vayishlach - reconnecting

This week’s parsha, Vayishlach, tells the story of reconciliation between Jacob and Esau. Recently I coordinated a three part series on Islam. We, Jews, are descendants of Jacob while Moslems are descendants of Esau. We ended our series with an evening of discussion on open dialogue between Jews and Moslems.  One of the things we heard during the sessions was how similar the religions are to each other. We are, after all, cousins; descended from the same brothers, and from the same grandfather, Abraham. What could be a more appropriate message for today than that of reconciliation shown in the embrace of Esau and Jacob when they meet after so long?

A lot has been written about what we learn about family dynamics from the characters in Genesis. It always strikes me as a shame that for twenty years these two brothers not only didn’t talk but didn’t have any news of each other. But, they obviously didn’t talk to each other as youngsters either. These boys were a rough pregnancy for Rebecca. She evens questioned God about why she had to suffer so much. And their rivalry culminates in Jacob fleeing for his life from his brother and their home. But after twenty years, the brothers have grown up, built their own lives and feel so secure in themselves that they can now let go of the rivalry. They reunite and reconcile and bury their father together.

We’ve just finished celebrating Thanksgiving and Chanukah is next week. We gather family and friends to share our lives. We commemorate the miracles of the first years in America. Chanukah is a rededication of our spiritual and communal connections. We celebrate the miracles of rededication of our Temple. And, like Esau and Jacob did, we celebrate our reconnections to each other.