VAYIGASH 1991

In the Torah portion Vayigash we learn how Yehuda steps forward in order to rescue
Benyamin.  Benyamin has been framed.  A goblet is found in his bag.  It looks
like he is going to have to be a slave forever to the ruler of Egypt, but "Vayigash
Eluv Yehuda - and Yehuda comes near to him, approaches him".  The rabbis all comment,
why do we use the expression Vayigash Eluv.- and he approached to him?  To him
is superfluous.  What do we need it for?  The rabbis explain that it means he
approached to himself.  We know that in this world we are all created incomplete.
We all feel that we are not really all that we could be and what we should be
and, therefore, we all strive to fulfill our potential.  We know that because
we are incomplete we suffer from a feeling of not being quite with it, and this
feeling gives rise to all sorts of different religious and philosophical answers.
The major religion of this country says that the way you fill this void and become
everything that you can be is by receiving love, not by giving love or doing love
but by opening your heart to receive the love of their lord.  We, of course, do
not accept that.  We say that the way a person becomes complete, becomes whole,
feels like he is a mentsch is when he steps forward and assumes responsibility.
It is the doing of mitzvahs which allows us to feel the joy in life, which allows
us to feel whole and complete.  That is why every significant event in Judaism
and which has to do with assuming responsibility is called a simcha.  We all know
about a bar and bat mitzvah, that age when a boy or girl assumes responsibility
for their religious actions.  That is a time of joy, of great happiness.  We also
know, too, that a wedding is the highest form of simcha in Judaism because two
people are assuming responsibility for each other, and that is the highest form
of happiness.  That is when you become complete, when each party can do Chesed,
kindness, for the other.  We become complete when we assume responsibility for
ourselves, for others, for the world, for being G-d's partner in creation, knowing
that we can help make this world a better place.  It is the assumption of responsibility
which allows us to feel whole and which allows us to feel complete.  In fact,
George Bernard Shaw said something very similar to that when he said that the
way to live a happy life is to find a good cause and wear yourself out in it. In other words, it is the assumption of responsibility which causes a person to become whole.
That, of course, is what Judah is doing now.  It says, "And he approached to him,
to himself, and he began to assume responsibility."  Before Yehuda was actually
filled with depression and ennui because he failed to assume responsibility earlier.
He failed to assume responsibility for his brother.  It was he really who was
responsible for him being sold to Egypt.  It was Yehuda's failed responsibility
to provide Tamar with a husband and, therefore, he sank to lows of hopelessness
and did things himself that were beneath him.  We see that in order for us to
live up to our potential we have to assume responsibility.  It is the assumption
of responsibility which gives us joy and happiness in life because we know we
are counted on and we count.  There is a great sense of hope and joy.  That's
why it is so important that our young people understand that it is assuming responsibility,
it is being committed which gives you joy and happiness in life, not the opposite.
Unfortunately, all the propaganda in our society today is that you become happy
by shirking responsibility, by roaming free, by not doing those things which will
entangle you and cause you to be committed to others.  This, of course, is a fallacy.
To our way of thinking the only way a person can be truly happy is if he assumes
responsibility.  Once Judah assumed responsibility then he became a mentsch.
Then he became a leader of the Jewish people.
If we look through this whole Torah portion we will see that this same idea is mentioned because they were Goshen, the Jewish people were sent to Goshen.  Goshen also has the same idea of approaching, of assuming responsibility.  In fact, even when Joseph made himself known to his brothers Joseph said to his brothers, "Approach, please, to me." Assume responsibility.  I am assuming responsibility for you, and Joseph did.  He assumed responsibility for his family, to find them a place
to live, to house them, etc.  When we assume responsibility for each other we are happy.  I remember a story they tell about a mother who told her children, "Remember, children, you have been created in this world to help others," at which time the children looked at her and said, "Well, what are the others created for then?"  Of course, we are created to help each other.  We need each other and when we help each other, when we do things for each other, when we are committed to each other and to our G-d and to our religion we feel the joy and happiness which is there in life.
In fact, the rabbis go even further by saying that Goshna, the word Goshen, is reminiscent of Chankah.  We have just finished celebrating the holiday of Chanukah and we know that the letters on the draidle are nun, gimel, hay, shin, which are the same letters are Goshna.  Judah was sent ahead by Yaacov to Goshen, the rabbis say to establish a yeshiva and also to establish the precedent that the only way the Jewish people can survive especially in the Galut is to be responsible for one another, to feel committed to each other, to feel committed to G-d, to feel committed to the tradition, otherwise we cannot exist.  We are seeing now in America where the Jews no longer feel committed to their G-d and their tradition and to their family, that Judaism is weakening and we are losing hundreds of thousands. The word Goshna, itself, stands for assuming responsibility.  These are the same letters that are on the draidle and we, of course, know that the draidle, too, is a symbol of responsibility, of commitment.  The Jewish children, in spite of the fact that they could be killed if they would be found out, still determined to learn Torah, and when the soldiers would come they would pretend they were playing draidle.
The rabbis go even further and they say that the letters on the draidle actually stand for the Mashiach because if you add up the letters on the draidle, nun, gimel, hay, shin, they add up to 358 and if you add up the letters of the word
Mashiach they will also add up to 358, which says that if we work together, if we assume responsibility for each other we can bring the Mashiach.  That, of course, is the great task upon all of us.  It gives us great joy and happiness.  Judaism is a hopeful religion, a joyous religion.  We know that is what is bringing young people back to Judaism.  It is the joy of Judaism.  We are filled with hope. We know that there is a future.  We are not despairing.  We are not filled with hopelessness.  We know that we can do things and if we do things, if we start G-d will help us to finish the job and we can make this a better world.  Our life has meaning and purpose.  It is not senseless.  It is not devoid of meaning.
I am reminded of the story they tell of Gorbachev and Stalin and Lenin.  They
were on a train.  The train was going chug chug chug chug and all of a sudden
it stopped.  The engineer came into the cabin in which Lenin and Stalin and Gorbachev
were sitting.  He said, “I am sorry to report to you that the engine has failed.
It won't run.  What should I do?"  Lenin said, "We will let the invincible spirit
of the Russian people lead us on."  Stalin said, "Shoot the engineer." Gorbachev
said, "Let’s pull down the shades and pretend we are moving." None of these solutions
work.  We cannot rely on the invincible spirit of something or another.  You have
to do things yourself.  You have to assume responsibility.  You cannot blame others
and shoot the engineer, and you cannot pretend that you are happy when you are
not happy.  You cannot pretend that everything is all right when things are not
all right.  You can only have joy in your life when you know that you count and
can be counted on.  Let us all hope and pray that we will all realize this and
that we will all assume responsibility for each other and for the world and for
our tradition and for being G-d's partner in the world so that the Mashiach will
come quickly in our day.  Amen.