This week’s Parsha describes the beginning of all things. “Let there be light” rings out and absolute chaos succumbs to control. The Divine voice proclaims two Hebrew words and light rids darkness of the potential to elicit fear or to cause us to stumble and fall. Light becomes the only form of energy introduced into the entirety of creation; all other elements such as water, earth, vegetation, animals and people are comprised of matter. Without God’s governing the universe by establishing rules of energy and matter from the get-go, reality would be impossible.
No other text is as well-known as Beresheet. No other text brings to mind such a sense of wonder, curiosity or incredulity. Realists assert ‘6 days for creation’ as being implausible and therefore deny Genesis’s accuracy. We might consider the 6 days as representing a gradual ascendancy from a lower order of reality to a higher order of reality. Some readers would deride the account of a man’s being made out of soil. But, a human created from earth and named EARTH-HUMAN (ADAM from ADAMAH) can compel those who wish to see us as part of our world; not to mention highlighting the miraculous nature of any substance as being alive.
This week, do something different. Choose one chapter of Beresheet (1-4) and read it as if you have never read it before. Ask yourself what it adds to your understanding of life. What is the purpose of creation? What is the value of the individual? How would you feel knowing that God actually created you personally?
Instead of viewing the text as unbelievable, peek through a keyhole. I wonder what you will see.
Shabbat shalom.
Rabbi Steve Silberman
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