The Shocking Lesson Behind Yosef And His Family Drama

A Torah Anytime original series. Let's ask the proverbial para elephant in the room. Why exactly did Yseph not tell his father he was alive years before he eventually did? He knew Yako was in immense pain. He knew his father was probably mourning him. Why did he not spare him that anguish? Simple question, right? Let's ask another obvious question. How could the brothers have been so remarkably evil to attempt to murder their own brother? I mean, who does that? If the Garus says a regular Sanhedrin would barely kill someone once every 70 years because they would leave no stone unturned and finding auss for the defendant, shouldn't the brothers do the same thing? Why are they just jumping up and killing him? I don't care what Yub did to them. Who kills their own brother? These are theatim that we're to look up to. These are the embodiment of the Aos. These are the tribes that we admire, brother murderers. There's obviously something that we're missing. There's obviously more to the story. But what? So, Rabch Farhi gives the following much needed breath of clarity. The brothers knew full well that they were not a mere family of 12. They knew good and well that they were not just some small group that happens to be kind and caring in a world that's not what we would call the nice family on the block. The brothers were well aware that they were to become the eventual leaders of a nation that would carry the torch of morality for the rest of the planet. They knew their grandfather was told to become an avon. They knew that they were to become the heads of a nation that would introduce the go the godly concepts of spirituality to mankind. They were well aware of the sacred mission that they were embarking on. And therefore, precisely because they were well aware of that, when Ysef began demonstrating signs that he was leaning towards kingship, when he began claiming that he was to become a king over the rest of them, when he began slowly showing signs that he favored what's called monarchism. The brothers viewed it as more than just an annoying little brother hoping to one day be a royal king. The brothers viewed Ysef's claims as a potential destroyer of the nation of spirituality that they were tasked with cultivating. The brothers viewed monarchy in its ancient form as being diametrically opposed to the nation the brothers were hoping to start. Monarchism, which basically shuns spiritual greatness of the individual and cares only about the leadership of the king, is in direct contrast with Judaism, which is entirely about the spiritual potential of the individual. The brothers knew that Yiddish is unique in the sense that we are all part of a holy and royal nation. We can all climb to be on the level of a ni or a kim or a sage or a god. There's no one individual greatness is reserved for. The brothers felt that if kingship is what Yis was promulgating, he is a threat to the future of the entire Jewish people. He is a threat to the spiritual growth of the future nation that they're trying to start. If he wants monarchism, then he has to go. Truly, it was painful. Of course, it was heart-wrenching. It was a heart heart-wrenching decision, but it was a decision out of true love and a steadfast commitment to the mission that they were on. And Yseph knew the brothers felt this way. And therefore, Yseph knew that if he sent word to Yakov and to the brothers that he was not only alive in Egypt, but he was second in command to the mighty Pyro and effectively the king of Egypt, he would only be reinforcing his brother's old claims. He knew that granted, he would relieve Yakov of the pain that he was feeling for losing a son, but it would only cause him to lose 10 other sons. For if the brothers found out that Yseph was in fact a king in Egypt, their suspicions and fears they had years ago would have only been validated and off they would march to start the nation somewhere else. So Yseph decided to wait. He decided to wait until the perfect time to show the brothers that they were making a mistake. To show their brothers that true, the 12 of them are set to become the flag bearers of our nation. one that puts immense emphasis on the potential of the individual. But nevertheless, a king doesn't have to be a contradiction to that. A leader, if acting correctly, can be a source of immense encouragement to the masses. He can breathe hope and life into the individual. He can serve as a role model for the common people to reflect. True, a king can push down, but he can also rise up. A king done right can be the ultimate catalyst for the growth of the individual. Some religions have leaders who take all the responsibilities in power. Some religions have leaders who take none of it, no responsibilities. Judaism is a unique blend of both. Yes, we have leaders and we have Rabban and we have kings and we have Naveim and we have shift. But their mission is not to bear the spiritual burden of the community. Rather, their mission is to ensure that each and every member of our community is forever climbing that holy ladder towards greatness. forever climbing that ladder towards spiritual heights. Forever climbing the ladder that the 12 holy brothers erected for all of us. Listen to this story. In the early years of the state of Israel, there was a Moshave that was half observant and half non-observant. And when it came time to build a school, it was decided that there were simply not enough kids to have two separate schools. But being that each side had drastically different outlooks on what exactly Jewish education should look like, there was a great debate as to which side should have the leadership of the school. And they came to a middle ground that one side would pick the principal and the other side would pick the teachers. And the religious side was not sure which side to take. Like most major questions of those days, they went to the undisputed gul of the land at the time, the Khaz, and they asked him if it's better to have a religious principle with irreligious teachers or religious teachers and a non-religious principal. And what he told them actually surprised them a lot. He said, "Not only can the non-observant have the principal, it barely makes a difference who the teachers are as long as the kids see on the walls lined of the school from top to bottom pictures of Gdelin. Put their pictures everywhere. No space should be left empty. Merely looking at these great men, our leaders on the wall should instill in them the awe and the aura our great nation exudes. That's what our leaders are meant to do, to inspire us and expand us and show us the path we're all meant to walk down. Here's another story. Arya Lavine would famously visit Jewish prisoners in the local Yusaleim jail. One Friday night, he went to the front gate of the prison and asked the guards to let him in. But an Arab guard looked at Rabbi Lavine and said, "Sorry, but the prison is in lockdown now and you can't come in." and the slightly more level-headed British guard sitting next to the Arab guard. He turns to the Arab guard and he says, "Don't worry about him. He volunteers at this jail all the time. You can let him in." But the Arab says, "No, he doesn't volunteer. He probably gets paid to come here. I am not letting him in." And in the meantime, while the two of them were arguing, Arya Lavine walked to the gate of the prison and began climbing over the gate. the Arab guard just standing there in complete shock and disbelief. He looked at him and he turned to the British guard and he said, "Okay, all right. I'll let him in. Anyone who's breaking into prison to visit prisoners, he must be a pretty good guy. That is a Jewish leader. Selfless, humble, ready to do whatever it takes to ensure that each and every Yid could be the greatest servant of Hashem. That's what the leaders of the Jewish people are meant to do. Our leaders are our inspiration to become better. They allow us to see ourselves. They allow us to grow ourselves. They gently prod us to be the best version of us. We look up to them to remind ourselves that in Yiddish the sky is the limit and our job is to keep climbing that ladder.