PRINCE OR SLAVE?

Parashat Vayeishev

Torah: Genesis 37:1 – 40:23

Haftarah: Amos 2:6 – 3:8

Kislev 20, 5785 / December 20-21, 2024

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This d’var torah is offered in memory of my uncle, David Flom, whose yahrzeit falls this Sunday, Kislev 21. Y'hi zikhro liv'rakhah - may his memory be a blessing.

Hanukkah is coming! May the light of the holiday shine a refuah shleimah upon the hostages held by Hamas and may they be delivered speedily and safely to their homes and loved ones.

This d’var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for all who have been wounded in the terrorist attacks and in fighting against the terrorists, as well as innocent non-combatants caught in the crossfire.

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Lunch and Learn meets Mondays at 12:30 PM on Zoom and Facebook Live. Due to scheduling conflicts, we'll be on hiatus until January 6. On January 6, we'll be at Ein Ya'akov Vol. 3, Chagigah, p. 22 (BT Chagigah 14a): 

"... ונתתי נערים שריהם"

"And I will set up boys as their princes ..."

Volume 3 of Ein Ya'akov is now available and downloadable on Google drive at:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1symdqiuA-HHe7pqOezMo_zp79eTpNakc/view?usp=sharing 

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PRINCE OR SLAVE?

"And it came to pass after these things that the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker had sinned against their master, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh was angry at his two princes - the prefect of the cupbearers and the prefect of the bakers." Genesis 40:1-2

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch says that the reference to the two courtiers as "princes" is mockery. To those who served beneath them, they were "princes", wielding great power; but to the king, they were nothing more than slaves with fancy titles. He threw them into prison for no apparent reason. The cupbearer and baker failed to understand that, when one's position is dependent solely upon the whim of one's superior, one's position is, at best, precarious.

Joseph Faithful in Prison - Providence Lithograph Company, 1907

So it is all too often with people who attain positions of power granted by another. They clothe themselves in self-importance. The opinions of those who work for them are irrelevant. These "princes" believe that direct contact with the king somehow makes them as powerful as the king.

The most desirable community, it seems to me, is one where every member, whether leader or not, fully understands that they are serving a higher purpose; where there is no self-aggrandizement, no delusion of grandeur interfering with their dedication and perseverance. Fortunate is that community whose leaders understand that they are NOT royalty. Equally fortunate are the leaders and workers who serve that community which does not treat them like slaves, but rather as partners. I am thankful to be a member of such a community! May it be thus for all of us.

Shabbat Shalom! Chag Urim Sameach!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Rabbi Emeritus
Temple B’nai Hayim
הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם ?אֵיזֶהוּ חָכָם
Who is wise? The one who learns from every person.
Ben Zoma - Pirkei Avot 4:1

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