Parashat
Miketz
28 Kislev 5778 / 15-16
December 2017
Torah: Genesis 41:1 -
44:17
Maftir: Numbers 7:30-35
(Hanukkah Day 4)
Haftarah: Zechariah
2:14 - 4:7 (Shabbat Hanukkah)
Calendar and dedications follow below. For a full calendar of events and
other info about Temple
Please feel free to pass this on to a friend, and please cite the source.
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GET WISE!
‘And Pharaoh said to
Joseph, “I dreamt a dream and there is no interpretation for it, but I have
heard it said of you that for you to hear a dream is to interpret it.” And
Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “Not I! God will answer regarding
Pharaoh’s welfare.”’ Genesis 41:15-16
Joseph is a slave and a
prisoner, who has suffered at the hands of his brothers, Midianites,
Ishmaelites and Egyptians for many years. This is his big opportunity to gain
his freedom, by impressing Pharaoh with his wisdom. Yet, he tells Pharaoh that
the interpretation of the dream will come from God. In last week’s
parashah as well, Joseph did not claim the mantle of prophet or wise man. (“Do
not interpretations belong to God?” 40:8) It seems that God is always
on his mind. (“How then can I do this great evil and sin against
God?” Genesis 39:9; Also see Genesis 41:25; 28; 32)
What is going on with
Joseph? Consider Job 28:12 (Job was another who suffered greatly) - “And
wisdom, where (mei’ayin) will it be found? For is this (v’ei zeh) the
place of understanding?” The answer lies buried within the same verse, for
“mei’ayin” and “ei zeh” each has two different meanings, so that the verse may
also be read - “And wisdom, from nothingness (mei’ayin) will it be
found. And what (v’ei zeh) a place of understanding!”
Pharaoh asks, “Can we find
such a one as this, a man in whom is the spirit of God?” and tells Joseph, “As
God has shown you all this, there is none as discerning and wise as you.”
Joseph’s humility and refusal to despair, even in the nothingness of jail,
ultimately save him and bring him to greatness. It is through his trust in God
that he saves his family (and not incidentally, Egypt
“The beginning of wisdom
is to hold God in awe.” Psalms 111.10; Proverbs 9:10. I pray that we
follow the model of Joseph, and get wise.
Shabbat Shalom
V'Chag Urim Sameach!
Rabbi Richard A. Flom
Blogging at: http://rav-rich.blogspot.com/
Visit me on Facebook
Twitter: @DrahcirMolf
"שתיקה
כהודאה דמיא"
"Silence in the face of wrongdoing is consent.”
BT Yevamot 88a
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Candlelighting: 4:27 pm
Friday – Shabbat Evening Service at 7:30
pm, followed by Oneg Shabbat.
Saturday – Breakfast and Torah study -
8:45 am. Shabbat Morning Service – 9:30 am. Kiddush luncheon follows. TBH/CBM Hanukkah
Happening! – 6:30 pm - Havdalah, Light Dinner (with latkes, of
course!), Communal Menorah Lighting (bring yours along!), songs, etc. No
charge, but donations welcome. RSVP to TBH/CBM office ASAP! Sponsored by Lynda
and Tony Foster, and Gina and Bernie Seeman, in honor of their respective
wedding anniversaries.
Sunday – NO Religious School
Wednesday – Jewish Heritage Night with the LA
Clippers. For details see my blog post at:
This d’var
torah is offered in honor of Gina and Bernie Seeman, and Lynda and Tony Foster,
celebrating their respective wedding anniversaries this week. Mazal tov!
This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Avi
Shmuel Yosef Hakohen ben Bella, Ze’ev ben Adeline, HaRav Chana Rivka bat
Doronit, Yaakov Rani Ben Margalit, Eilite bat Miryam, HaRav Tzvi
Hersh ben Frimet, Sarah bat Devorah, Hiroe Andriola, Susan Arbetman, Ken Bitticks,
Jerry Daniels, Maya Fersht (Maya bat Esther), Dr. Samuel Fersht (Shmuel Natan
ben Gittel), Leonard Foint (Eliezer Moshe ben Esther), Jerry Forman, Bernard
Garvin, Myra Goodman, Leah Granat, Simon Hartmann, Brandon Joseph, Gabor Klein,
Philip Kovac, Tonya Kronzek (Zlata Malkah bat Sarah Emanu), Lyndia Lowy (Leah
bat Sarah), David Marks, Debra Schugar Strauss (Devorah bat Chaya Feiga), Helen
Schugar (Chaya Feiga bat Kreina), Jonathan Woolf, and Meagan Yudell.
Please let me know if there is anyone you would like to
add to this list or if there is anyone who may be removed from this list.
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