Hello Everyone,
I came across a short paragraph while learning this week’s
Parsha that I found very powerful. I’d
like to share it with you for this week’s dvar torah rather than offer my own
words. It is taken from a summary of a
class on this week’s Parsha off of the website, www.tanach.org. Here is a link to the page where the
following paragraph is taken from, followed by the lesson on the Parsha itself.
Shabbat Shalom. http://www.tanach.org/breishit/vaychiab.htm
Yaakov's blessings to his sons in
Parashat Vayechi touches upon the very essence of the concept of
"shevatim" (tribes). Why should God's special nation
divide itself into twelve factions? Does this not invite contention
and disunity? The answer is that Bnei Yisrael must represent the
ideal of Godliness to the rest of mankind. It is only natural for
people to group together according to common interests, inclinations, goals,
talents and the like. The objective, however, must be for the
different groups to work together with one another, harnessing their unique
capabilities for purposes of "Shem Shamayim" (God's Name). Thus,
the twelve-tribe system, when properly implemented, accurately captures the
message God's nation must bring to humanity. This nation declares
that yes, different groups of people with different interests and tendencies
can work together harmoniously and work towards the common good. Yaakov
blesses each son by wishing him the proper utilization of his respective
talents, such that they all come together to fulfill the destiny of God's
special nation.
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