Weekly Message

19 December 2024

At the beginning of this week’s parashah, Vayeshev, Yosef sets out on a journey. He meets a stranger who asks him where he is going. Yosef answers “Et ahai anokhi m’vakesh — I am searching for my brothers” — ironic words, since the “brothers” that he is searching for will sell him into slavery. But Yosef’s words do offer us a glimpse of what could be, what it might mean for brothers to be truly concerned for one another.

In the story of Hanukah, which begins next Wednesday night, we see what brothers who are truly brothers can accomplish. The Maccabees restored light to a world that had gone dark, and they did it through their solidarity with one another.

We cannot bring God’s light into this world alone. That is why we start with those closest to us, our family and community. In loving them, we learn what it might mean to recognize and honor the sacred sparks in those outside our circle as well. And the love that we receive from family and community give us the strength to do that work. Searching for our brothers and sisters, seeking out the best in them — and in the process finding the best in ourselves — enables us to spread God’s light more widely.

May our shul always be a place of light and warmth for us. And together may we bring more light and warmth into the larger world.