Language of Continuity
Dec 7, 2002 By Lauren Eichler Berkun | Commentary | Miketz | Hanukkah
“Assimilation” and “Jewish Continuity” are two pressing issues in our Jewish consciousness which are neither modern nor unique to our history as a people. It is fitting to read the story of Joseph’s political ascendancy in Egypt during this Shabbat Hanukkah. In this week’s Torah portion, and during the Festival of Lights, we reflect upon the persistent challenges of assimilation and Jewish continuity. Paradoxically, we learn that Jewish survival often necessitates a degree of acculturation.
Read MoreMoral Leadership
Dec 31, 2005 By Marc Wolf | Commentary | Miketz
“Some writers flatly assert that dreams know nothing of moral obligations; others as decidedly declare that the moral nature of man persists even in his dream–life.” Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams
After interpreting Pharaoh’s dream prophesizing the demise of Egypt as the will of God, with a degree of autonomy that we have yet to see, Joseph applies his own thought process and looks beyond interpretation.
Read MoreNot by Might
Dec 11, 1993 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Miketz | Hanukkah
It is a remarkable tribute to the genius of the Jewish calendar that parashat mikaytz always coincides with Shabbat Hanukkah. The contents of both, I shall argue, deserve to be linked.
But let me start off on a personal note. Hanukkah has always held a special meaning for me and my family. On November 3, 1938, I turned three. Six days later, on the infamous night of Kristallnacht, the Nazis unleashed their fury on the synagogues of Germany, including the magnificent Romanesque synagogue of my father in Hanover. Like thousands of other prominent Jews, he was carted off to a concentration camp, to be released only two weeks later when family in England secured a visa for us with the help of the Chief Rabbi, Joseph Hertz, known to you best as the editor of the Hertz Humash.
Read MoreComplete Repentance
Dec 27, 2003 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Miketz
Early on in his laws of repentance, Maimonides gives us a definition of the highest form of repentance:
Read MoreWhat is complete repentance? When we are confronted with a situation in which we previously sinned and could do so again, but this time we desist not out of fear or weakness but because we have repented. An example: a man has sexual relations with a woman in violation of the Torah. Sometime later he finds himself alone with her again in the same place with ardor and virility undiminished. However, this time he departs without the slightest impropriety. Such a person has attained the level of complete repentance.
It’s Alright to Cry
Dec 7, 2002 By Shuly Rubin Schwartz | Commentary | Miketz
In the 1970’s football star Roosevelt “Rosey” Grier sang “It’s Alright to Cry” on the landmark record album “Free to Be You and Me,” produced by Marlo Thomas. The former New York Giants defensive tackle told us, in the Carol Hall song, that “crying gets the sad out of you. It’s all right to cry; it might make you feel better.” Feminism had arrived in America, and men — including football stars with feminine nicknames – were permitted, even encouraged, to show their emotions and cry.
Read MoreFrom Darkness into Light
Dec 19, 2009 By David Hoffman | Commentary | Miketz | Hanukkah
We Jews know that stories are not simple things. As a people, we tell tales that place us in the drama of world history and connect us with a common past and a shared future. Our national stories challenge us as individuals and as a community; they provide us with contexts to work out moral dilemmas, and help us reflect collectively on what it means to live life well.
Read MoreThe Wisdom of Joseph: Saving Self and Country
Nov 27, 2013 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Miketz
Parashat Miketz opens with Pharaoh plagued by two disturbing dreams pregnant with meaning.
Read MoreFruits of the Land, Song of the Soil
Dec 12, 2012 By Matthew Berkowitz | Commentary | Miketz | Hanukkah
The Joseph narrative continues its dramatic twists and turns as Joseph, through his talented dream interpretations, rises to become the second most powerful figure in the land of Egypt.
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