Parshas Vayeitzei
Suffering From Success
Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov all suffered from success-induced jealous
reactions from the local populations where they lived. Avraham is
recognized as the prince of God in our midst and yet is begrudged a
grave plot to bury Sarah. Yitzchak is sent away from the kingdom of
Avimelech because you have grown too great from us. And in this weeks
parsha, Yaakov is told by Lavan that everything that Yaakov owns is
really the property of Lavan. The blessings of God and the promise that
He made to protect the patriarchs and matriarchs of Israel save them
from their neighbors, relatives and enemies. However, this very success
and achievements of this small family, as per Gods promise and against
all odds and opposition, raises the hatred and jealousy of their
neighbors. No matter that the neighbors themselves, such as Avimelech
and Lavan benefit mightily from the achievements of Yitzchak and Yaakov.
The rabbis of the Talmud taught us that hatred destroys rational thought
and behavior. So, instead of gratitude and friendship, the
accomplishments of the patriarchs and matriarchs only bring forth greed,
jealousy, persecution and always the threat of violence hovers in the
background. All efforts to maintain a low profile and to mollify Lavan
result only in increased bigotry and hatred. It is not for naught that
the Pesach hagada makes Lavan a greater enemy to the survival of the
Jewish people than even the Pharaoh of Egypt. But almost all of the
enemies of the Jews over the centuries suffer from the same basic moral
faults regarding the Jews: ingratitude, jealousy and greed. These are
all revealed to us in this weeks parsha.
Someone mentioned to me that perhaps if we maintained a lower profile in
the world, didnt receive so many Nobel prize awards, and were less
influential in the fields of finance and the media, anti-Semitism would
decrease. What if is a difficult field of thought to pursue
intelligently. There is no question that the world and all humankind
would be by far the poorer if the Jews purposely withheld their energy,
creativity and intelligence from contributing to human civilization. And
there certainly is no guarantee that the world would like us any more
than it does now if we were less successful and prominent. The mere fact
that God blessed the patriarchs with the blessings of success and
influence indicates that this is His desire for us. The Torah
specifically states that all of the nations and families of the earth
will benefit and be blessed through us. So in our case less would not
necessarily be more. Yet we were enjoined from flouting our success in
the faces of those less fortunate than us. Modesty in behavior and
deportment is an important partner to success. This is also a lesson
that our father Yaakov intended to teach us. We are not allowed to rein
in our talents and achievements. But we are certainly bidden to rein in
our egos and bluster. That is also an important Jewish trait that should
be a foundation in our lives.
Shabat shalom.
Rabbi Berel Wein
Text Copyright © 2005 by Rabbi Berel Wein and Torah.org
Visit www.rabbiwein.com for a complete selection of Rabbi Wein's books and tapes.
