Parshas Toldos 29 Chesvan 5771 Nov 6 2010

Who get's the blessings?  - Who cares?

Jews are forever agonizing over how Jacobs could steal the blessings from Esau.   I have a different question.  Why did he even bother.  Why did Rebecca make such a big deal?  If Hahsem had already told her that destiny was with Jacob surely He could work it out no matter who Issac blessed. I don't understand Esau either.  Why does he care if Jacob gets the blessing when his father thinks he gave them to Esav himself.  It doesn't change their relationship.  Furthermore if blessings are so important to Esav why did he sell the birthright.
While pondering this dilemma an answer came to me from an unexpected direction. Natan Sharansky former soviet dissident and current director of the Jewish Agency was in Atlanta yesterday.  Temima H.S. arranged a meeting with him.  In that meeting he told the girls that when someone is facing destruction it is not enough to believe that you will survive you must be committed to a greater goal beyond survival. Haring this from Sharansky did not surprise me one bit. As Natan Sharansky was about to be sentenced to years of labor in Siberia the court asked him if he wanted to make a statement.  Sharansky said "to the court I have no statement.  To Jews all around the world I say Next year in Jerusalem".   Sharansky didn't simply want release from the Soviets he had omewhere to go and he wanted to bring the entire Jewish people with him.  He still does. I contrast Sharansky with the brother in law of a friend.  He was stricken with a serious illness.  The treatments promised to be long and a cure was far from assured.  This man said I will survive I will regain my health and when I recover I will walk the entire Appalachian trial.  He did survive and true to his wordwhen he regained his health he walked the Appalachian trail.  Now I hear that he is suffering from depression.  His goal was shortsighted and self centered.
The Jewish people live a goal.  This goal is expressed in Issacs blessing. They bring blessing to the world by making this world a Godly place.  I have never seen one of the most amazing sights one can see in Dunwoody and I assume I never will. That is the sight one sees when driving down Tilly Mill on Shabbos as families are walking to or from shul. The viewer knows that they are walking because they are Jews and they believe in G-d who rested onthe Sabbath.  This is what we must communicate to our children. We don't want our children to keep shabbos because they are 'supposed' to but because in doing so they take steps toward their goal.  When one of our children walks down Tilly Mill on shabbos afternoon bouncing a basketball he accomplishes nothing.  However if he is wearing a kippa dressed in shabbos clothes he is living the goal.
Losing sight of the mission is a problem facing the religious community all around the world.  What are we striving for?  Our children attend big beautiful day schools like GHA, TDSA or Webber.  What is the goal?  When I went to day school we were located in a converted bungalow. On Saturday nights we would change our clothers and go out to help at the day school rummage sale.  If things went well tens of hours of manpower would net $400.  That would pay for heat for a few months.  What was our goal.  To build big beautiful day schools like GHA, TDSA and WEBBER  Now what.  The same with Israel.  What is our goal to build a Jewish nation. If I want to go to Israel tonight I spend $1200 and I am there.  I drive on a modern highway to my air conditioned apartment.  Of course I am minimizing the challenges.  There are till a number of five star resturants that don't carry the hechsher I rely on.
Issac's and Rebecca, Jacob and Esav understood that the destiny of the world depends on them. They could not be content just to let things play out.  They needed to be pro active and make a statement.  "I want the mission.  I want the responsibility".  Esav doesn't want the world to go Jacobs way and Jacob doesn't want to go Esavs way.  This mission invigorated their every living moment.  We are Jacobs worthy heirs and we have to live this way also.  The mission is far from complete.  Everything that seems so secure and in place our gleaming day schools and our precious homeland are really tenuous.  We all have a responsibility to advance the cause.  If we don't we are just trying to survive.  According to Natan Sharansky if you are just trying to survive you won't. 
Good Shabbos.