A midrash says there was not just one Hanukkah but actually seven. I propose to you that there are in fact nine Hanukkahs, not seven. We are the eighth Hanukkah of light. All of us are called to dedicate ourselves to Hashem. The ninth Hanukkah of light is the Hanukkah of Messiah Yeshua.

In Parashat Vayishlach, we continue to follow the stories of the mothers and the fathers of Israel. Unfortunately, the women in this story are often abused by powerful men. The men sometimes seem to get away with their behavior in the short term, but the consequences of their actions are seen for generations.

Strolling through this week’s parasha, we see several episodes in Jacob’s life. First he is fleeing his home in fear of big brother Esau’s retaliation after Jacob and his mother Rebecca had secured the patriarchal blessing by trickery. Nevertheless, Hashem promises Jacob that everything will eventually be well for him.

This week’s parasha contains an important part of the story of Abraham and his family. But it is also a lesson in proper priorities and perspectives, especially when it comes to responding appropriately to Adonai. And yet, it’s a story that is usually misunderstood and as a result is inaccurately told. It’s the account of Jacob and Esau.

Our Messiah warned us, “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Readers might think this implies that the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees is somehow defective or inferior, but Messiah Yeshua is probably saying the opposite.

Tired of creation descending into chaos, murder, and hatred? Does it seem like that flood didn’t quite clean out all the trash and you just can’t bring yourself to go through another one? Then try ISRAEL, a unique way of blessing the whole creation through one particular people group!

In this week’s parasha, God commands Noah to build an ark for his family and for all the land animals to avoid the coming destruction of the flood. Water in the Torah is often a symbol of the forces of chaos. The ark became Noah’s safe haven from the raging waters of chaos, storm, and sin. 

We’ve entered a new year and a new round of Torah readings—a good time to recalibrate our lives. But what measure can we use to recalibrate? I can’t think of a better measure than the account of creation in the opening chapters of the Torah.

When I was a boy growing up in New York our family gatherings were like a scene out of the Barry Levinson movie Avalon. On Thanksgiving and Chanukah our get-togethers would involve not only our immediate family, but also an extended family of grandparents, aunts and uncles, great aunts and uncles, multiple generations of cousins, and friends.