From Mortality to Immortality: The Blessing of Ephraim and Menashe

Full Summary

Rabbi Zweig begins with a provocative question: why do we give our children what seems like the worst possible blessing - telling them to be like someone else (Ephraim and Menashe) rather than encouraging their individuality? He also questions why we add Birkas Kohanim after this initial blessing. The shiur uses the opening of Sefer Shemos to illuminate these questions. The Torah (תורה)'s repetition of the names of those who came to Egypt, despite having listed them previously in Parshas Vayigash, puzzled Rashi (רש"י), who explained that we are compared to stars that are constantly counted. Rabbi Zweig notes the linguistic anomaly of 'habaim' (coming) in present tense for an event that occurred 100 years earlier. He explains that the word 'mesei' (people) derives from 'mes' (dead), indicating that humans are fundamentally mortal beings. The transition from Bereishis to Shemos represents a shift from mortality to immortality - from 'mesei' (mortals) to 'kochavim' (stars). The key to achieving immortality lies in maintaining continuity with the past. The Torah uses present tense ('habaim') because after 100 years in Egypt, the Jewish people maintained their identity so completely that they appeared as if they had just arrived - keeping their names, language, and dress. Ephraim and Menashe represent the paradigm of continuity, being the only two tribes whose primary mission was to carry forward their father Yosef's legacy. The blessing 'Yesimcha Elokim k'Ephraim u'Menashe' is actually directed at the parent (like Yaakov blessing Yosef), creating a bonding experience where we charge our children to be our continuity. However, continuity alone isn't sufficient - like a century-old business that must adapt to modern times while maintaining its foundational relationships. This is why we add Birkas Kohanim ('Yevarechcha Hashem (ה׳) v'yishmerecha'), blessing the child's individual development and abilities. The timing of this blessing on Friday night connects to Shabbos (שבת) being 'me'ein olam haba' (a taste of the World to Come), a time when we experience immortality and therefore perform acts that create immortality. Some have the custom on Erev Yom Kippur because, according to Tosafos (תוספות), the High Holy Days judgment pertains to the World to Come - our immortal existence.