Angels Among Us

The Torah tells us that Joseph was lost. Wandering in search of his brothers, he came upon a stranger who directed him on his path. Knowing that when Joseph eventually finds his brothers, they will throw him into a pit and then sell him into slavery, you might be thinking “Thanks a lot, buddy, for the help.” But the kind stranger guiding Joseph on his journey ultimately changed the course of the Jewish people. 

Some believe that the stranger was an angel sent by G-d, but I prefer to think of him as being an ordinary person who exhibited basic human decency. You don’t have to be an angel to act like one.  

Some believe that the stranger was an angel sent by G-d, but I prefer to think of him as being an ordinary person who exhibited basic human decency.  You don’t have to be an angel to act like one.  

It is reasonable to expect your friends and family to be there for you when you need them, but strangers? When they show up for you, you are unlikely to forget it.

My wife tells the story of how, shortly after we moved to Evanston, Illinois, in 2009, she got hopelessly lost in the town of Niles, a suburb of Chicago. She went into a fast food restaurant, ordered some food, and asked the person behind the counter how she could find her way home. This was before smart phones with GPS and Google Maps. The young man disappeared for five minutes and came back with a map he had printed out, outlining the route home. My wife still smiles when she recalls his thoughtfulness.

Several friends have shared similar stories.

When Jackie and her husband, Rich, returned home following the funeral of Jackie’s mom, she realized that with all the challenges of the day, she had neglected to order any food for the shiva. To her surprise, at the front door was a large basket of sandwiches. The sender? Someone Jackie hardly knew, who had heard through the grapevine about her loss. Another kindness that has resonated with her for years.

Deb has a multiracial family. Living in Chicago, that wasn’t out of the ordinary. But she bought a house in a rural community a couple of hours outside the city as a getaway retreat. Early in her time there, she and her children went to the town’s lone restaurant, a diner, that was packed with locals. She and her kids were immediately aware that people were openly staring and whispering. Deb was reconsidering her decision to move there when an elderly woman approached her table, welcoming her and her family to town, and insisting on paying for their meal. With that act of humanity, Deb felt like she and her children belonged.

Audrey was in a doctor’s waiting room after her husband, Peter, was released following a long hospital stay. The news was bad: he had to return to the hospital, and Audrey was understandably distraught. She tried unsuccessfully to hide her anguish, when a woman approached her and said, “You look like you might need a hug.” Audrey says that single hug helped her get through a terrible time.

Saul once flew to Columbus, Ohio, to give some lectures. He picked up a rental car and drove off, not noticing that it was almost out of gas. A few miles down the road the car stalled, and he was forced to stop in front of a house. When he peered over the fence, he saw a woman who lived there walking toward her gate. In her hand was a gasoline can, which she graciously gave to Saul. He of course offered to pay her. Her reply: “No need, just pay it forward.”

The Torah passage about Jacob’s ladder is a familiar one. Jacob, the father of Joseph, “dreamed, and lo – a ladder was set on the ground, with its top reaching to heaven, and lo – angels of G-d going up and coming down on it.” (Genesis 28:12) Numerous commentators have observed that the angels climbed up first, indicating that they were already on earth, not in heaven.

These stories are a small sample suggesting that there are, indeed, “angels” living among us. We only need to open our eyes to see them. And we can try our best to be them for others.

Morton Schapiro is the former president of Williams College and Northwestern University. His most recent book (with Gary Saul Morson) is “Minds Wide Shut: How the New Fundamentalisms Divide Us.”