Why Is the Torah Read During Mincha
Joseph and his coat of many colors (chabad.org) (chabad.org)
The sages believe that there are no coincidences and there must be a reason why the story of Joseph and his brothers is in the weekly Torah portion read on Chanukah.
Past: Rabbi Ari Enkin, Rabbinic Manager, United with State of israel
The commentators annotation that the weekly Torah portion dealing with the story of Joseph is coincidentally read on Chanukah. Indeed, in that location are many connections betwixt Joseph and Chanukah. Every bit this is certainly no coincidence, allow's try and run across what we tin can learn from the Joseph-Chanukah connexion.
Among the many themes in the story of Joseph is baseless hatred. In fact, it is the get-go documented instance of baseless hatred betwixt Jews. Joseph's brothers hated him – to the point of planning to murder him, for no good reason. Unless, of grade, y'all consider a dream, or the jealousy of not receiving a fancy glaze, solid grounds for murder.
In the stop, Joseph wasn't murdered, merely he did go through a very rough time – he was sold into slavery, accused of trying to seduce Potiphar'south wife, and forced to spend several years in an Egyptian prison house.
Chanukah is also about groundless hatred: the baseless hatred and intolerance that Antiochus and his Hellenist occupiers had for the Jewish people. Antiochus, the leader of the Syrian-Greeks at the fourth dimension, enacted all kinds of anti-Jewish decrees, essentially forbidding the Jews from practicing their faith. He forbade the observance of Shabbat and holidays, cancelled the daily service in the Holy Temple, and made sure that kosher food was non available. He also forced the Jews to denounce God and Torah by writing that they rejected God…on the horns of their oxen.
Interestingly, Joseph is compared to an ox throughout scripture (meet, for example, Deut. 33:17). It is also noted that the numerical value ("Gematria") of the discussion "Joseph" is the same as "Antiochus." This is just a sampling of the many Chanukah-Joseph connections.
Why is the Joseph story so connected to Chanukah?
A Divine Wake-Up Call
It is explained that the hatred that the brothers showed Joseph was repeated amongst the Jews during the Chanukah era. Antiochus's [temporary] success in conquering the Jewish people and making their lives miserable was an intentional Divine wake-upward telephone call to the Jews as a result of the disunity and strife that prevailed among them. Information technology was merely when the Jewish people united under the Maccabees that their fate started to modify. They realized that the just style to survive Antiochus'southward persecution was to put aside their differences and unify for the mutual good.
Some even explain that it was their want for peace and unity amongst themselves, and not necessarily their desire for religious freedom, that influenced them to stand up against Antiochus. According to this approach, when there is peace and unity, spiritual life volition automatically be more enjoyable and attainable.
Every bit the joke goes, 1 of the miracles of Chanukah was that the Maccabees found a single flask of oil…and everyone accepted it as kosher (whereas today, there are many different kosher-certifying agencies due to the many opinions and interpretations on what is considered to be kosher)
This is just one of the many reasons that the Torah portions that deal with Joseph are "coincidentally" read during the week of Chanukah. Information technology is a reminder that we should e'er work towards unity and put aside arguments and dissension. We must learn from the mistake of Joseph's brothers and not echo information technology.
So be sure to light upwards not only your life during Chanukah, but as well the lives of others every bit well!
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Source: https://unitedwithisrael.org/living-torah-why-is-the-story-of-joseph-read-on-chanukah/
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