good ones, for all such happenings have their universal purpose. The Midrash says that after Jacob spoke, Hashem reminded Jacob of the ordeals he survived: “Did I not enable you to survive your brother Esau’s threats, to endure the cunning of Laban, to return your daughter Dinah to you, and to reunite with Joseph?” Jacob’s answer to Pharaoh focused on the travails of life — but failed to sufficiently acknowledge Hashem’s presence throughout.
As we today continue hunkering down in protection against the current pandemic, the Chachamim’s insight remains crucial. We can mire ourselves in the frustration of what we are missing — or we can reframe our experience to discern Hashem’s light. Right now, by adhering to strict protections, Jews and people around the globe are rallying to save one another’s lives. We can choose whether to view this as frustrating, or inspiring. I encourage us all to recognize the remarkable gift we show one another in striving to preserve human life and safety.
Shabbat Shalom!