CHOCHMAS NASHIM: WE ARE WICKS
By: Suri Davis
The rebbe taught, Likutei Sichos vol. 5, pp. 200-201; Biuray haZohar p.299: “Chasidic thought explains that the inner purpose of exile is that the Jews should be scattered around the world in order to “rescue” sparks of holiness which had been lost in physicality. Thus, redemption is not the elimination of exile, but rather, it is the goal of exile.”
It reminds me of the stories of the Simchat Torah in Crown Heights when the rebbe was still well. He would send emissaries, like torah tentacle, spread out to the far reaches and corners of New York, to bring the joy and knowledge of Torah to all outlying communities. The rebbe would not start his own Simchat Torah celebration, until every single last emissary returned from his mission.
We learn in the torah portion of Noach, that those of the tower of babel were punished by having their languages mixed and being dispersed throughout the world. These emissaries spoke the same language of their communities, the language of torah and inspiration. They were dispersed to ignite the lights of Torah that were obfuscated by the physical darkness of galus/exile. When the ultimate redemption arrives, those all over the world, will have this darkness permanently lifted, and the light of torah will bring all the nations of the world to Israel to devote time to G-d in His holy temple.
So what of exile now? We see an example from Joseph’s naming of his two children, Ephraim and Menashe. Joseph’s brothers forcibly removed him from his father’s home, influence and love. He rose to be second to no other than Pharaoh, but a look at the reasoning behind the naming of his sons is elucidating:
Genesis 41:51: Joseph named his firsborn Menashe, because “G-d has caused me to forget all my hardships and all that was in my father’s house.” I can understand wanting to forget all his hardships, but to want to forget all that was in his father’s house, gave me pause.
Looking a few verses ahead, we see that when Egyptians turned to Pharaoh for food during the famine, Pharaoh sent them to Joseph. The concept, possibly, being that it is harder for a father/king to deny his children food, even if ultimately, it will save the family, than an outsider, like Joseph. It is hard to turn away family, [as we see later with Joseph and his brothers, spoiler.] This might give us insight as to why Joseph wants to remember “all that was in my father’s house.” What can one say about the brother/tribes, foundations of Israel, that not only were they callous to Joseph, and threw him in a pit, sold him as a slave, but they were also callous to their father and his pain and all the years, possibly his lifetime that he would mourn the loss of a son, who was not actually dead, but betrayed by his other sons. How could family, ALL TEN OF THEM, be so callous. Oh the pain, surely pain which one would want to forget and get past.
Joseph then has another son, Ephraim, so named “G-d has made me fruitful in the land of my subjugation.” Joseph acknowledges he was fruitful via G-d’s hands, but the people of Egypt, of their own nature, subjugated him. He was a house servant falsely accused of immoral acts, thrown into jail, forgotten there, and redeemed only by G-d’s intervention, as interpreter of Pharaoh’s dreams, and to ultimately save the family which had betrayed him. A super-uber act of kindness to those whom he declared he wanted to forget.
As second to the king, at any point, Joseph could have reached out to his family. Clearly he had no desire. It was only when his brothers came to Egypt, clearly through G-d’s clear intervention, that Joseph understood his function of all that had occurred prior, which brought him to the moment of saving his family from hunger.
G-d sends emissaries to far reaches of the earth, so they can bring the light of torah to the farthest darkest pockets of the world. He does so in preparation of redemption, when the Messiah comes and reunites all who see G-d’s rulership of all and everything on earth.
Shabbat shalom.
Chag Sameach.
Gutten chodesh.
-Suri