VaYishalch: Modern Insights to Ancient Stories - Sermon on 12/2/17

The following is a summary of my talk on Shabbat morning Dec. 2, 2017

There is a rabbinic axiom concerning lessons derived from the Torah. The rabbis say that sometimes a word, phrase or event in the Torah portion just jumps out and declares "darshaynee" "interpret or teach me". Such is the case this morning concerning two stories described in the portion VaYishlach.

We are familiar with the story of Jacob wrestling all night with the angel. Our Bar Mitzvah - Isaac Schofer - discussed that event in his talk earlier this morning. As Jacob prepares to reunite with his twin brother Esau, having run away from Esau's anger over 20 years before, Jacob is anxious and afraid. At night an angel confronts him and they struggle until dawn. Jacob emerges physically injured yet the angel blesses him with a new name - Israel. 

Later in the portion after Jacob and his family have returned to the land of Israel we find Dina, Jacob's only daughter, raped by the son of the king of the Canaanite city of Shechem. When her brothers hear of this crime two of them - Shimon and Levi - lead their brothers in killing all the male inhabitants of the city in vengeance. 

These two very significant stories in the annals of our Jewish history have been commented upon and taught for centuries. The traditional lessons of the wrestling match between Jacob and the angel have concerned Jacob's spirituality and his "wrestling" with his faith in God and have also concerned kashrut - the Jewish dietary laws. The site of his injury was the sciatic nerve and because Jacob was injured there we, Jews today, are not allowed to eat the hind quarter of the animal that contains that nerve. From the Dina story the rabbis have taught about Dina's disgrace and the way she seduced her assailant to rape her and they taught how Shimon and Levi's act of revenge serves to foreshadow future events concerning the tribes of Levi and Shimon.

However, these two stories cry out to be understood in more modern ways. As our Bar Mitzvah Isaac spoke this morning not only do we have to be aware of someone suffering from physical pain, but also of emotional pain. It's much easier to be sympathetic to someone's physical injury because it's there for all to see - e.g. a cast on a broken leg or thinning hair due to chemotherapy. But it's harder to understand and empathize with someone's emotional pain. The sufferer bears that pain in silence because there is no outward sign that the person is injured. Mental illness and emotional pain are poorly understood and we must strive to dig deeper in our encounters with members of the community and realize that mental illness is just as painful if not more painful than physical injury. Articles have been published recently about the dramatic rise of cases of depression among teenagers and young adults today. Just last week three teenagers in Montgomery County committed suicide. We must reach out to our community and offer our empathy and support so that we can help heal this pain.

Also, finally, women are feeling courageous enough to share their stories of sexual harassment and rape. Far too long women have been vilified by men and blamed for any harm men have done to them.. Women have felt shame, guilt and pain and it's time for us to face the truth. The story of Dina isn't about what she did to deserve it, but rather it's a story about the millennial old horrible treatment of women by men. We should applaud the women who have come forward in the #metoo campaign and we must continue to advocate for equality and justice for women in our society.

The "darshaynee" of this week's portion is clear. From one year to the next as we re-read the Torah, new lessons emerge. Despite Jacob's pain he receives a blessing. Despite Dina's rape the rabbis see the child of that rape become Jospeh's wife and her grandchildren become 2 of the 12 tribes of Israel. (see this midrash and a full fictional expansion in  The Red Tent by Anita Diamant). Just as Dina and Jacob were blessed despite their injuries so may we see the day when all who feel pain can be blessed.

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