DECEMBER 5 • 2019 | 37
A
nd he dreamed, and
behold a ladder set up
on the Earth, and the
top of it reached to heaven;
and behold the angels of God
ascending and descending
on it.
”
Dreams have a unique
capacity to inspire us to aim
higher, to remain
focused on a distant
goal even when the
present circumstances
give us little reason for
optimism. But what
happens when the gap
between dream and
reality seems insur-
mountable? Jacob’
s
dreams shine a light
on this question and
offer insights into his
evolution as a person,
as well as lessons about
his descendants’
mis-
sion in the world and
destiny as a nation.
Jacob begins his journey
from his father’
s home into
exile with the loftiest of
dreams: a ladder rooted in
the ground while reaching up
to the heavens. This symbol-
izes his and his descendants’
Divine mandate: to unify
heaven and Earth so that the
Divine Presence can be mani-
fest in the world.
Unfortunately, Jacob’
s long
sojourn with his father-in-
law, Laban, has a corrupting
influence on him. To hold his
own with his devious employ-
er, Jacob perfects the art of
deception; and, in time, the
bright nephew even out-La-
bans his clever uncle, becom-
ing wealthy in his own right.
His new dream after a peri-
od in Laban-land: “
And I saw
in a dream and behold, rams
that leapt upon the sheep were
speckled, spotted and striped.
”
Jacob now dreams of mate-
rial success devoid of any spir-
itual component.
He soon receives the
life-changing command: “I
have seen everything Laban
is doing to you … rise, leave
this land and return to the
land of your birthplace.
” In
other words, leave the land of
obsession with material-
ism. Return to the land
— and to the dream —
of your forefathers who
walked with God.
Jacob must have been
devastated. He must have
seen himself as an abject
failure; he must have
questioned whether he
would ever succeed in
achieving his original
aspirations.
When he leaves
Laban’
s home, Jacob
has a third dream. “
And
Jacob went on his way
and he was met there by
angels of God …
”
This dream is a parallel to
the one that opened the read-
ing. This time, however, there
is no ladder, but instead two
distinct encampments, family
compounds, one outside Israel
and the other in Israel.
The message is dramatic:
Uniting heaven and Earth
requires more than ascending
a spiritual ladder. It requires
making an impact on the
world around us by building a
family dedicated to God and
Torah in the Land of Israel —
and not to materialism as in
Laban’
s house of exile.
Earth’
s mountain tops are
that very ladder that connects
the human with the Divine,
and the Jew to his eternal
dream of a united world.
Rabbi Shlomo Riskin is chancellor of
Ohr Torah Stone and chief rabbi of
Efrat, Israel.
Parshat
Vayetze:
Genesis
28-10-32:3;
Hosea
12:13-14:10.
Rabbi Shlomo
Riskin
Spirit
torah portion
Daring To Dream
How
has
one
of
t
he
ol
des
t
cit
ies
in
t
he
worl
d
become
one
of
t
he
hot
t
es
t
cit
ies
f
or
s
t
art
ups
?
AT
A F H U . O R G /J E R U S A L E M T E C H
The
Hebr
ew
Uni
ver
si
ty
of
Jer
usal
em’
s
r
esear
ch
has
l
ed
to
over
130
l
i
fe-
enhanci
ng
commer
ci
al
ventur
es that pr
ovi
de r
evol
uti
onar
y pr
oducts
and
ser
vi
ces
to
peopl
e
ever
ywher
e.
Our
most
successful
technol
ogy
ventur
e
i
s
i
ntegr
ated
i
n
over
25
mi
l
l
i
on
vehi
cl
es
wor
l
dwi
de.
Si
nce
1925,
Amer
i
can Fr
i
ends of the Hebr
ew Uni
ver
si
ty
has connected the passi
ons of Amer
i
cans
wi
th i
nnovati
on at the Hebr
ew Uni
ver
si
ty.
KNOWLEDGE
MOVES
US.
JUDITH
SHENKMAN
Mi
dwest
Regi
on
Executi
ve
Di
r
ector
T:
312.
329.
0332
E:
jshenkman@afhu.
or
g