Tag Archives: unity

Parshat Bamidbar | Shavuot – Unity Despite Individuality

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It has been one year and one month since the exodus from Egypt.  The Jewish people, divided by tribe into clusters Har Sinaiaround a central point, have just completed erecting the Tabernacle as the nucleus of the encampment. Each tribe is now assigned a flag that highlights that tribe’s unique abilities and strengths.

The timing of the designation of the flags begs a question. Why did God wait until now to instruct the various tribes to carry flags?  The Jews had been separated and organized by tribe as soon as they left Egypt, over a year ago. It would seem fitting for them to display their tribal flags from the very start! Continue reading Parshat Bamidbar | Shavuot – Unity Despite Individuality

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Parshat Beshalach – Unity Regardless of Commonality

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egyptian chariotOnly five days after the Jewish people were dramatically emancipated from the cruel Egyptian slavery, Pharaoh had a sudden change of heart and regretted sending the Jews away.  Intending to force them to return and to subjugate them to slavery once more, he gathered his men and chased after the nascent nation.  Having tasted a mere five days of freedom, the Jewish people found an Egyptian army bearing down upon them and almost overtaking them.

The Torah, in describing how the unified, single-minded, and focused army was bearing down upon and overtaking the Jews, seems to use erroneous grammar.  It states that “Egypt nasayah (journeyed, singular form) after them,” as opposed to, “the Egyptians nasa’u (journeyed, plural form) after them.”  Why this apparently mistaken verbiage? Continue reading Parshat Beshalach – Unity Regardless of Commonality

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Parshat Vayechi – Peace: The Ultimate Blessing

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Jacob Blessing Ephraim and ManassehThis week’s Torah portion tells us of the last days of Jacob, the third of our forefathers.  When it was clear that Jacob did not have much longer to live, Jacob’s son Joseph brought his own adult sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, to visit their grandfather for the last time.  Jacob took this visit as an opportunity to bless his grandchildren.  Though the custom when giving a blessing to two people at once was to place the right hand on the head of the older person and the left hand on the head of the younger person, Jacob did the opposite.  He placed his right hand on the head of Ephraim, the younger of the two brothers, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, the older brother.  Joseph, thinking his father had made a mistake, tried correcting him, but Jacob told him that it was no mistake.  He had seen prophetically that though great people would descend from both of these grandsons, the descendants of Ephraim would be greater.  He therefore accorded Ephraim the honor generally given to the older sibling.

The Torah then records the blessing that Jacob proceeded to give Ephraim and Manasseh: “By you shall Israel bless, saying, ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”  The blessing that Jacob was giving to his grandsons was that all future generation would bless their children that they grow up to be like Ephraim and Manasseh.  Jacob’s blessing has been and continues to be fulfilled. To this day, when Jewish parents give their sons a blessing, either weekly on Friday night or annually before Yom Kippur, the text of the traditional blessing is, “May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.”

Why is this so?  We bless our daughters that they should follow in the footsteps of our glorious Matriarchs (“May God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah”), so why did Jacob not want us to bless our sons that they follow in the path of our Patriarchs?  What is unique about Ephraim and Manasseh that Jacob was essentially hoping and praying that all of his male descendants should follow in the path of these two grandchildren of his? Continue reading Parshat Vayechi – Peace: The Ultimate Blessing

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The Communal Phoenix Siyum on Meseches Shabbos: A Celebration of Unity

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Shabbos is a time of achdus, unity, in a number of different relationships.  The first and foremost of these is our relationship with Hashem.  Halachah dictates that on Shabbos one is not supposed to pray for personal requests.  Rabbi Shimshon Pincus (1944 – 2001, Ofakim, Israel) explains this law with an analogy to a fundraiser.  At times, the fundraiser will ask a potential donor for money, but on other occasions, he will simply spend time building his relationship with the potential donor.  This relationship building will ensure that the next time the fundraiser will ask for a donation, the check will be much larger.  Any good fundraiser will readily admit that the key to successful fundraising really lies in this relationship building.  On Shabbos, Rabbi Pincus explains, our goal is simply to build our Continue reading The Communal Phoenix Siyum on Meseches Shabbos: A Celebration of Unity

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