Parashat Vayishlach
Rabbi’s Drosh
This week’s Parasha is an excellent lesson on how to prepare for uncertainty!
There is so much that we cannot control or anticipate in life. The events of the past couple years and in particular the past few months have been a prime example of this. Yet even when we can’t predict the future, we can still prepare for it. We can learn how from our forefather Yaacov (Jacob).
In this week's Parasha, Yaacov is preparing himself for the meeting with his brother Eisav.
Rashi explains that he prepared himself in three ways:
By a tribute: “So the tribute passed on before him”
By praying to G-d: ”Then Jacob said G-d of my father Abraham and G-d of my father Isaac...”
By preparing for war: “for he said if Eisav comes to the one camp and strikes it down, then the remaining camp shall survive”
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The sages questioned this strategy. Was it appropriate to make so many arrangements instead of trusting Hashem, especially after Hashem specifically promised him that He would protect him before he left Eretz Yisrael?: We read “Behold I am with you, I will guard you wherever you go, and I will return you to this soil...”. Surely this was enough.
What we see here with the three part plan is an example of Hishtadlut - an effort to help oneself.
While having faith is important, we should still put in effort to prepare for what might come - as we see with Jacob's preparations for meeting his brother.
The Talmud (Shabbat 32a) encourages this, emphasising that human effort is important and we should not rely on miracles:
“One should never put himself in a dangerous situation and say, ‘A miracle will save me.’ Perhaps the miracle will not come. And even if a miracle occurs, one’s merits are reduced”
When we face uncertainty in our lives, it can be overwhelming and stressful, but combining our Hishtadlut (effort) by coming up with several contingency plans and at the same time putting our faith and trust in Hashem, we can reduce our stress and anxiety.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Friedler