Consider Joseph again in this week’s portion Vayyigash. By the time we reach the climactic scene of the Joseph story in our reading, Joseph has finally learned that he is more than his accomplishments. Recall that much earlier, Joseph, the obnoxious brat, dreamed of rising to power over his brothers and all too eagerly would crow about his destiny to anyone who would listen. Now Joseph has grown into a man of means, a ruler second only to the Pharaoh of Egypt, able to throw his weight around and play power games, which he did with his brothers in last week’s portion.
But this week the games come to an end. Joseph reveals his identity in the emotional scene you described. Simply and without pretense he announces, “I am Joseph.”
When the brothers respond in slack-jawed disbelief, he insists, “I am Joseph your brother whom you sold into Egypt.” And further: “This was all God’s doing… “God sent me before you came so that I could save you.”
Joseph has come to see his own success as God’s providence, situating him in order to save his family. Surely Joseph knows that he is an intelligent, talented, charismatic man whose leadership saved Egypt from national ruin. But in the end, he offers no triumphal boast. He can only thank God with humility.
I believe that Judaism has no quarrel with a person climbing the ladder of success and even wielding his influence for good causes, but my teacher, Rabbi Les Gutterman, has pointed out that Judaism would also ask us to remain “open to the possibility that we may well be where we are at some critical moment in time because of some divine mandate that only we can carry out.”
As we consider Joseph as an inspirational role model of a mature, sensible faith, I'd also like to draw your attention to a question I was recently asked on my anonymous Ask the Rabbi forum provided by social media outlet Formspring. The questioner asks, "What do you think of atheists and agnostics?" I enjoyed tackling this challenging subject. I hope you enjoy, and keep your questions coming. Again, click here for the link.
Rabbi Blake, hello.
ReplyDeleteYou call Joseph a "self-centered teenager". I beg to differ.
He hung around the kids of the two maidservants, to boost their morale against Leah's sons, who behaved superiorly to them. He knew he could be in trouble going to Dotan, because of his brother's hatred to him - but he listened to his father's instruction to visit them anyhow. He was a righteous Jew - not a "spoiled brat". You obviously refer to the dreams he reported. He knew, as did his father, his dreams carried substance. He learned with his father every day. His father raised ALL his children to be G-d fearing, and good people.
There are quirks that come about, by divine providence, to guide the history of the Jewish people, thus the unusual rationale adopted by the brothers to hate and get rid of Joseph, but the end of the story proves that the first part too is one dealing with 12 righteous Jews.
Even before Joseph arrived with his family to the Holy Land, on the way when they met Esau, and Yakov asked each of his wives and their respective children to greet Esau, Joseph showed he was a mature man, a righteous man - not a "kid". When his mother Rachel and he were next to confront Esau, Joseph got IN FRONT OF his mother, so that Esau's eyes could not behold her clearly because Joseph knew she was beautiful and did not want Esau to leer at her.
How do we know he learned Torah every day with his father? One way we know, we found out in last week's portion. The son sent his father a reminder of the laws he last learned with his him - the laws of the Eglah Arufa. This is why, when the wagons laden with food arrived from Egypt, as a gift from Pharoah, the Torah states they were "the wagons sent by Joseph". But Joseph DID NOT send them; it was just that this served well for Joseph's purposes to ask his brothers to draw his dad'd attention to the wagons as PROOF he was alive in Egypt - knowing his father would get the hint - because WAGON in Hebrew has the same letter as EGLAH, that which he last learned with his dad. In fact, the other two times Torah mentions the wagons, it clearly states they were sent by Pharoah.
One other thing, if you'll allow me.
He never "climbed to success". He was THRUST there - in a matter of a few minutes! Going from dungeon slave (after 12 years) to King's viceroy, as fast as you can shave and shower. This had nothing to do with him "climbing" - because he never changed. He did his "growing up" a long time ealrlier. He was a righteous person in Potifar's house, invoking G-d all the time and avoiding the temptress; He interpreted the dreams of the King's butlers by invoking G-d; And he was the same Joseph when he appeared before Pharoah.