Although R' Frand did not deliver his live shiur this evening, R' Frand did post a pre-recorded Parsha vort on OU Torah which I have summarized here. This week's vort can be found at https://outorah.org/p/212506 and I have attempted to reproduce the vort to the best of my ability in this post. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to the maggid shiur.
R' Frand noted that Parshas Mikeitz often falls on Shabbos Chanukah and he said a vort which linked the two topics.
R' Frand began by quoting Rashi on Bereishis 42:1 which states - וַיַּ֣רְא יַֽעֲקֹ֔ב כִּ֥י יֶשׁ־שֶׁ֖בֶר בְּמִצְרָ֑יִם וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יַֽעֲקֹב֙ לְבָנָ֔יו לָ֖מָּה תִּתְרָאֽוּ. Rashi explains that Ya'akov was saying to his sons - why do you want to appear before the children of Esav and Yishmael like you have food? There was enough food, but he did not want them to appear that you have when others don't. Therefore he sent them on the difficult journey to Egypt to get food.
R' Frand next quoted Devarim 2:3 which states - רַב־לָכֶ֕ם סֹ֖ב אֶת־הָהָ֣ר הַזֶּ֑ה פְּנ֥וּ לָכֶ֖ם צָפֹֽנָה. The Klei Yakar says that the word צָפֹֽנָה could mean north and it could also mean hidden. The Klei Yakar explains that the message was - if you are successful while in Galus - hide it. The reason is that the descendants of Esav are jealous and they never got over the fact that Ya'akov "stole" the Berachos. The Klei Yakar then quotes Rashi cited above and stated that the children of Yishmael also feel that the Jews are not entitled to their wealth. The Klei Yakar states that in his generation, someone with 100 pretends that they have 200 and they flaunt their wealth.
R' Frand mentioned a Gemara in Ta'anis which states that if there is a fast declared in a city because of a need, a person who travels to that city must fast as well. And even if the visitor did not realize that it was a fast, he should not continue eating, because he should not be eating while others are fasting. The Gemara in Ta'anis also quotes Mikeitz and uses this as a proof that one should not appear to have when others do not.
R' Frand then cited a vort from R' Pa'am that although there is a requirement to be Mefarsem the miracle, once the candles go out, close the shades. Because the neighbors don't need to see your chandelier or silver candlesticks. As there already is a deep seated jealousy and enmity, don't add "fuel" to the fire - close the shades after the candles go out.
Bonus Chanukah Vort - As I mentioned above, R' Frand did not give his shiur tonight. Instead, R' Heber was the maggid shiur. I wanted to briefly summarize one of his vorts (with the same rules as usual - these are just my efforts to transcribe the thought and any errors are mine).
Rabbi Heber noted that there are seven liquids which can transmit Tumah as we learn from the Mishna in Machsirim - wine, oil, milk, dew, honey, blood and water. R' Heber said that each of these connect with a holiday - wine - Purim, blood - Yom Kippur (because we reduce our blood and they sprinkled it in the avodah), oil - Chanukah, milk - Shavuous, dew is Pesach, honey is Rosh Hashanah and water is Sukkos. He remarked that these beverages have importance and the Yomim Tovim give importance to our lives.
R' Heber says that the five holidays which start with Pesach and run through Sukkos connect with five liquids, but wine and oil connect with Purim and Chanukah. These two liquids require man's efforts whereas the other beverage are all used in their natural state. R' Heber said that when we come out of Sukkos and we enter a long dark winter that we need to carry until Pesach - we have two holidays which strengthen us and we need the effort to create the oil and wine for the holidays. These holidays were not given to us, we needed to work for them. And we don't have Krias HaTorah which relate to them - as we yearn for what is missing.
R' Heber quoted Halichos Shlomo that we eat Sufganiyot on Chanukah because the Greeks had defiled the temple and we needed to cleanse it, but the stones of the Mizbeach which could not be cleansed had to be cut out and put away. R' Heber said that the reason that we eat Sufganiyot is not only because they are fried in oil, but because we make an Al Hamichya - which invokes the Mizbeach which we don't mention in Benching. When we eat the donut we yearn for the Mizbeach and the real Chanukas HaMizbeach in the future. R' Heber also noted that Hechalecha is in Al Hamicya and not in Benching except when we say Al Hanissim.
R' Heber then added that we eat Mezonos on Purim and this ties into a Gemara in Megillah which states that the angels argued before Hashem that the Jews should not be destroyed. It ties into the Pasuk in Esther 1:14 - וְהַקָּרֹ֣ב אֵלָ֗יו כַּרְשְׁנָ֤א שֵׁתָר֙ אַדְמָ֣תָא תַרְשִׁ֔ישׁ מֶ֥רֶס מַרְסְנָ֖א מְמוּכָ֑ן. The angels cited to each word to say that the Jews do something to serve Hashem which the gentiles do not. More specifically there is a citation to אַדְמָ֣תָא where the angels ask - do the gentiles bring sacrifices on a Mizbach Adama like the Jews do? R' Heber said that this conversation is hinted to by the fact that we make an Al Hamichya which invokes the Mizbeach.
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