{"id":84998,"date":"2020-12-17T23:07:23","date_gmt":"2020-12-17T21:07:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=84998"},"modified":"2020-12-17T23:07:23","modified_gmt":"2020-12-17T21:07:23","slug":"vayishlach-rename-and-renew-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/vayishlach-rename-and-renew-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Vayishlach: Rename And Renew"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-content\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"84998","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":84469,"related_cahpter":"1125","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Shmita, like the renaming of Jacob, offers an opportunity for us to recalibrate who we are and who we aspire to become. ","content":"<header><\/header>\n<section class=\"entry\"><\/section>\n<p>2020 has been a year of unbelievable struggle. Between the devastating impact of Covid-19, the profound struggle for racial equality that erupted in nation-wide protests in the wake of George Floyd\u2019s murder, and the hyper-partisan election campaign that tore apart so many, 2020 is a year many of us can\u2019t wait to finish. But I was recently reminded in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/newsletters\/politico-nightly\/2020\/12\/01\/a-guide-to-2021s-slow-walk-to-normalcy-491024\">this article<\/a>\u00a0that, even with the approval of the new Covid-19 vaccines, January 2021 will not be a panacea; any societal return to \u201cnormalcy\u201d will not begin until well into the fall of 2021. How, then, should we continue to grapple with this interminable hardship? Does our tradition offer us tools and resources to bolster us emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually as we continue to traverse this brutal terrain?<\/p>\n<p>I believe one such resource can be found in this week\u2019s Torah reading, Parashat Vayishlach. This parashah focuses mainly on the rich narrative of Jacob\u2019s reconciliation with his estranged brother Esau but also includes the famous story of Jacob wrestling with an angel. After an exhaustive stalemate, the angel blesses Jacob in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Genesis.32.29?lang=bi&amp;with=all&amp;lang2=en\">Genesis 32:29<\/a>\u00a0with a new name, declaring: \u201cYour name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with beings divine and human, and have prevailed.\u201d As a reward for his perseverance through struggle (\u201csarah\u201d, the same root as in \u201cYi<strong>sra<\/strong>el\u201d) and pain, Jacob is given the name that will not only define him but also define the Jewish people ever after: Israel.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>By the time Covid-19 is finally contained through mass vaccinations, we will be well into the next Sabbatical\/Shmita year, which begins with Rosh Hashanah 2021. Shmita, like the renaming of Jacob, offers an opportunity for us to recalibrate who we are and who we aspire to become. It does not ask us to forget the pain and suffering of this past year, but to use the lessons we have learned from our struggles in a generative and redemptive manner. Maybe this means that we intentionally choose to embrace some of the practices we were forced to adopt during our lockdowns and social distancing, such as home gardening, supporting local merchants, and cutting down more broadly on our consumerism.\u00a0 Perhaps we can use Shmita\u2019s focus on renewal and replenishment as a metaphor for the work we need to do to heal our own broken hearts and souls and those in our communities who also need our support. The Sabbatical year will not end our struggles for health, equity, or civil discourse, but it offers each of us a new lens through which to view ourselves and the world around us.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The next shmita year begins next Rosh Hashanah 2021, almost a year from now. We have time to prepare. As we move through 5781 we invite you to join us in preparation for the upcoming shmita year \u2013 a sabbatical year for the Earth but also for ourselves, our communities, and our world. Each week we will share thoughts on how the weekly parsha can help guide our thinking around shmita themes of work and rest, wealth and debt, responsible land use, fair labor practices, private and public property ownership, and physical and spiritual revitalization.<\/p>\n<p>Join us for the journey.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/hazon.org\/shmita-project\/hazon-shmita-blog\/\">See here for more information on the Hazon Shmita project, and its blogs.<\/a><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":81608,"id":81608,"title":"shmita","filename":"shmita.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/bereishit-the-sabbatical-paradigm\/shmita\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"shmita","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":81605,"date":"2020-10-15 14:26:00","modified":"2021-02-01 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New Weekly Series: The \"Shmitah Parasha\" Blog","main_caption":"Vayishlach: Rename And Renew","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"in conjunction with Hazon.org","preview_embedded":"","preview_image":{"ID":81608,"id":81608,"title":"shmita","filename":"shmita.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/bereishit-the-sabbatical-paradigm\/shmita\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"shmita","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":81605,"date":"2020-10-15 14:26:00","modified":"2021-02-01 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