When Ms. Rachel "Likes" Antisemitism
5 min read
Life is experienced in the moment. We live life going forward yet only understand it looking backward. Oftentimes, “the heat of the moment” renders one incapable of discerning its ultimate impact. In retrospect, our vantage points become expanded. The chain of events leading to the present moment come into sharper focus.
Finally, we recognize that the challenge or crisis we endured was really the springboard to actualize a greater good. Greater clarity awaits. Only after all the pieces of a puzzle are in place can we view the entire picture. Likewise, life’s plot unfolds. We cannot know how a story will end while in the middle of the book. Neither can one know with certainty who will win the game at halftime. Such is the process called life.
The deeds of our Patriarchs and Matriarchs are a sign for their children. Many unsung heroes and heroines have made an indelible mark of positive difference. Their names and deeds are interwoven within the eternal fabric of time. While unknown to many, the merit of their actions resounds to this very day.
One such woman’s name is mentioned briefly in this week’s Torah portion. “Pharaoh called Yosef’s name Tzafanas Panei’ach, and he gave him Osnas, the daughter of Potiphar, priest of Ohn, as a wife.” Our Sages tell us that Osnas was the daughter born to Yosef’s sister, Dinah, as the result of her having been raped by Shechem. From that violent incident came forth the holy soul of Osnas, who was destined to be the future wife of the righteous Yosef.
After Osnas’s birth, her grandfather Yaakov had her sent to Egypt to be adopted. Before parting from her, Yaakov tied an amulet around Osnas’s neck. These words were written upon the amulet in Hebrew: “Whoever cleaves to you cleaves to the seed of Yaakov.”44 The commentator Chizkuni states that Osnas was adopted by the idolatrous Egyptian Potiphar, since he and his wife were childless.
Later, when Yosef became an Egyptian ruler, young women would gaze upon him, because he was very handsome.45 They would toss gifts at Yosef, hoping that he would notice them. Osnas joined these women, removed the amulet from her neck, and tossed it to him. This is how Yosef became aware that Osnas was the granddaughter of Yaakov (and Yosef’s niece). They eventually married.
Now we are midpoint in their life’s narratives. Neither Osnas— a daughter conceived through a heinous act of rape—nor Yosef— betrayed, sold into slavery and unjustly jailed—could have imagined their future ascent. Who would foresee characters like these being capable of overcoming formidable “emotional baggage,” let alone assuming such illustrious positions? As improbable as it would seem, their inner fortitude and resolve propelled them forward to exalted heights of spiritual achievement.
We admire Yosef and Osnas for not allowing themselves to stay “stuck” in the traumas of their past. Instead, they transcended them. From where did this inner strength come? Yosef was aware of his role in a far greater unfolding story. He recognized God’s providence in all that had transpired and, therefore, regarded the perpetrators who maligned him as carrying out their Divinely assigned roles.
Yosef was not embittered by his negative circumstances; rather, he saw them through a wider lens. Each experience contributed to a chain of events, eventually positioning Yosef to become the Egyptian leader, second in command to Pharaoh. Subsequently, Yosef fulfilled his purpose in preventing a famine. He recognized that in actuality he was sent by God and that his brothers played their roles in his descent to Egypt.
Furthermore, Yosef’s marriage to Osnas vindicated him regarding the false accusations of Osnas’s mother against his virtue. By allowing their marriage, her adoptive father (Potiphar) conceded to Yosef’s proclaimed innocence. Osnas’s birth and subsequent relocation to Egypt all led to her eventual union with Yosef.
Their marriage produced two exemplary sons—Ephraim and Menashe. Both were raised in exile, outside the pale of Jewish culture. Nevertheless, they fervently exemplified the best in Torah values. Their parents imbued within them a deep belief in the one God of Yisrael. Although born and bred in Egypt, the effects of that pagan, immoral culture did not permeate their values. We bless our sons on Friday night that they should grow up to be as Ephraim and Menashe—staunch in their identification as proud practicing Jews. Even while living in a host culture whose values oppose those of our Torah heritage, we can be empowered by their examples.
Like many of us, Osnas was raised in an environment not conducive to Torah values. Her adoptive mother mirrored and modeled the immoral values of Egyptian society. Her father was a pagan priest. Yet despite her upbringing, Osnas revealed and maintained her inner purity. Through her own efforts, Osnas became the suitable life partner for Yosef, who is extolled for his ability to overcome overwhelming temptation.
These are not just stories from a distant past; they provide timeless lessons for us today. The narrative of Yosef and Osnas must empower us now. For we too are not merely the products of our past nor of our families. Neither a positive nor a negative background guarantees the type of future one will have. Rather, the choices one makes of how to think about and regard one’s life’s experiences are the strongest indicators of one’s future achievements. Success and fulfillment are predicated upon how we learn to think. Developing and maintaining a belief in one’s own Divine purpose is paramount to recognizing that Divine providence guides our lives, emboldening us to work purposefully toward revealing and actualizing our own unique inner light.
