Parshas Bo

We are finally reaching Klal Yisroel's long-awaited exodus from Egypt. Preparing to leave the country of their bondage at long last, the Jews attempted to bake bread to take with them as provisions for the way. However, Hashem had other plans: they did not have enough time for the dough to rise and be baked as normal bread - instead, they had to carry the dough on their backs, where the hot Mediterranean sun baked it into matzos. Which, incidentally, was the same bread that they ate while suffering in Egypt. Why did Hashem bring about that the "bread of freedom" ended up being exactly like the bread of slavery?

Perhaps the answer is that at first glance, the pain and suffering in Egypt may seem to have been merely an unnecessary, miserable experience that would have been better off avoided if it had been possible. Therefore, Hashem made the bread of their freedom exactly like the bread of slavery to show them that it was not so: just like they understood and appreciated the obvious good in freedom, so to they must learn to understand and appreciate the not-so-obvious good in their slavery. And what good could there possibly be in slavery? The opportunity for Klal Yisroel to perfect themselves. Chazal tell us that the slavery in Egypt was for the Jews like a "kur habarzel" - an iron blast furnace - which purified us and forged us into the nation that merited to receive the Torah.

We must remember this principle in our everyday lives. When things don't go our way, when life's challenges seem nearly insurmountable, we must realize that the hardships we face are not in vain. Hashem is providing us with opportunities to grow, and to refine our neshamos. And if we accept our challenges with the right attitude, then we can use them as stepping stones to reach greater achievement than we ever would have thought imaginable.

Parshas Va'eira

In this week's parsha, the Torah tells us about Moshe and Aharon's many visits to Pharaoh's palace on Klal Yisroel's behalf, attempting to have the Yidden freed. In writing about them, the Torah sometimes mentions Moshe first, while other times mentioning Aharon first. Rashi notes this discrepancy, and points out that the Torah did it intentionally to tell us that Moshe and Aharon were of equal greatness, that neither of them was more holy than the other. But how can that be? It is well known that in absolute terms, Moshe was far greater than Aharon! Moshe Rabbeinu spoke directly to Hashem - "peh el peh adaber bo" - so how can we say that Aharon was on the same level as him?!

The answer is that in Yiddishkeit, we do not measure greatness in absolute terms, but rather in relative terms. If a person does his Avodas Hashem to the very best of his potential, Hashem values it as much as the avodah of great tzaddikim. While Moshe was an "Ish Elokim", attaining the highest levels of nevu'ah, Aharon's task was his association with people - being an "ohev shalom v'rodef shalom" - a task at which his excellence was legendary. And that is why the pasuk equates Moshe and Aharon - in Hashem's eyes, since Aharon worked to serve Hashem to the best of his ability, he was considered equivalent to Moshe Rabbeinu, the tzaddik hador.

We can learn from here an important perspective on how one should perceive his Avodas Hashem. A person does not need to reach the same spiritual heights as the gadol hador in order to be special in Hashem's eyes; rather, he must focus on his own personal mission, on what Hashem expects of him. And when a person internalizes this concept, he can unlock the greatness within himself, and rise to his own unique spiritual heights.

Inspired by the teachings of Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, zatzal.

Parshas Shemos

In this week's parsha, the Torah tells us how Moshe Rabbeinu was born. Additionally, the Torah tells us how he got his name, Moshe: when Basya, the daughter of Pharaoh, saw his casket floating in the Nile, she reached out and pulled him from the water, naming him Moshe because "from the water he was drawn (meshisihu)". But Moshe was already three months old at that point - didn't he already have a name given to him by his parents? Indeed, the medrash tells us he had no less than ten names in total - so why, throughout the rest of the Torah, is he referred to only as Moshe, the name given to him by the daughter of Pharaoh? Why not by one of his more "Jewish" names?

Perhaps we can answer that the Torah wanted to refer to him by the name that best describes his essence. Basya's choice of a name for him came from her extraordinary and unparalleled action - namely, the act of selflessly pulling an endangered child from the midst of a raging river. With that heroic action, she imbued little Moshe with that special virtue of selflessness. Therefore, the Torah wanted to always refer to Moshe Rabbeinu by that name, so as to emphasize and remind us of his essential trait, embodied in that name: that of selflessly caring for other people, in his capacity as shepherd of Klal Yisroel.

From this we can learn the true definition of a Jewish leader. A true leader of Klal Yisroel is not someone who is in a position of power for his own purposes, for his own glory and advancement; rather, he must be someone who is capable of total selflessness and consideration of others. Only a shepherd who is capable of placing his flock before himself can be a truly effective leader of Hashem's people.

Inspired by the teachings of R' Chaim Shmulevitz.

Parshas Vayechi

In this week's parsha, we learn how Yaakov Avinu gives his final blessings to his family, first to Yosef's children, then to his own sons. In blessing Ephraim and Menashe, Yaakov says "becha yivorech Yisroel", effectively setting Ephraim and Menashe as the benchmark for future brachos - whenever a Jewish father blesses his sons, the bracha will be that they be like Ephraim and Menashe. Why are they being rendered the "gold standard" by which to bless one's sons? The Avos and the Shevatim all preceeded them, and were all great tzaddikim, so why are they not the prototype for brachos?

The answer is that Yaakov was looking to establish the standard of an ideal Jewish nation. An ideal Jewish nation is not just a host of big tzaddikim. Rather, an ideal Jewish nation must have the unique attribute of Yosef's sons: peace. All of the other people mentioned in the Torah up to this point had either troublesome relationships with their brothers, or virtually no relationship at all. Ephraim and Menashe were the first pair of brothers who not only related to one another, but did so in peace and harmony. Even when Yaakov placed Ephraim before Menashe, Menashe did not get angry or jealous, but rather accepted his standing willingly. And that level of sholom is what Yaakov wanted as an integral part of all brachos for generations to come.

The lesson here is obvious: how important peace is to the Jewish nation. To many of us, peace is somewhat underrated. We realize that it is important, but we fail to realize how crucial it is to a being a Jew, how it is a critical part of our identity. Making peace with our fellow Jews is even more important than making peace with our enemies. And if we indeed do succeed in doing so, then we will be zoche to to the ultimate peace of "no nation shall raise a sword against another", with the arrival of Moshiach Tzidkeinu, speedily in our days.

Parshas Vayigash

In this week's parsha, the Torah tells us how the Shevatim came to Yaakov Avinu and told him that Yosef was alive, and that he was a viceroy in Egypt. To their great surprise, however, he did not believe them, until he saw the wagons which Yosef had sent. Why would Yaakov not believe them? Surely something as serious as this is no joking matter! If the Shevatim make so bold a statement as to say that Yosef is alive, surely they are serious about what they are saying! And if they are indeed not to be believed, how did the sight of the wagons change anything? What did seeing the wagons tell Yaakov that the Shevatim themselves did not?

Perhaps we could suggest that Yaakov actually believed that Yosef was still physically alive; but he did not believe that he was still spiritually alive. When he heard that Yosef was a viceroy in Egypt, the very core of immorality, the Yosef that he knew was as good as dead to him. "Is this what I was hoping for?" he thought. "Were all my hopes and tefillos for my son to become an Egyptian viceroy, estranged from Torah and mitzvos?" It was only when he saw the wagons, and understood the hint that Yosef was sending him - the word "agolos" symbolizing that he still remembered the sugya of egla arufa, which was the last thing they learned together - that Yaakov realized that his favorite son was indeed still a fully religious Torah scholar, living the way his father always wanted him to. And that is why "vatechi ruach Yaakov" - the spirit of Yaakov was revived.

The lesson we learn from Yaakov Avinu is that as Torah Jews, we do not measure success by fame, fortune, or power. Despite how the gentile culture surrounding us may try to indoctrinate us, "my son the doctor", "my son the lawyer", or even "my son the senator", for that matter, is not what we strive and hope for. The definition of true Yiddish nachas is having children that follow the ways of Hashem, and establishing a home based on true Torah values above all else.