This week's parsha features the deaths of the main characters in our story to this point. First, Yaakov passes away, and then Yossef. With that, the founding generations of the Jewish people come to an end.
However, before they died, Yaakov and Yossef left a legacy that accompanies us still. Yaakov requested Yossef to swear an oath to bury him only in the Land of Israel. Yaakov wanted to be laid for his final rest in Ma'arat HaMachpeilah, next to his father and grandfather. He couldn't abide the thought of being buried outside of the Holy Land. Yossef also did not wish to remain in Egypt. Before he passed away, he asked his brothers to ensure that he would eventually be brought back to Israel. Indeed, the book of Bereishit ends on a cliffhanger, like a TV show promising one more season, by telling us that he was placed in a coffin in Egypt.
Yaakov and Yossef understood something which had already become a theme in their family life, and which we understand to this day; though we might find our home temporarily in many places, even for a very long time, the truest home of the Jewish people as a whole remains the Land of Israel. This has remained true throughout the centuries. More mitzvot can be fulfilled in Israel than in other places. We continue to turn to Jerusalem and speak of our eventual return to Israel in our prayers. Periodically, waves of Jews would come to Israel and make new settlements. In 1903, the Sixth Zionist Congress rejected Uganda as a temporary refuge from the pogroms in Russia. The Russian delegates led that rejection. They understood, and so do we, that there is something different about living in Israel. They understood that Israel is the place that we should all ultimately be in.
Like Yaakov and Yossef, many of us cannot move to Israel immediately, however much we might like to. There are very good reasons for this. However, another way exists to express our deep-seated connection to the land. Since the war began, Jews around the world have given generously to support causes impacted directly by the war. Vast amounts of money have gone to charities, especially those supporting soldiers and soldiers' families. However, other causes have suffered from smaller donations. Many of these organisations are incredibly dear to our hearts. As a new calendar year begins, let's all choose an organisation we know of and value, one that has not seen a bump in donations since the war started, and support them in this difficult time for everyone. In times of trouble, we stepped up to give and gave generously; however, let's remember that the giving should not (as much as possible) replace our normal charity; it should be extra. Don't forget about the organisations crucial to making the Land of Israel what it is, even if they are not directly involved in its defence.
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