T ORAH P ORTION
In the Room Where it Happens
BY RABBI DAVID LEVIN
Parshat Vayechi
IN THE HIT MUSICAL
“Hamilton,” Aaron Burr aches
to be in the room where it
happens. Th e song contextual-
ized two focal learning points
of Parshat Vayechi: Like Aaron
Burr, not everyone is in the
room where it happens and,
even if you are there, you may
not like what you hear.

Both of these are critical
complications to the classic
story of Jacob off ering bless-
ings on his deathbed and
off er profound lessons for us.

Vayechi asks us to consider the
following: What do you have to say, to
whom and why?
Vayechi has me thinking
more deeply about these
questions and how they aff ect
me. Th is relationship with the
text is meaningful because the
Torah’s actual value is in how it
relates to us, to stories helping
us to refl ect and to live more
meaningfully, including what
we leave behind as our legacy.

Vayechi is Jacob’s deathbed
scene. He gathers his sons and
two grandsons Menashe and
Ephraim, to off er fi nal words.

Th e Midrash helps us under-
stand Jacob’s motivation:
Genesis Rabbah shares as
Jacob prepares for death; he
gathers his sons and Joseph’s
children around him to off er
final thoughts and bless-
ings. Jacob (whose name was
changed to Israel) wonders if
his life was worthwhile and
if his children embraced the
lessons of the One God to be
carried forward to the next
generations. Th e sons proclaim, “Shema
Yisrael, Adonai Eloheynu,
Adonai Echad,” poetically
translated, “Listen, father,
we embrace the lessons of
Adonai.” Upon hearing this,
Jacob declares with his fi nal
breath, “Blessed be His Name
— My children have learned
and embraced the most
important thing I tried to teach
them.” Jacob dies knowing his
life had a purpose; it has been
“for a blessing.”
And indeed, it has, but is
this the only message Jacob
leaves behind? Unfortunately,
in reality, it is more compli-
cated than this somewhat
romanticized retelling of our
Patriarch’s end. What Jacob
says to those who are in the
room is pretty telling. But,
we also must ask what his
purpose was?
As noted, Jacob’s 12 sons and
two grandsons are in the room.

But his daughter Dinah is not
present. Her absence creates
questions for us as to why was
she excluded, particularly in
light of the eff ect the trauma
of her rape had on two of her
brothers and the “blessing” left
for them.

The final words are
powerful. Can one temper the
harshness of din, judgment,
with rachamim, compassion?
Once Jacob dies, there is
nothing left to say. Jacob’s
assessment of Shimon and
Levi, as well as Reuven carries
with them; there is no redemp-
tion in their father’s eyes,
which can be too weighty a
burden. Could Jacob have
found a way to help them fi nd
a path toward teshuva? Perhaps
Jacob could even off er forgive-
ness to those who have strayed
so far and disappointed so
profoundly. For this was more
than a gentle, loving rebuke,
a tochecha, this was a harsh
judgment. As noted, Dinah is not
present at this intimate hour
of reconciliation and death.

Dinah, the rape victim, is not
in the room. Th is assault was
the pretext for slaughtering an
entire group in alleged revenge.

Such trauma notwith-
standing, what is the eff ect of
being left out of such a momen-
tous occasion as her father’s
fi nal goodbye? How would it
feel to be omitted from such
a critical moment in family
life, eff ectively marginalized,
unseen and unheard?
CAN DL E L IGHTIN G
Dec. 17
Dec. 24
Many writers have tried
to grapple with the biblical
text and the implications for
a Judaism that is supposed
to embrace everyone but
here falls far short. Learned
rabbis, historic and contem-
porary, have tried to reconcile
Jacob’s words.

In “Th e Torah, A Women’s
Commentary,” Rabbi Laura
Geller understands
the omission of daughters from
blessing as the opportunity
to consciously include them
in our prayers for our daugh-
ters to be their best versions of
themselves. Th e graciousness of this
reading of our text reframes
the pain of exclusion into
something profound and
beautiful. This
reimag- ining teaches us to be more
thoughtful in proactive ways to
make even the diffi cult things
received as constructive and
caring. Jacob concludes with his
desired funeral arrangements,
asking to be buried with
the ancestors in the cave of
Machpelah. His last breaths
are instructions for his sons
to carry out Jacob’s wishes.

Th ese directives give everyone
there the opportunity to fulfi ll
their fi lial obligation and to
honor their father, focusing on
this fi nal act, regardless of the
complicated relationships that
4:19 p.m.

4:23 p.m.

might have existed.

Like Jacob’s, our fi nal words
are profoundly powerful. Th ey
can be among the most infl uen-
tial things we do, an enduring
if not indelible impression on
those we leave behind. In the
beginning, God gave human-
kind the ability to speak and
name things.

Our words are our precious
legacy, and as such, we should
be judicious in choosing our
words carefully, understanding
the impact they will have.

What we say and to whom we
say it carries long aft er we are
gone, to another lifetime. ●
Rabbi David Levin is the founder
of Jewish Relationships Initiative, a
not-for-profi t dedicated to helping
seekers fi nd meaning. His recently
published book, co-edited with
Rabbi Dayle Friedman and Reb
Simcha Raphael, “Jewish End of
Life Care in a Virtual Age: Our
Traditions Reimagined” is available
on Amazon.com. The Board of
Rabbis of Greater Philadelphia
is proud to provide diverse
perspectives on Torah commentary
for the Jewish Exponent. The
opinions expressed in this column
are the author’s own and do not
refl ect the view of the Board of
Rabbis. Be heard.

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DECEMBER 16, 2021
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