Sometimes those residual feelings we remember hold us back from healing, which makes it that much more difficult to move forward. In Parshat Miketz, Joseph reminds us that even when we live through the unimaginable, we have the ability to grow from it.
Rabbi Stampfer has left us.
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From a purely pragmatic perspective, the answer is no. Even in communities like ours, where a supermajority of our congregants are of similar mind when it comes to political affiliation, an important minority holds opposing views. Rabbis are regular people, after all, who often have families to support. So it would be judicious to turn a blind eye to things political if only for job security.
As adults, we can use rational thought and experience to refocus and remain calm. But in this week’s Torah portion, Jacob reminds us that there are some moments in life that don’t fit neatly into these rational coping blueprints.
Who’s a Jew? What does it mean to be Jewish? And who gets to decide? Those are loaded questions that touch close to the skin. There’s a lot of emotion involved in how we answer them, a lot of passion. There’s a lot at stake anytime our fundamental identities come into play.
I have a terrible habit of always imagining the worst possible scenario in any instance. But rational or not, just as Jacob does in Parshat Vayishlach, we can still learn from the lessons our emotions have to teach us.
