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TORAT MIZRACHI MIZRACHI EDUCATORS

Rabbi Reuven Taragin Rabbanit Shani Taragin

Chanukah

Doing What We Can

lobal events often make us was to do what they could to pro- Making Sure We Do All We Can
feel like we and our efforts are tect their values and fight for Jewish The Midrash says that had Reuven
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Ginsignificant. Tens of millions independence. known the Torah would record his
of people have been sick and most of actions, he would have immediately
the world has been affected by Corona. Helping One Starfish placed Yosef on his shoulders and
What difference does our cautiousness There was an old man who used taken him all the way back to Ya’akov.
make within the bigger picture? to go to the ocean to do his writ- Though effort that yields only partial
With 150 million people voting in a ing. He had a habit of walking on success is also significant, we are
presidential election, how important the beach every morning before responsible to apply ourselves fully,
is our one vote? In most of the states he began his to invest all that
of the US, the outcome of the election work. Early we are truly able
was a foregone conclusion before the one morning, to.
voting even began. after a big storm,
he was walking along Though we may not
Reuven Saving Yosef the shore and found the determine the pandemic’s
course or who wins an elec-
The Torah speaks of this in its descrip- vast beach littered with tion, we should make sure
tion of Reuven’s actions on behalf of his starfish as far as the eye to value and maximize
brother Yosef. Though Reuven did not could see. our efforts. In the merit of
completely save Yosef and was devas- Off in the distance, the our doing so, may Hashem
tated when he returned to the pit to find old man noticed a small assist us in the same way that
that Yosef had been sold into slavery, 1 boy approaching. As the boy walked, He assisted the Chashmonaim – םי ִ מָּי ַּ ב
the Torah describes Reuven’s saving of he paused every so often and the man הֶּז ַ ה ן ַ מְּז ַּ ב ם ֵ ה ָ ה!
Yosef from death as a ה ָ ל ָּ צ ַ ה (salvation). could see he was occasionally bending
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Though he did not succeed fully, it is down to pick up an object and throw
important to appreciate what he did it into the sea. The boy came closer 1 Bereishit 37:29.
accomplish. still and the man called out, “Good 2 Ibid 37:21-22.
morning! May I ask what you are 3 See Zechor L’Avraham who brings this Mid-
rash. See also Rav Shlomo Kluger’s Kehilat
The Chanukah Connection doing?” Yaakov, which offers over 20 explanations for
this Midrash.
The Midrash associates Reuven’s sal- 4 See Shabbat 22b which concludes that the
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vation with our lighting of Chanukah The young boy paused, looked up, mitzvah is fulfilled through lighting and
candles at the entrance to our homes. and replied, “Throwing starfish nothing further is required.
into the ocean. The tide has washed
One fulfills the mitzvah of Chanu- them up onto the beach and they 5 Adapted from ‘The Star Thrower,’ by Loren
Eiseley.
kah candles through merely lighting can’t return to the sea by themselves. 6 Bereishit Rabbah 34:8.
them. We are not required to ensure When the sun gets high, they will die,
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that the candles remain lit and we unless I throw them back into the
cannot guarantee how widely they water.”
will be seen. We are required to do
our part by lighting the candles. The The old man replied, “But there must
rest is not in our hands. be tens of thousands of starfish on
this beach. You won’t really be able to
The nature of the mitzvah accu- make much of a difference.”
rately reflects the historical event
Scan here to join Rabbi Taragin’s
it eternalizes. The Chashmonaim The boy bent down, picked up WhatsApp group with daily Divrei Torah
fought a seemingly hopeless battle. another starfish and threw it as far
It was the few against the many, as he could into the ocean. Then he Rabbi Reuven Taragin is Educational
the weak against the mighty. That turned to the man and said, “It made Director of Mizrachi and Dean of the
said, they knew their responsibility a difference to that one!” 5 Yeshivat HaKotel Overseas Program.

6 | Acts of kindness never die. They linger in the memory, giving life to other acts in return.
RABBI SACKS