Parahats while we were gone

The Torah portions while we were away basically were the story of Joseph – the last 3 in the book of Genesis. I wanted to talk, just briefly, about Joseph’s sons – Menasha and Ephraim.

Every Shabbat, a father blesses his children. For daughters he blesses ‘May G-d make you like Sarah, Rebecca Rachel and Leah.” For sons he blesses ‘May G-d make you like Ephraim and Menasha.” The question is why Ephraim and Menasha, why not Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?

The explanation holds special relevance in today’s world. Ephraim and Menasha were raised by an Egyptian mother, and the Prime Minister of Egypt, living in an Egyptian palace in a country whose beliefs are antithetical to Judaism. Yet they still were aware of their heritage, and were practicing Jews.

The blessing we give our Sons is that we hope that G-d will guide them to their Jewish heritage, even if we are surrounded by foreign culture. The interesting thing is how well the blessing seems to work. Children who received this blessing each week growing up, are far less likely to intermarry and far more likely to be connected to their heritage.

You’ll probably say that it works the other way around, they’re not connected to Judaism because they received the blessing, they received the blessing become they are connected. The Sages teach that “Even more than the Jews kept the Shabbas, Shabbas kept the Jews.’ I think the same thing may apply here.

G-d willing, I will get to bless my children (and grandchildren) in this way for many years.