Shlomo's Thoughts on the Torah

When Moses arrived back to Egypt his brother, Aaron, greeted him with love and happiness. Aaron was the older brother and had been in Egypt for all the years that Moses was away. Instead of being jealous he was overjoyed for his brother.

The Jews were not enslaved all at once. It was a step-by-step process. First special taxes were levied on them. Slowly more and more of their freedom was taken away until they suddenly realized that they were enslaved.

Moses spent 40 years in Midian before he began his mission to save the Jewish people. Those 40 years were spent learning to be a leader from his father in law.

When Moses was at the burning bush he was told to remove his shoes. One of the reasons was that he should stand on rocky ground so that he would feel the pain that the enslaved Jews were feeling. A leader has to understand the pain and suffering of their followers.

The Torah relates that when Moses came upon the Egyptian beating a Jew he looked up and down and did not see a man. That means he saw other people but no one willing to take a stand against the injustice before their eyes.

We have to remember that no matter how nice the government is to us in the beginning in the end they will act in their own self-interest.

Esau's head ended up on Isaac chest. Esau had good intentions, but he always did the wrong thing.

When Jacob gives Judah the blessing of leadership, it was because of his natural ability to lead was tied to his innate sense of humility. This is what made Judah a great leader.

When Jacob blesses his sons, Simon & Levi, he comments that their anger should be controlled. He understood why they attacked Schem, but that they went about it in the wrong way. 

In Jewish thought the Temples were destroyed due to senseless hate among the Jews, not because the Babylonians nor the Romans were more powerful. If God had not willed the Temple to be destroyed it would not have been.

We might think that we do not influence much but we do not see the bigger picture. Sometimes what we consider a small act can have a tremendous impact.

When Judah confronts Joseph concerning Banjamin Joseph realizes that Judah has repented for his earlier actions. It is not enough to say "sorry", you have to show through your actions that you have repented.

When Jacob was told that Joseph was alive, he did not believe it until he saw the wagons. Why did they make a difference?

The fast of the 10th of comes a week after we finish celebrating Hanukah.  This is to teach us that the Hasmoneans lost sight of the reason for the war against the Hellenists.  Over the generations they became Hellenists.  When we lose sight of the goal, we lose all.

Hanukah saved what was to become Western Civilization. In the Greek and Roman worlds human life was cheap. Mistreatment of slaves was normal. In the Jewish world it was the exact opposite.

In the end of this week's portion the brothers are united in their love of one another just as the five Hashmonian brothers were united in the story of Hanukah.

Why do we say Hallel on Hanukah bur not Purim? What is the difference between the two festivals?

Hanukah is a celebration of the victory of a cultural war against the Greek culture. The Syrian Greeks were not interested in killing Jews, just Judaism.

The story of Hanukah seems natural but it shows how God's hand is in the world guiding the events that occurred.

Joseph relied on the butler to remember him to Pharoah. The butler promptly forgot about him. This was to teach that we have to rely on God and not humans to achieve our goals. 

When Joseph was confronted by Potifer's wife he realized that Jacob would not approve of immorality. He based his morality on what he learned from his father. 

The reason that Judah became a great leader was that he had a moral compass. And when he was wrong he admitted it.

Reuben should have been the leader of the brothers but failed. He meant well but was lacking in judgement. Judah will become the leader due to his judgement.

In this week's portion we see that Joseph is Jacob's favorite son. Joseph flaunts his status in front of his brothers. He will have to learn humility the hard way.

What makes our leaders great is not that they did not have flaws but that they overcame them.