Shabbat shalom and Happy Hanukkah!

This week we read a pivotal story in the Torah, the story of Joseph and the multi-colored coat. The reading, parashat Vayeshev, bridges the earlier accounts of our ancestors, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob, Rachel and Leah, and that of the exodus of our people from Egyptian enslavement. The chain of events begins here: Joseph’s dreams of grandeur infuriate his brothers and they sell him into slavery. He is taken to Egypt, where, after working for a prominent Egyptian, he is thrown into prison. In the weeks to come, we will learn of Joseph’s emergence from the prison on account of interpreting the Pharaoh’s dreams. He will rise to political leadership as he leads Egypt through years of plenty and years of famine, and he will rescue his brothers from starvation by inviting them to relocate and settle in Egypt. Their offspring will be the slaves Moses leads across the Red Sea to Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, and ultimately, to the Land of Israel. In short, without this week’s story, the rest of our history would not have developed as it did.

Early in our story, Joseph is sent out into the fields to check on his brothers. Unable to locate them, he happens across a man – unnamed, unidentified – who points him in the right direction. When he reaches his brothers, they capture him and the story unfolds from there. Had Joseph not encountered the stranger, the course of history might have been substantially different. So who is this man? Is his presence in the story a mere coincidence?

Some of our commentators speculate that the man is in fact a messenger of God, placed in Joseph’s path in order to ensure that Joseph reaches his brothers so that the chain of events will take place according to God’s plan. Ibn Ezra, however, disagrees, saying simply, “according to the plain meaning of the text, he is a traveler”. The ultimate question is, does God act in history? Does God manipulate the events of our lives in order to achieve a particular outcome?

While you are pondering that question (which is going to go unanswered!), the Kotzker Rebbe shared a beautiful teaching on this passage: The man whom Joseph encountered inquired of Joseph’s mission, and Joseph explained that he was seeking his brothers. That man – God’s messenger – was there to teach Joseph that at all of life’s crossroads one ought to articulate one’s desires and aspirations before pursuing them. We should always pause and take stock of our circumstances and then proceed with focus and intent. If we do, we will ultimately find blessing in our lives.

Shabbat shalom and happy Hanukkah!