This is my favorite portion in the entire Torah, and often brings me to tears. After Judah's passionate plea on behalf of Benjamin, Joesph reveals himself to his brothers, and comforts them, saying their sin was part of God's plan.
Pharaoh, too, is delighted, and urges Joseph to bring his family, including his elderly father, to Egypt. Pharaoh adds: "Do not even give a thought to your belongings." (44:20). There perhaps is an important lesson in that remark.
When we make changes, we have to commit to them. Jacob and his sons would have to leave the Promised Land to descend to Egypt. In doing so, they would certainly have been wondering if they were making a reasonable choice.
Were they not already in the Promised Land? Why wouldn't they stay there once they had arrived? Hadn't it been hard enough to return once, when Jacob -- now Israel -- had to face the prospect of war and death at the hands of Esau?
Sometimes we have to make choices that turn out to be part of our overall destiny, even if they do not appear at first to be in line with our goals. That does not mean giving up on our goals, but perhaps giving up a level of control.
Note that Pharaoh -- at this stage, a God-fearing character -- does not tell them to forget about the Land of Israel. He tells them to forget about their "belongings" -- their material possessions that they must one day lose anyway.
We have to let go of things that do not matter in order to make choices that take us down unexpected paths toward the things that matter most. And we have to trust that God Himself in in charge of our overall mission and journey.
I should have noted in my message about the weekly Torah portion that this week is Shabbat Chazon, the Sabbath of Vision. We are about to mourn -- but see through that pain to something better that lies beyond, on the other side.
Wishing you the best vision -- and an incredible reality to follow. It happens!
We begin the final speech of Moses to the people of Israel before they enter the Promised Land. He relates the ups and downs of the years of wandering in the desert, before, finally, the people have the merit to enter the land itself.
This Sabbath always precedes Tisha B'Av, the Ninth of Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. It is the anniversary of the destruction of both of the Holy Temples, and a catch-all for many calamities that befell the Jewish people.
A word on Tisha B'Av. This year I am leaving for an overseas trip during the afternoon of the holiday -- in the middle of a fast day. Not idea, but there was no other choice. But my flight is in the afternoon, which is significant.
We relax some of the harsh, mournful customs of the day in the afternoon. We start to pray normally; we sit on regular chairs; we start to have hope again in the redemption that will, one day, lead us all back from exile to our home.
I'll be taking a trip to a land where an important part of ...
President Trump is in Scotland, playing golf and making big trade deals -- a major deal with the EU, in fact. Meanwhile, there is a global outcry about humanitarian aid to Palestinians (not about the Israeli hostages, mind you).
On top of that, Democrats are at their lowest polling numbers ever -- so they are trying to win control of the House by redistricting in the middle of a 10-year Census cycle. Oh, economic optimism is up, so they have a tough road.
And Tulsi Gabbard's revelations about the Russia collusion investigation make it clear that Obama's lieutenants lied to Congress. How deeply was he himself involved? The media continue to ignore the evidence, but we certainly won't.
Special guests:
Nick Gilbertson - Breitbart News White House correspondent, on EU deal
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Trump abroad and Russia
John Spencer - urban warfare expert, on humanitarian aid and war in Gaza
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on the ...
