Weekly Message

December 20, 2024
19 Kislev 5785
PARASHAT VAYESHEV
Genesis 37:1-40:23

Dear Friends,

We all dream, but remembering our dreams is something else entirely. This Torah portion has many dreams at its centerpiece. The theme of dreams continues into next week. Modern medicine tells us that dreams are stories and images that our minds create while we sleep. Dreaming can be beneficial by helping the brain process information and the experiences of our day. However, sharing your dreams may not always be so beneficial as we see with Joseph as he shares his dreams, which reflect his father’s favoritism of him over his eleven brothers. Joseph’s dream sharing leads to him being thrown into a pit and being sold into servitude in Egypt.

This week’s Torah portion, Vayeshev, "and he settled" (Genesis 37:1 - 40:23), is filled with dreams and their interpretations. Joseph goes from being someone who is self-centered to being a man who has begun to fathom that the world does not revolve around him and that being present for those around him will make a difference.

Joseph is changed deeply by his experiences in a way that is not true for his father Jacob. Joseph’s journey is that of the central figure who is transformed by the various experiences that come his way. Neither he nor his father is perfect, but Joseph more than Jacob can be an exemplar to all of us. He is a man who grows in stature, not because he becomes second to Pharoah but rather because he can see beyond himself and his own suffering.

Toward the end of this Torah portion, we find Joseph in prison as a result of being falsely accused of assaulting a woman - his boss’s wife. Although we learn that he is given some level of responsibility while still being a prisoner, he is still a prisoner who is unsure of what his ultimate fate will be and is living in a land not his own.

So when his fellow prisoners - the cupbearer and the baker who he has been attending - appear distraught on the same morning. Joseph notices. He could have assumed that it was simply their fall from grace that disturbed them. He asks of them “why do you appear downcast today?” Why should he care; why should he notice?

Although Joseph goes on to hear each man share his dream and then interprets them, it is the moment before that has the power to give us pause. The ability to see and acknowledge the pain of others while not necessarily being in the most secure place oneself is incredibly powerful.

As we find ourselves in a tumultuous world, may we find the strength to be there for others. Joseph notices and asks questions. May we remember to see and to ask as we journey forward. When we do so, we strengthen one another.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Linda Shriner-Cahn