“And Jacob came safely [to] the city of
Shechem…” (Bereshit 33:18). Chabad.org’s translation of this Pasuk is correct
on a Pshat (the simplest level of
Torah our of the four levels: Pshat, Remez, Drash, Sod) level, but if we look
at Rashi we see something deeper. Rashi translate’s the word Shalem (complete, or as Chabad
translate’s it: as safe) as Shalem in his body, Shalem in his fortune, and
Shalem with his Torah. This means that Yaakov, with whatever instances he had
to deal with, was complete. Rashi adds that his limp that he received after his
encounter with the Malach on the way to Shechem (Perek 32, Pasuk 32) was gone,
making him complete physically (again). He says that even though Yaakov gave
Esav a HUGE present (32:15-16) it didn’t even make a dent in his entire
fortune. And the third thing, Yaakov’s Torah, was absolutely not complete even though he was at Lavan’s home for many
years.
Yaakov Avinu had to experience many years with
the biggest Reshaim of his generation. Lavan’s home was a center of Avodat Elilim (Idol Worship), and it is
not so simple just to say Yaakov Avinu was Yaakov Avinu, so obviously he did
not distance away from Hashem! This is wrong.
We need to know that Avraham Yitzchak and
Yaakov were normal people like us with normal desires and normal needs and
wants. We need to understand that what made them great was their determination
and belief in Hashem to BECOME TZADIKKIM. And no matter what befell them, they
can always do Teshuva and move on up in life.
This means that even if Yaakov was living in
Lavan’s home for more than 20 years,
he believed that Hashem will save him from the slightest desire to run and do
Avodah Zarah (Idol Worship, which is exactly equivalent to the desire of being
with the opposite sex today)!
Be’ezrat Hashem we will all take from this
week’s Parasha that the holy Torah is not just another book that we have on our
shelf, rather it’s a guide to our lives that distinguishes reality from imagination.
We are living in a world with fake smiles and fake feelings and emotions. To
bring out more emotion and more sensitivity we turn to the Torah to become REAL
people, and not robots that go buy things because the biggest billboard told us
to do so. Yaakov Avinu relied on
his Tefillot and on the Basic basic belief in Hashem to continue living a life
of Kedusha and Simcha (purity and happiness).
We can do it too but its really all in our
heads. Peer pressure was nothign for Yaakov, and it shows us that it is NOT an excuse! It doesn't matter if you see yourself as the biggest Rasha on the planet and it doesn't matter what friends we have. There is no such thing as a person from Am Yisrael being a Rasha (wicked) all their life. We can
change that in a couple minutes of sincere regret and sincere feelings to get
close to Hashem! Start with Shabbat Kodesh.
Its all up to you. Judaism=Think.
Shabbat Shalom!
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