Dear Friends,

Judah and his brothers were sent to Egypt to bring home food during the terrible famine. Joseph, who at the time was the viceroy of Egypt, made their lives miserable.

Joseph imprisoned Shimon and made the simple mission of purchasing grain an incredibly difficult task.

Since Judah had no idea that the man who was giving them so much grief was his long-lost brother, he had only hatred and negative feelings towards Joseph. 

In the verse it states that, ‘Judah approached Joseph.’ The Ohr HaChaim, a well-known commentator, explains how this was not a physical approach, rather an emotional one. Judah, in his wisdom, understood how to remove Joseph’s defenses and to connect with him. Judah approached Joseph with affection. He understood the famous Jewish teaching that ‘as water reflects the face of a person, so too does the heart of one person reflect the heart of his fellow’. Judah understood how to win over this evil viceroy with kindness. This kindness and affection had to be real, otherwise Joseph would have seen right through it. Judah had to truly bring himself to love this unkind person, and thus, his love was reciprocated. Almost immediately afterwards, Joseph broke down and revealed his true identity to his brothers. 

This Sunday we will celebrate the fifth of Tevet, the day on which the Chabad Hassidim were successful in a court case winning back the holy books that had belonged to the previous Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson. Many of the book are hundreds of years old and incredibly precious. The winning bid in this court case was the heartfelt appeal of the Rebbe’s wife, Chaya Mushka Schneerson. Her words rang so true that the judge could not help but believe them. She spoke about how these books may have belonged to her father, the previous Rebbe, but that her father himself had been so fully and selflessly dedicated to his Hassidim, that he, along with these books, belonged to all of the extended family of Chabad Hassidim and should be made accessible and available to them. Today we benefit greatly from the teachings and messages that are found within these books, many of which are showcased behind glass in the library of the Chabad Headquarters in Brooklyn. 

Shabbat Shalom, 
Rabbi Zushe Cunin