“וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח יַעֲקֹ֤ב מַלְאָכִים֙ לְפָנָ֔יו אֶל־עֵשָׂ֖ו אָחִ֑יו אַ֥רְצָה שֵׂעִ֖יר שְׂדֵ֥ה אֱדֽוֹם-Yaakov sent messengers ahead to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.” (Breishit 32:4)

Yaakov is finally returning home. Twenty-two years earlier he fled his twin brother’s very angry wrath. Yaakov had, after all, deceived Yitzchak Avinu to give Yaakov the blessing that he was going to give Esau.

Yaakov fled completely alone. He is now returning with two wives, two concubines, 12 sons and at least one daughter. And he is very frightened when he is told that Esau is approaching him with 400 men.

Their actual meeting is surprisingly friendly.

“וְה֖וּא עָבַ֣ר לִפְנֵיהֶ֑ם וַיִּשְׁתַּ֤חוּ אַ֙רְצָה֙ שֶׁ֣בַע פְּעָמִ֔ים עַד־גִּשְׁתּ֖וֹ עַד־אָחִֽיו-He himself went on ahead and bowed low to the ground seven times until he was near his brother.

וַיָּ֨רׇץ עֵשָׂ֤ו לִקְרָאתוֹ֙ וַֽיְחַבְּקֵ֔הוּ וַיִּפֹּ֥ל עַל־צַוָּארָ֖ו וַׄיִּׄשָּׁׄקֵ֑ׄהׄוּׄ וַיִּבְכּֽוּ׃ –Esau ran to greet him. He embraced him and, falling on his neck, he kissed him; and they wept.” (Ibid, 33:3,4)

Yaakov responds and beseeches Esau to accept a gift from him as he powerfully proclaims:

“וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יַעֲקֹ֗ב אַל־נָא֙ אִם־נָ֨א מָצָ֤אתִי חֵן֙ בְּעֵינֶ֔יךָ וְלָקַחְתָּ֥ מִנְחָתִ֖י מִיָּדִ֑י כִּ֣י עַל־כֵּ֞ן רָאִ֣יתִי פָנֶ֗יךָ כִּרְאֹ֛ת פְּנֵ֥י אֱלֹקים וַתִּרְצֵֽנִי׃                                                          –But Yaakov said, “No, I pray you; if you would do me this favor, accept from me this gift; for to see your face is like seeing the face of the Divine,  you have received me so favorably.” (Ibid,33:10)

Rav Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook TZ’L explained that Yaakov’s statement has tremendous prophetic implications. In a 1908 letter to Rabbi Pinchas HaKohen Lintup of Birz (1) , a major Kabbalist of his time, he wrote:

“Concerning other religions, I will state to your honor my opinion, that it is not the aim of the enlightenment that emanates from Israel to absorb or destroy them, just as it is not our aim to destroy the world’s different nationalities. 

Our aim is to perfect and elevate them, to purge them of their dross…This applies even to idolatrous cults and certainly so, to faiths that are partly based on the light of Israel’s Torah…

It is for this reason that the man of truth, Yaakov, the man of integrity said on his reunion with Esau:

‘רָאִ֣יתִי פָנֶ֗יךָ כִּרְאֹ֛ת פְּנֵ֥י אֱלֹהִ֖ים – to see your face is like seeing the face of the Divine’. (Breishit 33:10)

His world shall not go down as a vain utterance. The brotherly love of Esau and Yaakov [Christianity and Judaism], of Yitzchak and Ishmael [Israel and Islam] will assert itself above all the disturbances that the evil brought on by our bodily nature has engendered. Our core brotherly love will overcome and transform them to eternal light and compassion.

This broad understanding, sweetened by the enlightenment of the true teaching of the Torah [kabbalah], must be our guide on all our ways at the end of days, to seal our understanding with the Messianic imprint, by turning the bitter to sweet and darkness to light.” (Letters 1:112)

Rav Kook’s Torah teaching is extremely encouraging. Israel and the Jewish people have been and continue to be fiercely attacked by the descendants of Esau in Europe and the descendants of Ishmael in the Middle East. Rav Kook explains/prophecies to us that the historical process, as Yaakov returns to the HomeLand of Israel and becomes the Nation of Israel, will ultimately lead to loving reconciliation between Israel and her enemies.

The Torah is very clear that the return to the Land of Israel will involve the final confrontation with the evil forces of Amalek and his many soldiers. (See Dvarim 25:16-19) (2) Both Rav Kook ZT”L and his primary student Rabbi David Cohen ZT”L taught that the ‘Middle East conflict’ is at the core of Amalek’s murderous attempt to wipe out Israel. The Torah is also very clear that they will not succeed and that Israel will eventually eliminate Amalek in the ultimate battle of good versus evil.

The holiest and most significant responsibility of good is to destroy evil. It is a brutal ongoing battle. (I write this as a child of Holocaust survivors.) And since good is an expression of the Divine Will it is a much more powerful force.

When this conflict is won, we will collectively realize that we are at core all of the same family. Jews, Christians and Muslims are all the children of Avraham. We will also come to understand that all humankind are the children of the same parents, Adam ve’Chava.

We are all truly brothers and sisters. The love at our core will ultimately overcome all the obstacles between us.

“A chaotic world stands before us, as long as we have not reached the state of higher perfection of uniting all life forces and all their diverse tendencies. As long as each one exalts themselves, saying ‘I will be sovereign, I and no-one else, there cannot be peace in our midst…

All life’s endeavors, especially the spiritual endeavors of all thought must be directed above all to disclose the light of the higher general harmony. This is effected not by rejecting any force, any thought, any movement, any tendency, but by including each within the vast ocean of infinite light. There all is united, all is elevated, all is exalted, all is hallowed.” (Orot HaKodesh 2:p.588)

May our dedication to ending the rule of evil and improving the world lead us soon to the day that seeing the face of anyone and everyone will be ‘like seeing the face of the Divine’.

(1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinchas_HaKohen_Lintup

(2) Dvarim 25:16-19-

זָכ֕וֹר אֵ֛ת אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂ֥ה לְךָ֖ עֲמָלֵ֑ק בַּדֶּ֖רֶךְ בְּצֵאתְכֶ֥ם מִמִּצְרָֽיִם׃-

Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt—

אֲשֶׁ֨ר קָֽרְךָ֜ בַּדֶּ֗רֶךְ וַיְזַנֵּ֤ב בְּךָ֙ כׇּל־הַנֶּחֱשָׁלִ֣ים אַֽחֲרֶ֔יךָ וְאַתָּ֖ה עָיֵ֣ף וְיָגֵ֑עַ וְלֹ֥א יָרֵ֖א אֱלֹהִֽים׃-

how, undeterred by fear of God, he surprised you on the march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear.

וְהָיָ֡ה בְּהָנִ֣יחַ יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֣יךָ ׀ לְ֠ךָ֠ מִכׇּל־אֹ֨יְבֶ֜יךָ מִסָּבִ֗יב בָּאָ֙רֶץ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר יְהֹוָה־אֱ֠לֹהֶ֠יךָ נֹתֵ֨ן לְךָ֤ נַחֲלָה֙ לְרִשְׁתָּ֔הּ תִּמְחֶה֙ אֶת־זֵ֣כֶר עֲמָלֵ֔ק מִתַּ֖חַת הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם לֹ֖א תִּשְׁכָּֽח׃ –

Therefore, when your God יהוה grants you safety from all your enemies around you, in the land that your God יהוה is giving you as a hereditary portion, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!

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