Parshat Toldot - 5774

8/14/2019 Parshat Toldot - 5774

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Parshat Toldot5774

Drasha

Rabbi Shaanan Gelman

I Dont Need You AnymoreThe selection process of a name is an awesome responsibility placed

upon a parent. They must contemplate the meaning of a potential

name, possible nicknames and rhyming sounds which might beconstrued to mock the child, and in general how easily the name will

allow the child entry into his or her society. I call it the DMV test; will

the staffer behind the counter struggle to pronounce the name when

their turn in line comes around?

That being said, many parents feel that naming a child is their canvas

for artistic creativity, an opportunity to make their unique mark on the

universe. And if they have to punish an innocent child in the process,

so be it.

This trend of ingenuity in naming children dates back to Biblical times

when the Avot and Imahot would select names based upon some sort

of hope or significant event in their lives. Reuven is aptly named

"-',".


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And receives his name because every male born in Egypt was tobe cast into the Nile, and Moshe was miraculously saved from the

plight of most by , and the Torah explains that he was named:because he was drawn forth from the water

,"" Yosef is so called because Rachel his mother prays that God may add

another child after him:

"' " But the origin of Yaakovs name is a bit strange to say the least:

,-, ,

,-;.

26And after that came forth his brother, and

his hand had hold on Esau's heel; and his

name was called Jacob. And Isaac wasthreescore years old when she bore them.

Why is this considered a significant incident to such an extent that

Yaakovs name should reflect that he held onto his brothers heel?

Why does Yaakov earn his name from such a mundane and irrelevant

episode?

Yaakov, interestingly enough, receives a second name. The

circumstances of his naming are astonishingly similar to our parsha in


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that he experiences a re-enactment of the birthing process; going

through a darkness, surrounded by water, Yaakov passes over the

divide of the , until he encounters a mysterious nemesis. It iswith that man that Yaakov does battle throughout the night and after

persevering he obtains his new name, :"-- - '(,"" ),

And so we have to ask why Yaakov is subsequently named Yisrael after

this second altercation?

The sefer cites from a number of Chassidic sources allclaiming that Yaakov initially attempted to inculcate the values and

virtues of into his avoda:"

,",,,

"

Take for me Terumathis teaches us that each man must take into his

own heart lessons from the outside world, learning even from those

who espouse sin and vice. He must sanctify the base desires which led to

evil deeds and transmute them into positive expressions of desire in his

service of the Almighty.


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The Kedushat Levi, the and the suggest that thisis the significance of it is Yaakov reaching out forthe heel of his brother to obtain what he has, to gleam from his

derechand to inculcate the methodology of Esav into his own.

This is, I believe, the way in which Yaakov begins his careerby

attempting to mimic, and become a carbon copy of his older brother.

He figures, with the advice of his mother, that if you want the brachot,

and if you want to acclaim and charm that Esav has, you must act like

him. Yaakov therefore challenges his aggressor in the only way he

knows, by waging the very same battle as Esav and by employing an

identical tactic. Namely, if you want to impress Yitzchak, you must

know how to hunt, you must know how to prepare a good meal, and

you ought to have hairy arms and a coarse and ruddy exterior.

And although he seems to have been successful in securing the brachot,

he has not succeeded in the battle with Esav. As our parsha comes ot a

close, Yaakov is on the run, fearing for his life. Our hero does not have

a plan of re-emergence into the family, as far as he knows, there is no

date of return.

And though Yaakov has employed the very tactics of his brother, it

seems, in the end, to have backfired.


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Its an interesting thing about confronting a bully there is this

instinctive reaction on the part of the victim to mimic the bully, to

behave just like him. The moment though you show a tormentor that

you dont need his tacit approval and that you do not strive to grasp

onto his heels or care to dress like him or talk like him, he is no longer

effective.

One of the popular books on the best seller list these days is Malcolm

Gladwells David and Goliath. He introduces a new reading ofthe

story of David and Goliath, re-formulating the conversation about the

underdog. Most who read the story of David see him as an unlikely

hero, a man who shouldnt have won the fight against the giant. The

reality though is that David was a sharpshooter, his bag of stones was

not a poor choice of weapon, it was in fact a much more powerful tool

than having to resort to hand to hand combat, a battle he could never

have won. David turned the tables upon his archenemy by bringing a

gun to a fist fight. The only thing is that it did not occur to anyone, not

Goliath and not Shaul, that such a strategy was possible.

The guy who is supposed to win in life plays by a certain set of rules, a

protocol which assumes that the underdog has no choice but to play

the same game, that he will always wish to participate in the very same

match. But when David dresses down for the occasion, when he


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refuses to wear the traditional garb of war (chain mail and helmet), he

gains the edge.

Yaakov begins his career seeking to mimic the style of his opponent, but

that does not solve his dilemma. He must experience a re-birth, one in

which he stops running and pacifying and he fights his demons in his

own way. It is only in that moment that he can earn his freedom from

the threat of his brother. At Yaakov is redeemed from thecurse of Esavs heel and becomes ) the head

.(

Yaakov has to learn to let go of the heel, and that he doesnt need

someone else as a crutch to survive.

Interestingly the first piece of advice he receives from his mother is to

pretend to be like Esav, because the first course of action we all

attempt against the Goliaths of our lives is flattery, do as Esav dictates,

dress as he dresses, speak as he speaks.

But something happens mid-charadewhen Yaakov returns moments

after Yitzchak had sent Esav to go hunting, his father is surprised at the

speed of his son)(:-,-

, ;20And Isaac said unto his son: 'How is it that


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.' thou hast found it so quickly, my son?' Andhe said: 'Because the LORD thy God sent me

good speed.'

God has sent me great speed! He invokes the name of Hakadosh

Baruch Huand Yitzchak is tipped off, or at least he becomes

suspicious:-,-

: .-,21And Isaac said unto Jacob: 'Come near, I

pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether

thou be my very son Esau or not.'

As Rashi notes: "-(

:'(),Its not the way of Esavto have the Name of God flow freely from his

lipsRabbi Hershel Schachter zl (father of Rabbi Dr. J.J. Schacter) asked an

interesting question: didnt Yaakov also know that it was not typical of

Esav to mention ? He could have lost everything, after all the'effort and after all of the risk, why the easy give-away?


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R Schachter responded thatwe want the brachos around us, we want a

comfortable life and we are entitled to a comfortable life, but there is

one , one condition, the has to come first. He has tobe front and center. We want and deserve success, but we cannot

delete Hakadosh Baruch Hu from that conversation, and the moment

we do, the moment we forget ' , itsall worthless.If mentioning the means that I' wontbe as successful, so be it.At that moment Yaakov realizes that doesnt have to play Esavs game,

he is not Esav, and he will be successful despite his inability to hunt and

fight.

We have to be willing to say to the bully I dont need you anymore to

validate me. It is only when we undergo that paradigm shift of ceasing

to model for everyone what it is they expect of us and start doing what

it is that is proper .that we can truly succeed'This is true on the personal levelwe have to become unafraid of what

my friend thinks to a certain degree. I cant worry about the fact that I

am more conscientious in halacha than my neighbor, I should not let

that make me feel insecure. Its true on a communal level: We cant

become bent out of shape over the fact that someone or some group of

people judge our brand of Judaism to be less orthodox or deem us to

be on the radical right. Thats not how we define ourselves. And on


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the national levelIsrael cannot wait for Syrias approval or for Irans

support. At some point you have to leave behind the trembling and

cowardice child who reaches for the heel of his enemy, and become the

man who unabashedly opposes him.

We have to become comfortable in our own skin, unafraid of what

people think. As individuals, as a community and as a nation. And may

we have the courage to believe in our own convictions without having

to look over our shoulders. And may that confidence bring us a

renewed feeling of security and inner peace and pride in our

accomplishments.

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Parshat Toldot - 5774