Bereshit
Gen. 1:1 - 6:8
Précis: The first Book of the Torah, Bereshit (Genesis, literally “in the beginning” or “When God began to create”) begins with the familiar story of creation. The world is created in six days and God rests on the seventh. The stories of Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden are included, as is the story of Cain and Abel.
We begin the annual reading of the Five Books of Moses immediately upon its conclusion. Why? Perhaps it is because with each passing year, our experiences allow us to understand more of what life has to offer, and what the text has to offer. Yohanan Ben Bag Bag said (Pirke Avot 5:25), “Turn it, and turn it, for everything is in it. Reflect on it and grow old and gray with it. Don't turn from it, for you have no better standard of conduct.”
Gen. 1:26 - “And God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...’”
My students at Shoresh Hebrew High School debated the meaning of this verse with me just this past Sunday, as they discussed the meaning and purpose of prayer. What does it mean to be created in the image of God? Rabbi Plaut brings together three meanings to explain our “likeness” (in the image, or “b’tzelem”) of God. First, “b’tzelem” reveals humanity’s special place in Creation, with our unique intellect. Second, “b’tzelem” shows our moral potential, if we only act as we imagine how God acts. Third, if each of us is made in God’s image, then all of humanity is engaged in the act of forming an image of God, and each human being merits respect and honor.
Our tradition is rich with other interpretations of what it means to be made in God’s image. Sages have suggested that “b’tzelem Elohim” means that we are endowed with the power of reason and intellect, dominion over the plants and animals, have free will, or simply that we are imbued with morality. Another suggestion, based on a very old translation of the Bible, suggests that man became a living being when he became a speaking being. God acted through words (“Let there be….”) and human beings create their societies through words. This may help explain the deep importance of words to Jews. A People of the Book naturally must have access to language; our ethics are based on our use of words for good and for ill. We need to remember that in all encounters, words matter deeply. Perhaps this may be helpful to overcome the linguistic and data silos in which we in America currently find ourselves.
