28 | DECEMBER 10 • 2020
SPIRIT
Everyday ‘Miracles’
A
t this time each year,
at the holiday of
Chanukah, we read
Parshat Vayeshev. The rabbis
of old found connections
between the two.
In this week’s por-
tion, we learn that
Joseph is sent by his
father to check on his
brothers who were
in Shechem, where
they had gone to
pasture their father’s
flock. When Joseph
reached Shechem, a
man approached him;
Joseph asked the man
if he knew where the
brothers were. The
man told him that
they had left and gone
to Dothan.
The rabbis looked at
Joseph’s encounter with this
unknown, unnamed man
with great interest. They
wondered who this man
was and why he was there.
Many commentators posit
that his sudden appearance
in this story was no accident.
They believe he was put
there by God to help Joseph
find his brothers and to put
into motion all of the events
which occurred afterwards:
Joseph being cast into a pit
by his brothers, sold into
slavery and winding up in
Pharaoh’s household, where
he eventually saved the peo-
ple from famine.
During Chanukah we
recall the story of the
Hasmonean family (also
known as the Maccabees)
who fight against Antiochus
Epiphanes’ army to reclaim
the Temple, which had been
conquered and dedicated to
Zeus. The Talmud tells us
that when the Temple had
been rededicated, there was
only one jar of oil available
for lighting the Temple
lamps. It should have been
sufficient for only one day;
but miraculously, the oil last-
ed eight days. From where
did that miracle come? The
rabbis understood that mir-
acles come from God.
They weren’t comfort-
able with people cele-
brating Chanukah as
solely a military victory,
so they injected God
into the story with the
idea of the miracle of
the oil.
And so, we see God
in both the Joseph story
and the Chanukah
story. This parashah is
studied at the time of
Chanukah as a remind-
er for us to look for
God and miracles in
our daily lives. We are also
reminded in our daily liturgy
to look for the nisim b’khol
yom (everyday miracles). We
never know when a seem-
ingly insignificant encounter
might serve a holy purpose,
such as a man helping Joseph
along his journey, which
eventually led to his saving
people from a famine.
We never know when one
encounter with someone
(perhaps even a stranger!) or
one simple act of kindness
will change our lives; nor do
we know when we do one act
of kindness if it will change
the life of someone else.
As we celebrate the ancient
miracles this Chanukah, may
we look for the miracles in
our own lives and make mir-
acles happen for the people
around us.
Rabbi Amy B. Bigman is rabbi at
Congregation Shaarey Zedek in East
Lansing.
TORAH PORTION
Rabbi Amy
Bigman
Parshat
Vayeshev:
Genesis
37:1-40:23;
Zacharia
2:14-4:7.
Contact Larry Allan
33700 Woodward Ave. • Between 14 Mile & Adams • Birmingham, MI
If you are not wearing it… sell it!...
or BORROW on it!
You can’t enjoy jewelry if it’s sitting in your safe
deposit box. Sell or borrow on it for immediate cash.
We deal in jewelry, watches, diamonds and coins.
A Service to
Private Owners,
Banks & Estates
33700 Woodward Ave. • Between 14 Mile & Adams • Birmingham, MI
248-644-8565
Coins & Jewelry
If you are not wearing it… sell it!...
We deal in jewelry, watches, diamonds and coins.
Happy Chanukah
Blessings
be with you
this festival
of lights and
always!
DeVinney Czarnecki Physical Therapy
6020 W. Maple, Suite 500, W. Bloomfield
248-851-6999
www.dcptonline.com
To my friends
past and present,
Good memories
forever.
Judy Jassenoff
12/10/2020