Parshat Vayetzei

In this week’s parashah, Vayetzei, Yaakov dreams of a ladder rising up to heaven, with angels ascending and descending on it. The Degel Mahane Efrayim drew a lesson from that dream about how we grow as human beings.  There are times when we feel stuck and immovable.  But  that “stuckness” can be like that of the ladder, which needs to be fixed in place on the ground in order for us to be able to climb higher on it.  Every low point in our lives can be an opportunity to grow.  And, just as the angels both ascended and descended, the same is true for us.  Going down is sometimes a pre-requisite for going up.

The setbacks that we suffer in life are often out of our control.  We do not choose them.  What we do have control over — what we can choose — is how we respond to them. The key is not to try too quickly to escape those dark moments, but — like Yaakov — to explore what we can learn while we are there. If we can learn from adversity, then our descent will have been for the sake of climbing higher.

• The New Shul’s Shabbat services are on Friday evenings from 6 to 7 pm, and on Saturday mornings from 9 am to 12 noon. The kiddush-lunch this Shabbat, December 7, will be sponsored by Dale and Alan Singer in honor of Sophie Rehrig chanting the haftarah for the first time.
• Childcare is available on Shabbat mornings from 10 am to noon.
• Minyanim during the week are on Sunday mornings at 9:30 am, and on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 6:30 pm.
• Hanukah begins on Sunday night December 22. On the Saturday night of Hanukah, December 28, please join us for our annual Hanukah Coffee House at 7:30 pm. There will be lots of music and other entertainment by our own local talent, plus home-made latkes and other refreshments. The cost is $5 per adult at the door.
• Please note that there will be no e-bulletin next Thursday, December 12. The bulletin will resume on Thursday December 19.