Parashat Bereshit
October 15, 2020
Rachel Kirschbaum, High School Hebrew Department Chair
Bereshit: A Study of Self
As we return, again, to the start of the Torah and immerse in the study of Sefer Bereshit, the following dictum comes to mind:
The Midrash relates to ma’aseh avot siman l-banim (“everything that occurred to our forefathers is a sign for the children”) quite literally; anything that happened to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, from the mundane to the extraordinary, is destined to occur also upon their future generations. One wonders if Yogi Berra read this Midrash. Anyone up for some déjà vu all over again?
The Ramban/Nachmanides, widens the reach of ma’aseh avot siman l-banim in two significant ways. First, the Ramban expands the breadth of events that will resurface in our future. According to the Ramban, all events that occurred to the forefathers and all prophets are preordained to recur. Indeed, an event from the past of our forefathers and prophets, no matter how exceptional or ordinary, is in itself a prophecy that will perpetually manifest throughout the chronicles of our people.
Is it true, however, that ma’aseh avot siman l-banim is another, albeit religious, perspective on history repeating itself? This is where the Ramban extends the reach of ma’aseh avot siman l-banim beyond the historical into the realm of morality and character. Says the Ramban, not only are the actual circumstances of the forefathers and prophets to return, but the ethics of those ancestors, their fortitude, and foibles are embedded in the moral makeup of their children. In other words, the character of our ancestors, for better and worse, is a mark of the Jewish people’s national identity.
And so, whether you are 15 or 95, as we begin the Torah-reading cycle anew this Shabbat, we are launching into another year of studying ourselves and our Selves. We will examine our national and individual places in history and the character attributes that got us there. May we be blessed with the wisdom to discern good from bad and right from wrong, and then, please God, may we be granted the clarity of mind to apply that wisdom to the year ahead.
As we return, again, to the start of the Torah and immerse in the study of Sefer Bereshit, the following dictum comes to mind:
כל מה שאירע לאבות סימן לבנים
“Everything that occurred to our forefathers is a sign for the children.”
The Midrash Tanchuma explains this rule through a relatively narrow scope:ולכן יאריכו הכתובים בספור המסעות וחפירת הבארות ושאר המקרים, ויחשוב החושב בהם כאלו הם דברים מיותרים אין בהם תועלת, וכולם באים ללמד על העתיד, כי כאשר יבוא המקרה לנביא משלשת האבות יתבונן ממנו הדבר הנגזר לבא לזרעו
“And therefore the verses will write at length in recounting the journeys and the digging of the wells and the other events. And the reader can think these details are superfluous things with no purpose. But all of the events come to teach about the future, for when an event occurs to a prophet of the three forefathers, then the matter is decreed to come upon his children.”
The Midrash relates to ma’aseh avot siman l-banim (“everything that occurred to our forefathers is a sign for the children”) quite literally; anything that happened to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, from the mundane to the extraordinary, is destined to occur also upon their future generations. One wonders if Yogi Berra read this Midrash. Anyone up for some déjà vu all over again?
The Ramban/Nachmanides, widens the reach of ma’aseh avot siman l-banim in two significant ways. First, the Ramban expands the breadth of events that will resurface in our future. According to the Ramban, all events that occurred to the forefathers and all prophets are preordained to recur. Indeed, an event from the past of our forefathers and prophets, no matter how exceptional or ordinary, is in itself a prophecy that will perpetually manifest throughout the chronicles of our people.
Is it true, however, that ma’aseh avot siman l-banim is another, albeit religious, perspective on history repeating itself? This is where the Ramban extends the reach of ma’aseh avot siman l-banim beyond the historical into the realm of morality and character. Says the Ramban, not only are the actual circumstances of the forefathers and prophets to return, but the ethics of those ancestors, their fortitude, and foibles are embedded in the moral makeup of their children. In other words, the character of our ancestors, for better and worse, is a mark of the Jewish people’s national identity.
And so, whether you are 15 or 95, as we begin the Torah-reading cycle anew this Shabbat, we are launching into another year of studying ourselves and our Selves. We will examine our national and individual places in history and the character attributes that got us there. May we be blessed with the wisdom to discern good from bad and right from wrong, and then, please God, may we be granted the clarity of mind to apply that wisdom to the year ahead.