My Weekly Drash (a mini D'var Torah) - Bereshit
Posted by Daniel M. Kimmel on October 18, 2007 | Tags: Bereshit
As we start the Torah anew with Parshah Bereshit, think about the very first verse. Should we read it as “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth?” Or as “When God began to create heaven and earth?” How about, “In the beginning of God’s creating of the heaven and the earth?” All are interpretations from Jewish sources (the last from Rashi). Each raises the question whether these differences are merely stylistic or whether there are subtle profundities hidden within the varying formulations. It’s all too easy to dismissively read the text year as something with which we are overly familiar and brush it off with, “Here we go again.” In encountering these diverse readings and approaches, it makes us think anew about something we thought we already knew. Consider: this is only the first verse! Make this a year of fresh encounters with the Torah. Each week you can discover new insights even though you’ve read it many times in the past.
|
Daniel M. KimmelJoined: October 2, 2007 Daniel M. Kimmel is a Boston area film critic, lecturer and author. He does these weekly mini-lessons for the Mishkan Tefila Brotherhood's newsletter. You are free to use them for similar purposes. Divrei Torah (117) |
