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Parashas Vayechi - 5778 -
I grew up in the community of
Washington Heights, on the
Manhattan side of the George
Washington Bridge, which
straddles the Hudson River. I
thought and I still think that
it is one of the most beautiful
man-made objects in the world.
Work on it began in 1927 and was
completed in 1931. During my
adolescence, the Tappan Zee
Bridge was built, with a
projected lifetime of fifty
years. It was one of the longest
bridges in the world. Recently,
the new Tappan Zee (or Mario
Cuomo) Bridge has been built,
another thing of beauty.
The Chords, or the “Gesher
HaMaitarim,” Bridge guards the
entrance to Yerushalayim, the
ancient and modern capital of
Israel, recently receiving the
“Stamp of Approval” by the White
House as to the latter
designation. It is also very
beautiful.
There is a fundamental
difference, however, between a
man-made bridge, which connects
two points of space, and a
Heaven-made bridge, a single
human being, such as Yoseph
“HaTzaddik” or Moshe “Rabbeinu,”
or an institution of human
beings, such as the “Avos,” the
Forefathers of the Jewish
People, or the “Anshei Kenesses
HaGedolah,” the Men of the Great
Assembly, that links two periods
of time, and gives Unity to
History, especially Jewish
History, the History of the “Am
Segulah,” HaShem’s Treasured
Nation.
The “Avos” formed the nucleus of
the People of Israel. Yoseph
“HaTzaddik” was a pivotal figure
in the maturation process of the
nation, its first Exile, in
which it learned at least two
fundamental lessons, the
undesirability of slavery and
the related lesson: the evil
implicit in the abuse of power;
“The Almighty is on the side of
the pursued.” (Koheles 3:15)
Moshe “Rabbeinu” was also a
“bridge,” a transitional figure,
identified with the Redemption.
He was the Messenger of HaShem
in dealing with Pharaoh, and he
was the individual who received
the Torah on Mt. Sinai, and who
taught it, the Divine Principles
of Morality, to the People of
Israel.
The “Anshei Kenesses HaGedolah,”
the Men of the Great Assembly,
was the 120-man group that,
according to Rav Reuven
Margalios, bridged the gap
between the Biblical Sanhedriaos
of Moshe and Yehoshua, the Kings
and the Prophets, and the
Sanhedriaos of the great Tannaim
and Amoraim.
The link between the “Avos” and
Yoseph, which gives him a major
share in the Redemption of his
People, not only in their Exile,
is the similarity between
Yaakov’s request of Yoseph in
the beginning of Parashas
Vayechi and Yoseph’s request of
his brothers at the end of the
Parashah:
In the beginning of the
Parashah, we find, “The time
approached for Israel to die, so
he called for his son, for
Yoseph, and said to him,
‘Please, if I have found favor
in your eyes, place your hand
under my thigh and do kindness
and truth with me; please do not
bury me in Egypt. For I will lie
down with my fathers and you
will transport me out of Egypt
and bury me in their tomb.’ He
said, ‘I personally will do as
you said.’ He replied, ‘Swear to
me,’ and he swore to him; then
Israel prostrated himself
towards the head of the bed.”
(Bereshis 47:29-31)
At the end of the Parashah, we
find: “Yoseph said to his
brothers, ‘I am about to die,
but the Almighty will surely
remember you’ (using the code
‘Pakod Yiphkod’ which we will
see that Moshe will use when he
occupies himself with Yoseph’s
bones) and bring you up out of
this land to the land that he
swore to Avraham, to Yitzchok
and to Yaakov.’ Then Yoseph made
the sons of Yaakov swear,
saying: ‘When the Almighty will
surely remember you, then you
must bring my bones up out of
here.’ ” (Bereshis 50:24-25)
As indicated above, there is a
link between Yoseph and Moshe,
the G-dly man most intimately
associated with the Redemption
of Israel from Egypt. For we
find in Parashas Beshalach,
“Moshe took the bones of Yoseph
with him, for he had firmly made
the Children of Israel swear,
‘When the Almighty will surely
remember you, you shall bring up
my bones with you.’ ” (Shemos
13:19)
Thus, Yoseph was linked to the
first Exile of the Children of
Israel, and their Redemption
from that Exile and,
as the ancestor of Moshiach ben
Yoseph, linked as well, at the
End of Days, to their Final
Redemption.
Chazak, Chazak VeNischazek!
L’Illuy Nishmas beni, Aharon
Baruch Mordechai ben Pinchas
Menachem
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