Jacob's Flight and has Vision at Mariah
by Ron Wexler
Jacob had left his parents to begin his personal exile that, unknown to him at the time, would include 20 years at the home of Laban, a mendacious rogue, who as the Passover Haggadah says, attempted to uproot the Jewish people. Before going to Haran, Jacob spent 14 years at the academy of Shem and Eber, a fact the sages deduce from the chronology of the period. Surely, as great a man as Jacob did not need more years to study to become a scholar. He went there for a different reason.
Rabbi Kamenetsky explained that the first 63 years of his life, he studied Torah with his father, in an atmosphere insolated from the corruption of Canaan. Now he would be living in Haran, among people who were Laban's comrades in dishonesty. To survive spiritually in such an environment, he needed the Torah of Shem and Eber, so they too had been forced to cope with corrosive surroundings. Shem had lived in the generation of the flood and Eber had lived with those who built the Tower of Babylon. Jacob's 14 years in their tutelage made it possible for him to emerge spiritually unscathed form his personal exile. That was his personal preparation of the coming ordeal. Then, God prepared him further with the vision of the Angela and the divine promise with which his portion begins. God's promise sustained him, but it was his won efforts that earned him the prophesy.
In Portion, Rabbi Bressler depicts on Jacob begins a journey to find himself a wife, and essentially begin his life. But when he sleeps and dreams of God telling him that the land he's sleeping on is Holy, he is compelled to bring sacrifices, and promises to give a percentage of what he has back to God as tithe - which we still practice today. In the Torah, however, it says that "Jacob woke up from his sleep and said 'Surely God is present in this place and I did not know'" (28:16), and shortly later it says that "Jacob woke up early in the morning and took the stone that he placed around his head and set it up as a pillar" (28:18). Did Jacob go back to sleep? It seems that he woke up twice.Furthermore, why did he suddenly feel compelled to promise to give a percentage of what he earns?
One way to answer these questions is by examining the dream Jacob had. In the dream, God told Jacob that the land he was sleeping on would be his, for his children, that He would protect Jacob, and eventually return him to his land. Why would the land, which is the least spiritual thing in the world, be so important that God had to assure Jacob thatit would be his, and that he would be returned to it? The answer to this question is also the reason Jacob 'woke up' the first time...He didn't physically wake up, but merely realized how much potential land had! As Jacob put it...."This is the gate to heaven". Through working on the land, and through using it to fulfill God's will, we can create a gate to heaven. Land is no longer just land, but has now become more spiritual, simply because it gives us more opportunities to do positive deeds, thereby becoming more spiritual. Giving a percentage of what we earn to charity is ALSO a way of using a very earthly item (money) for a higher purpose, which is why Jacob saw it necessary to commit to it right then.
We too must realize that there is NOTHING in this world that can't be used to elevate us spiritually, and it's our job to find ways to do just that. So we use Email to read Shabbat Shalom messages and other spiritual "reading material", which is great, but it shouldn't stop there. We must use food, clothes, money, and even nice scenery to bring us closer to the "gates of heaven". The sooner we realize how much potential there is for us to grow spiritually in this world, the sooner we can "get growing".
Shabbat Shalom!
Jacob had left his parents to begin his personal exile that, unknown to him at the time, would include 20 years at the home of Laban, a mendacious rogue, who as the Passover Haggadah says, attempted to uproot the Jewish people. Before going to Haran, Jacob spent 14 years at the academy of Shem and Eber, a fact the sages deduce from the chronology of the period. Surely, as great a man as Jacob did not need more years to study to become a scholar. He went there for a different reason.
Rabbi Kamenetsky explained that the first 63 years of his life, he studied Torah with his father, in an atmosphere insolated from the corruption of Canaan. Now he would be living in Haran, among people who were Laban's comrades in dishonesty. To survive spiritually in such an environment, he needed the Torah of Shem and Eber, so they too had been forced to cope with corrosive surroundings. Shem had lived in the generation of the flood and Eber had lived with those who built the Tower of Babylon. Jacob's 14 years in their tutelage made it possible for him to emerge spiritually unscathed form his personal exile. That was his personal preparation of the coming ordeal. Then, God prepared him further with the vision of the Angela and the divine promise with which his portion begins. God's promise sustained him, but it was his won efforts that earned him the prophesy.
In Portion, Rabbi Bressler depicts on Jacob begins a journey to find himself a wife, and essentially begin his life. But when he sleeps and dreams of God telling him that the land he's sleeping on is Holy, he is compelled to bring sacrifices, and promises to give a percentage of what he has back to God as tithe - which we still practice today. In the Torah, however, it says that "Jacob woke up from his sleep and said 'Surely God is present in this place and I did not know'" (28:16), and shortly later it says that "Jacob woke up early in the morning and took the stone that he placed around his head and set it up as a pillar" (28:18). Did Jacob go back to sleep? It seems that he woke up twice.Furthermore, why did he suddenly feel compelled to promise to give a percentage of what he earns?
One way to answer these questions is by examining the dream Jacob had. In the dream, God told Jacob that the land he was sleeping on would be his, for his children, that He would protect Jacob, and eventually return him to his land. Why would the land, which is the least spiritual thing in the world, be so important that God had to assure Jacob thatit would be his, and that he would be returned to it? The answer to this question is also the reason Jacob 'woke up' the first time...He didn't physically wake up, but merely realized how much potential land had! As Jacob put it...."This is the gate to heaven". Through working on the land, and through using it to fulfill God's will, we can create a gate to heaven. Land is no longer just land, but has now become more spiritual, simply because it gives us more opportunities to do positive deeds, thereby becoming more spiritual. Giving a percentage of what we earn to charity is ALSO a way of using a very earthly item (money) for a higher purpose, which is why Jacob saw it necessary to commit to it right then.
We too must realize that there is NOTHING in this world that can't be used to elevate us spiritually, and it's our job to find ways to do just that. So we use Email to read Shabbat Shalom messages and other spiritual "reading material", which is great, but it shouldn't stop there. We must use food, clothes, money, and even nice scenery to bring us closer to the "gates of heaven". The sooner we realize how much potential there is for us to grow spiritually in this world, the sooner we can "get growing".
Shabbat Shalom!
