MiketzArtscroll p.222 | Shevi’i p.890 | Maftir p.768 | Haftarah p.1210Hertz p.155 | Shevi’i p.695 | Maftir p.599 | Haftarah p.987Soncino p.252 | Shevi’i p.944 | Maftir p.830 | Haftarah p.857

Shabbat Rosh Chodesh and Shabbat Chanukah 5780

Sunday is also Rosh Chodesh

Volume 32No. 14

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In loving memory of Malka bat Peretz

“The earth produced during the seven years of abundance by the handfuls… Joseph amassed grainlike the sand of the sea in great abundance until he ceased counting, for there was no number(Bereishit 41:48-49).

28 December 2019 30 Kislev 5780

Shabbat ends London 4.52pmJerusalem 5.23pm

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Rabbi Editor-in-Chief: Rabbi Baruch DavisEditorial and Production Team: Rabbi Daniel Sturgess, Rabbi Michael Laitner, Joanna Rose, Rebbetzen Nechama DavisAvailable also via email US website www.theus.org.uk ©United SynagogueTo sponsor Daf Hashavua please contact Danielle Fox on 020 8343 6261, or dfox@theus.org.ukIf you have any comments or questions regarding Daf Hashavua please email landl@theus.org.uk

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Sidrah Summary: Miketz

1st Aliya (Kohen) – Bereishit 41:1-14

Pharaoh dreams that he is by the River Nile, fromwhich seven healthy cows emerge. Seven lean cows follow them out of the river and consume them. Pharaoh then dreams about seven good ears of grain on a stalk, which are swallowed up by seven thin ears growing after them. Pharaoh’smagicians cannot interpret the dreams satisfactorily.The cupbearer, who had been imprisoned with Yosef,tells Pharaoh that Yosef interprets dreams. Pharaohsummons Yosef from prison.

Question: What did Yosef do before leaving theprison? (41:14) Answer on bottom of page 6.

2nd Aliya (Levi) – 41:15-38

Pharaoh relates both dreams to Yosef, who explainsthat there will be seven years of plenty, followed byseven years of famine. He advises Pharaoh toappoint someone to oversee grain storage during theyears of plenty.

3rd Aliya (Shlishi) – 41:39-52

Pharaoh appoints Yosef as viceroy of Egypt toimplement his economic plan. Pharaoh gives Yosefhis ring, dresses him in regal clothes, changes hisname and gives him a lady called Asenat to marry.They have two sons, Menashe and Ephraim. Yoseforganises mass grain storage during the seven yearsof plenty.

4th Aliya (Revi’i) – 41:53-42:1

The famine begins and the Egyptians are starving.Yosef sells them spare provisions. There is also afamine in Cana’an. Yaakov tells his sons, apart fromBinyamin, to go to buy food in Egypt. The sons arrivein Egypt. Yosef recognises them but they do notrecognise him. Yosef accuses them of spying andimprisons them; they will only be released after oneof them goes to fetch Binyamin.

5th Aliya (Chamishi) – 42:19-43:15

Three days later, Yosef changes the conditions. Oneof the brothers must stay in prison; the others mustgo to Cana’an to bring Binyamin. Yosef imprisonsShimon and sends back the brothers with grain intheir bags. Yosef also plants money in the bags.During their journey, Levi discovers the money in

his bag and fears that Yosef will accuse them of theft(Rashi). The brothers arrive home and tell Yaakovtheir story. They discover that in fact each one ofthem has money ‘planted’ in his bag. Yaakov refusesto let Binyamin go. Yehuda persists, guaranteeingBinyamin’s safety. Yaakov finally agrees, telling themto take a tribute for Yosef, in addition to the original‘planted money’ and payment for the new grain.Point to Consider: Why did Yosef specifically chooseto imprison Shimon? (see Rashi to 42:24)

6th Aliya (Shishi) – 43:16-44:17

The brothers arrive in Egypt. Yosef instructs hischamberlain to invite his brothers to come in and eat a meal. Shimon is released. Yosef asks them ifYaakov is still alive. He identifies and blessesBinyamin.Overcome with emotion, Yosef rushes to his room,cries, composes himself, then returns and gives themall food. Yosef orders them to be sent home, but hashis own silver goblet ‘planted’ in Binyamin’s sack.Yosef’s chamberlain chases after them, accusingthem of stealing the goblet. After denying the charge,they find the cup in Binyamin’s sack. They return tothe palace. Yosef demands that Binyamin remain ashis slave, allowing the others to leave. Yehuda saysthat they will all stay as slaves, not just Binyamin.

7th Aliya (Shevi’i) – (Bemidbar 28:9-15)

The reading for Shabbat Rosh Chodesh is taken fromparashat Pinchas and details the additional Shabbatand Rosh Chodesh offerings in the Temple.

Maftir (Bemidbar 7:42-47)

The special Maftir reading for Chanukah is taken fromparashat Nasso, which details the offerings broughtby the tribal heads to celebrate the inauguration ofthe Mishkan.

Haftarah

Yehoshua was the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) at the time of the inauguration of the second Temple.The prophet Zecharia describes an angel warningYehoshua to listen to God’s laws and perform the Temple services properly. The angel showsYehoshua a Menorah with olive trees on either side ofit, symbolising prosperity and spirituality.

In 1999, an experiment wasconducted by the Department ofPsychology, Harvard University,involving a video of two teamspassing a basketball amongstthem. Viewers were asked towatch and count the number ofpasses between the players.

Halfway through the video a person wearing afull-body gorilla suit entered the scene, stood fora few seconds beating their chest and thenwalked off. When simply watching the video, the gorilla is impossible to miss. But the peoplewere asked to focus on something else – to count the number of passes – and about half of them did not see the gorilla at all. Thecreators of the experiment, Daniel J. Simons andChristopher F. Chabris expanded on this idea in their book “The Invisible Gorilla: How ourIntuitions deceive us”. As the authors state: “We think we see ourselves and the world asthey really are, but we're actually missing awhole lot.”1

While the book focusses on attention,perception and memory flaws that make us miss out on things right in front of us, sometimesthere can be other reasons too. Sometimes wecan fail to see things because, knowingly or not,we just do not want to see.

In this week’s parasha the brothers go down to Egypt in search of food, and there theyencounter the Viceroy who accuses them ofspying. We can imagine that the fear they felt as they awaited their fate might have beengreatly lessened had they known that the oneimprisoning them was actually their brother. Why did they not realise that it was Yosef whowas standing before them?

The Torah (Bereshit 42:8) states explicitly thatYosef recognized his brothers, but they did notrecognize him. Rashi (1040-1105) explains that this was because when they had last seen him,

Yosef did not have a beard. Only in the interimhad he grown one and was thus unrecognisableto them.

Surely, even with the addition of a beard, andeven with the passage of time, the older brothersshould still have been able to recognize theirbrother’s face. The Ramban (1190-1274) addsanother reason – that they didn’t recognize himbecause it had not entered their heads that theslave they sold in the desert could ever becomea ruler over the mighty Egyptian Empire. Perhapsthe impediment to the brothers’ recognisingYosef was not physical but psychological.

Perhaps we can add to the Ramban’s approach,that recognising that Yosef stood before them as the Viceroy of Egypt would have meantadmitting their mistake all those years ago. ThatYosef’s dreams had come true and that they hadbeen wrong to cast him into the pit. It wouldhave meant accepting that all this time thebrothers were mistaken.

The lesson from this story is how easy it is todelude ourselves – even when the truth is staringus in the face. Many times we too can fail tonotice what is right in the middle of the room.

1 For more information about the book and theoriginal experiment seewww.theinvisiblegorilla.com/index.html

3In memory of Avraham ben Yehoshua

Have you ever wondered how something can be so obviousyet we fail to notice it? by Rabbi Joel Kenigsberg, Magen Avot Synagogue and Rav Shaliach for Bnei Akiva UK

MIT students recreate the Gorilla experiment

4In memory of Harav Binyamin ben Harav Shalom

Chanukah and Pesach: Exceptions to the EconomicDispensation by Rabbi Daniel Friedman, Hampstead Garden Suburb United Synagogue

Even Jews who rarely observeour rituals usually celebratePesach and Chanukah. Whatmakes Pesach and Chanukahin particular worthy of specialtreatment?

Generally, the 16th centuryShulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) states that if one cannot afford to perform a positivecommandment, one is absolved of the obligation (OC 656). Are there any exceptions?The Rambam (1135-1204), in his legal workMishneh Torah, writes:

The mitzvah of the Chanukah light is a verydear mitzvah and a person must take care topublicise the miracle . . . even if he eats fromcharity, he should borrow (money) or sell hisclothing in order to purchase oil and wicksand be able to light (Laws of Megillah andChanukah 4:12)

The Maggid Mishnah (Rabbi Vidal di Tolosa, late14th Century Spain), in his notes to the MishnehTorah, comments:

Rambam derives this teaching from the lawthat even a pauper must fulfil the mitzvah ofthe four cups on Pesach, for which the reasonis the publicising of the miracle of the Exodus.

We see here that Chanukah lights and the fourcups are exceptions to the economicdispensation. Why are they singled out? Thecommon thread is their underlying purpose: weperform them in order to publicise a historicmiracle.

That would appear to be quite a weak reason. Weare essentially saying that both of these mitzvothave minimal inherent value; their purpose, rather,is to publicise some other external phenomenon.

By way of comparison, think about the mitzvah ofLulav and Etrog. When I wave the Lulav, I am nottrying to draw your attention to something else;the act itself has inherent spiritual value. Incontrast, when I light Chanukah candles, the

primary purpose is to publicise the miracle of theMaccabees and the oil that lasted eight days.Why would the obligation to fulfil these twoparticular mitzvot with minimal inherent value beso important that one should go into debt in orderto perform them?

The answer lies in the events they are designed topublicise. The Exodus was one of the mostsignificant events in history, yet its value wasmagnified by what happened next. Uponredemption from Egypt, God led us to Mt. Sinaiand gave us the Torah, our legal and moral guidefor all generations.

Likewise, while the defeat of the Syrian-Greeksand the ensuing miracle of the oil were important,the longer-term significance of Chanukah was therededication of the Holy Temple and our renewedability to serve God, without any Hellenisticcultural hindrances and impositions.

Drinking the four cups of wine on Pesach andlighting the Menorah on Chanukah shouldawaken within us the desire to serve God withrenewed dedication. When we sit at the Sedertable and we re-enact the Pesach experience, we strengthen our appreciation for the Torah andour desire to pass on our Judaism to the nextgeneration.

Similarly with Chanukah. As you light yourMenorah, savour the moment. But remember,that moment is but a springboard to the truemessage of Chanukah, the rekindling of the bondwithin our souls between us and our Creator!

5In memory of Chaim ben Moshe Bentzion

Sefer Yehoshua (the Book of Joshua) – Chapter 6, Jerichoby Hannah Reuben, US Living & Learning Project Executive

Chapter overviewAfter the successful crossingof the River Jordan and theestablishment of their campat Gilgal, Bnei Yisrael nowturned towards the first cityto be conquered, the heavily

fortified walled city of Jericho. This was their firstmilitary engagement with the Canaanites and thefirst time that they faced an urban foe in a walledcity. The inhabitants of Jericho were ready forBnei Yisrael. The city was sealed, no-one wasallowed in or out.

Prior to the battle, God assured Yehoshua thatJericho would be overcome, but not byconventional military force. Yehoshua conveyedGod’s instructions to Bnei Yisrael. Yehoshua andhis soldiers walked around Jericho once a day forsix days. Seven Kohanim, each carrying andblowing a shofar, walked in front of the Aron (theArk of the Covenant). On the seventh day, thesoldiers and Kohanim walked seven times aroundthe city before the Kohanim blew the shofarot.When the people heard a long blast they roaredout in unison. The walls of Jericho collapsed andthe soldiers moved into the city.

Yehoshua instructed Bnei Yisrael to spareRachav, an inhabitant of Jericho, and herhousehold since, as recorded in chapter two, she assisted the spies that Yehoshua hadpreviously sent to Jericho. The same spies,understood to be Calev and Pinchas, who werepreviously sent to Jericho, were now sent byYehoshua to rescue Rachav and her family, whothen became part of Bnei Yisrael.

Yehoshua also told Bnei Yisrael not to loot any ofthe spoils of the city, warning them that doing sowould bring a calamity upon them.

Yehoshua concluded by cursing anybody whowould rebuild Jericho. The chapter closes withconfirmation that God was with Yehoshua, whowas renowned throughout the Land.

Why did Yehoshua specifically forbid thepeople to take from the spoils of Jericho?The commentary of Metzudat David, by RabbiDavid Altschuler (1687-1769) to verse 18, notedthat Yehoshua used the word va’achartem todescribe the effect on Bnei Yisrael if spoils weretaken. Va’achartem is usually translated as a verb‘to make something ugly’, denoting here that BneiYisrael would be diminished by taking the spoils.

This prohibition did not apply in all other Biblicalbattles, such as those fought previously againstthe Midyanites (Bemidbar chapter 31). Why mightYehoshua have applied it here?

The Metzudat David suggested that va’achartemrefers to destruction and provides a linguisticconnection to an earlier event in our history, theattack on Shechem, a city north of Jericho, byYaakov’s sons Shimon and Levi, following theabduction of their sister Dina (Bereishit ch. 34).

Yaakov expressed disapproval of how Shimonand Levi had acted, in particular as to how theiractions appeared to other inhabitants of the Land,and used the word va’achartem to do so.

Perhaps, by using the same word here, Yehoshuawanted to demonstrate his intention to avoid theissue identified by Yaakov. Yehoshua insteademphasised that the conquest of the Land wasby God’s command rather than an invasion toplunder its inhabitants.

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6In memory of Harav Yisrael ben Harav Uriah

Answer: shaved and changed his clothes

Shefford – Dr Judith Grunfeld l ’ ’ z

Dr Judith Grunfeld was the headmistress of theJewish Secondary School in Stamford Hill in 1939,whose 450 children and staff were evacuated toShefford and the neighbouring towns inBedfordshire for the duration of WW2. The hostfamilies came to love the children and their waysafter a difficult beginning, as we see from thisseventh extract from Dr Grunfeld’s book.

It was something inexplicable. I remember todayhow a farmer’s wife came to my office. It was twoyears after the events just related took place. Shecried bitterly and appealed to my sense offairness and asked me to stop Leo from leavingher house because they had all grown so veryfond of him. I should stop him from going to –“what do you call it – a Yeshibe”, she said. “He isone of ours, how can he go away just like thatafter all this time. It will break my husband’s heartand mine. Please don’t let him go.” (Leo was arefugee from Vienna and fifteen years of age whenwe decided to send him to a Yeshivah/ TalmudicalCollege).

It was also reported to me that at a meeting of theChurch Ladies’ Guild, when they discussed thedate for the annual Whist Drive which was to raisefunds for the church, Mrs. W. objected to the datebeing fixed on a Tuesday, because that Tuesdayshe said “was the only day when her evacueewas allowed that month to have his hair cut”(Tuesday was Lag B’Omer) and for that hair-cutshe has to take him to a good barber in Bedford,and this was important enough for her.

For six long years we stayed in Shefford withthese people in their homes, and in their ChurchHalls, and when in the year 1945 the time forparting finally came there was friendship,affection and blessings. In those six years theevacuees had been taken to their hearts, hadgrown in size and in maturity under the care of thekind Shefford population.

But let us go back now to the second ofSeptember 1939, to Saturday morning, themorning after the first night of the evacuation,

when confusion and bewilderment still reigned onall fronts. This first Sabbath in evacuation, oneday before the outbreak of World War Two, livesunforgettably in my memory.

Walking down the village street on that Sabbathmorning, I, “the duty accredited evacuationleader” in charge of 450 children, was not withouta sense of panic. I knew I had to hold my headerect, to keep my smile in readiness to “a nice daytoday” that was extended to me by passersby.

By lunchtime, when the staff also seemed a littledepressed, when the children had grown restless,when the looks of the women standing at theirfront doors seemed to me to be far fromencouraging and even my hostess, the Vicar’swife, seemed to take my refusal to have lunchwith her as a personal slight, I was inwardly in astate of considerable anxiety.

There were two main worries…the first was howto gather my complete family around me from thedifferent places where they were at present; and the second was that our children were livingwith people who, however well-meaning, couldnot be expected to understand or help us dealwith what to them appeared to be creatingproblems where none existed.

Reproduced with permission