AWESOME HOLY DREAMS

Parashat Vayetze

Kislev 9, 5780 / December 6-7, 2019
Torah: Genesis 28:10 – 32:3
Haftarah: Hosea 12:13 – 14:10

Dedications and calendar follow below. For complete listings, see our web site at:

http://www.bnaihayim.com

Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.

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AWESOME HOLY DREAMS

"And Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 'Surely the Lord is in this place and I, I did not know.' And he was afraid, and he said, 'How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.'" Gen. 28:16-17

Rashi: For had I known, I would not have slept in such a holy place.

Shlomoh of Radomsk: "My I, I did not know." I erased everything that was in me; my self-awareness; ego consciousness; self-intention.

Jacob dreamt of angels going up and down a ladder. He realized that God was beside him, speaking to him, reaffirming the promise made to Abraham and Isaac. Then Jacob awoke. Had Jacob known that the place was holy, he would have slept elsewhere, according to Rashi. But then, perhaps he would not have had the dream. Perhaps God would not have spoken with him, and what would have become of the covenant with Abraham and Isaac? Was it mere ignorance through which Jacob came to sleep in such a holy place? How then did he merit a visitation from God?

Shlomoh of Radomsk, a mid-19th century Polish chasidic rebbe, suggests that it was not ignorance, but rather, intentional and practiced suppression of the ego, through which Jacob merited the dream and the promise. This seems to be the opposite of Rashi. Perhaps not.

By not being self-focused, Jacob became God-focused. Jacob became more attuned to the holiness around him when he stopped thinking of himself as the center of the universe. By living a minimalist physical (outer) life (he was using a rock for a pillow), Jacob maximized his spiritual (inner) life. Read Rashi, then, as, "Had I known (i.e., had I in my egocentric way been looking to know such a place), I would not have been able to sleep in such a holy place."

Holiness and communion with God come not when we look for them as entitlements, but rather, when we recognize the potential for holiness in every place and every person, and empty out our egos in order to become vessels for receiving that holiness.

Have a wonder-filled Shabbat!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom

TBH/CBM

 אֵיזֶהוּ חָכָם? הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם.

Who is wise?  The one who learns from every person.

Ben Zoma - Pirkei Avot 4:1

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Candle lighting: 4:26 pm

Friday: A Cappella Shabbat Evening Service – 6:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

Saturday: Torah study/breakfast – 8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush lunch follows.

Sunday:  Religious School – 9:30 am.

Tuesday: Lunch and Learn – 12:00 noon.

Friday, December 13: Shabbat Evening Service – 6:30 pm. Oneg Shabbat follows.

Saturday, December 14: Torah study/breakfast – 8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush lunch follows.

Next time you come to TBH/CBM, please bring some non-perishable canned and packaged foods and personal items (no glass) for SOVA.

This d'var torah is offered in memory of our friend Leo Pomerantz, who passed away on Thanksgiving Day. Y’hi zikhro liv’rakhah – May his memory be a blessing.

This d'var torah is offered in memory of Lynn’s grandfather, Gabriel Stern, whose yahrzeit falls on Sunday, 10 Kislev. Y’hi zikhro liv’rakhah – May his memory be a blessing.

This d'var torah is offered in memory of my uncle, Daniel Flom, whose yahrzeit falls on Thursday, 14 Kislev. Y’hi zikhro liv’rakhah – May his memory be a blessing.

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Leah bat Sarah Imanu, Sarah bat Devorah, Susan Arbetman, Ken Bitticks, Elsbet Brosky, Mark Brownstein, Jerry Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan ben Gittel), Bernard Garvin, Leah Granat, Gabor Klein, Philip Kronzek, Tonya Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat Sarah Imanu), Ina Labowitz, Stuart Lytton, David Marks, Gail Neiman, Sandra Raab, David Russak, Josef Sands, Shirley Sands, Debra Schugar Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya Feiga), Helen Schugar (Chaya Feiga bat Kreina), and William Sragow.