Monday, December 3, 2012
Parshat VaYeshev
24 Kislev 5773 / December 7-8, 2012
Bereshit 37:1 – 40:23
24 Kislev 5773 / December 7-8, 2012
Bereshit 37:1 – 40:23
Learning from
the Pit
by Zvi Bellin, MHHQ
by Zvi Bellin, MHHQ
Yosef, the beloved son of Yaacov hits
rock bottom this week. Literally! His dad gives him a beautiful coat which
hails tremendous jealousy from his brothers. Not to mention Yosef’s dreams
about his brothers and parents worshipping him do not help. His brothers are so
fed up with their younger brother’s antics that they toss him into a pit and
sell him into slavery.
“When Yosef
came up to his brothers, they stripped him of his ornamented cloak and took him
and cast him into the pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.” (Genesis 37:23-24)
Channukah begins this Saturday night
and I am wondering how Yosef’s descent into this empty pit relates to the
holiday of lights (Chag Ha’Urim).
One spiritual message of Channukah
is that light is to be found even in the darkest night. This can be a metaphor
for so many things, including that hope and possibility are always present in
the midst of despair and doubt. I think this is what Yosef teaches us. He is in
the pit of despair – shunned by his family and stripped of his radiant coat.
The world was looking pretty amazing until this moment in his life. And like so
many moments that occur, his world and his identity are turned upside down. Who
can he trust? Where is he going? How will he survive this very painful moment? Yosef
in the pit can represent the curve ball that life throws that we see in death,
loss, and doubt.
The message of Channukah is to sit
in the pit, because you have no other choice but to accept reality. At first
you will look around and say that this moment is empty – I am alone. We see
that all the experiences of our life, all the blessings of our life, have not
adequately prepared us to deal with this amount of struggle – There is not
even water here!
Very slowly though, as we light the
first light of Channukah which over time becomes the radiance of eight shining
flames, we discover inner and outer resources that we were originally blind to.
Yosef discovers his faith and the power of his dreams. For some of us, in
difficult times we might encounter a compassionate waiting community or a
wellspring of dormant creativity. Our eyes and our lives adjust to the darkness
of the pit until we see that there is a whole world to explore. A world that is
more radiant with meaning and connection then we could have ever imagined.
Wishing all of us a Chag
Channukah Sameach. A joyous Channukah Celebration!
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