Dvar Torah at the Pidyon Haben of our new grandson, BenZion Meir Yitzchak Shaffer-Dec 19th 2012/7th Tevet 5753: Fairlawn New Jersey

(After thanking all the people who contributed food etc to the celebration...) This mitzva is extremely rare and the average I was told is that it is done for only 8% of children born, so it is wonderful to be here now to be able to perform this rare mitzva. I once heard from Rabbi Nosson Ordman zal of the Etz Chaim Yeshiva in London the following question.At the Pidyon the father is asked"What do you want? the child or the money ?” The question is strange as there is really no choice (although after a month of sleepless nights some parents might be tempted to take the money and run...), so what is really being asked here? Rabbi Ordman explained that this is really a clarification for the parents. What sort of priorities will you set for this child? Is his only goal to 'live the American dream' and become wealthy ? Or will you take the child and instill in him the values which you have received from the homes you have come from? This element of commitment is what the Kohen is really asking the father and when the father takes the child, we hope this is a symbolic acceptance of the instilling of the true values of our tradition as he grows up and becomes a full member of the Jewish people.

My bracha to Bentzi is based on a thought on this weeks parsha in the name of Dayan Golditch zal of Manchester U.K.(as conveyed by Rabbi Isaac Bernstein zal  a number of years ago). Yosef makes his peace with the brothers and wants to bring his father to Egypt, so he sends wagons to fetch him? The use of wagons (agalot) leads Rashi to comment that it refers to the law of eglah arufah (play on the word agalah and eglah) which was the last subject that Yosef and his father had studied together before he went to Egypt. Yaakov was excited and his 'spirit came alive' at this news because he realised that Yosef remembered who he was, even in the foreign environment of Egypt and that his Torah study was still important to him.

Dayan Golditch explained the sending of wagons in another way.

He told the story of a couple who were refugees from the war and who married and settled in Manchester. They had one son who went to University and became a doctor and then married and went to live in the Cotswolds where there was no Jewish life at all. He always kept contact with the parents by calling them every Friday to wish them Shabbat Shalom. However they knew nothing of his day to day life.

They were ageing and decided to call the son and visit him to see where he lived etc. They said they would take a taxi and visit. He said that he has a better idea and that he would come to them instead in Manchester so as not to trouble them. This was a 'red flag' for them as it showed that he really did not want them to see how he lived and how far he had gone away from the Jewish life of his parents home.

When Yaakov received the invitation to go to Yosef he was so happy because it meant that Yosef was   proud to show his father how he was living as a Jew even in such a foreign environment as Egypt.

Just as we have derived so much nachas from spending Shabbatot with Yechiel and Aliza in their home, so I hope and pray that when Bentzi sets up his future home it will also be a home where the parents(and grandparents) can come and visit and feel that the values which were installed into their child are now reflected in the way he is living and connecting with his heritage and traditions.

'Just as he has now been redeemed, may he soon enter into Torah, Chupah and Maasim Tovim ‘. Amein.