Today's date and time:

Sermon for Sidra Vayigash
December 2009
by Rabbi Geoffrey Hyman

On preparing the Mishnah Shiur which I give in Shul during the Friday night service, I was looking up something in my old Gemoro that I had originally used when I had learnt in the Chaye Olam Yeshiva, Golders Green. I came across one of my old notes written in pencil on the side of the margin, it was a "Kashey", a question that I had asked on Rashi’s commentary. As the matter aroused my curiosity I started looking at the Gemoro and the note in more depth. I then realised that 19 years later when I had taught the very same chapter in the Gemoro Shiur as Rabbi at Woodside Park, I had actually answered the old question, yet I had still assumed that the two famous commentators, Rashi and Tosphos differed in their understanding of the statement quoted on the page. Now, this time, 20 years later, looking at my notes in the margin of my old faithful Gemoro of 5731 or 1970, I realised that the question I had originally asked was "gornit a kashey" – it wasn’t a question in the first place; furthermore, Rashi and Tosphos were actually really saying the same thing but in a different way. (The actual ref. is to Bovo Basra 24b – 25a on “gallal”.)

Now you may wonder why I’m telling you this?

But it made me realise that I had just completed a round trip on this piece of Talmud of some 39 years, and had at the same time just learnt a powerful lesson: that time and experience alters perspective!

When Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers in this week’s Sidra Vayigash, he tells them: “And now do not be worried or be angry with yourselves that you sold me here, for G-d sent me before you to be a provider”.

Joseph, sold into captivity years before, had now realised in retrospect, that it was all part of G-d’s greater plan for his family: he had learnt the powerful lesson - that time and experience alters perspective.

Enjoy the beauty and surprises of life – a gutten Shabbos!