Monday, November 19, 2012
Shabbat VaYetzeh
Bereishit 28:10 – 32:3
10 Kislev 5773 / Nov. 23 – 24, 2012
Bereishit 28:10 – 32:3
10 Kislev 5773 / Nov. 23 – 24, 2012
What’s in a Name?
by Rebecca Karp, East
Coast Regional Director
Oftentimes, in my
conversations about Moishe House, someone will ask me, “Why Moishe?” People
come up with all kinds of explanations as to why our organization has its name,
and in part, each of those explanations has some truth. The story that I have
always heard, however, is that the parents of one of the original funders of
Moishe House called him “Moishe” when he was little. Simple as that. Or is it?
For me, the labels we
prescribe to something add context and meaning for each of us in a way that is
unique to our experience. Not only that, but no two explanations of a
particular event will ever be identical, nor should they be. We each bring our
unique perspectives of the way we see the world to our experiences.
Much in the way that
this funder named our organization, evoking a sense or a feeling or perhaps
even a prescription for how Moishe House would look, feel and interact with the
world, this parsha is full of people naming things – inanimate
objects, children, land, etc.
Ya’akov, after falling
asleep and dreaming of the angels going up and down a ladder and G~d declaring
the prophecy of his descendants, wakes up and names the place Beit El,
literally the Abode of G~d.
Once Ya’akov’s wives
start having children, the naming abounds. Leah’s first son, Reuven, comes
from Re’u Vein, meaning to see the difference. This
works as prophecy and contrast to Ya’akov’s own relationship to his brother
Esau and Reuven’s relationship to his brother Yosef.
Yehuda’s name means to
be thankful or grateful to G~d – showing hoda’a, or gratitude. Dan
comes from the root word meaning judgment; din. Issachar has the
root for reward, sachar, and so on. Yosef, the firstborn son
between Rachel and Ya’akov, comes from assaf, to add on, adding the
number of sons Ya’akov had and adding a firstborn for Rachel.
After Laban and
Ya’akov part ways, they meet again and make a pact. To call this pact into
existence, they each gather stones into a mound and name the place
Gal-eid. Gal means mound, while eid means
witness. This mound, which serves as a witness between Laban and Ya’akov, is
named just that.
The final naming of
the parsha occurs after Laban and Ya’akov have parted and
Ya’akov and his family go on their way. It is said that angels of G~d
encountered them and when he sees the angels, Ya’akov says, “this is G~d’s
camp”, or, in Hebrew, “machane elokim” and he names the
place machana’im, G~d’s camp.
Not only do the names
of Rachel and Leah’s sons provide insights into the minds and emotions of the
mothers naming them, they also serve as prescriptions for how these men
will/should behave throughout their lives. Names or labels have weight,
carrying with them expectations and history.
If we look at the
stories of our patriarchs and matriarchs as the lifecycle of the birth of a
nation, Israel, then this is about the time when “we” are learning to speak –
we’re toddlers, if you will. Toddlers walk around, point to things and evoke
them into being by pointing and calling out their title. “Tree” as they point
excitedly to an oak. “Cup” as they take a sip from a vessel their mother handed
them. “Sun” as they look up into the sky at the big round ball of light.
“Hungry” as they rub their belly and look for something to eat. “Home” as they
point to the house where they know they sleep, and their parents sleep as well.
It is as if, only after uttering its title, do these things, emotions and
places truly step into existence.
The beauty of this
naming is that it can be unique for every individual. Moishe House can mean a
place of strong social justice work, canvassing for human rights issues and
educating about policy reform. Moishe House can mean a home where everyone is
always welcome; there are cold drinks in the fridge and something to snack on
in the pantry. Moishe House can mean weekly Torah study and the glow of the
Shabbat candles every Friday night. And it can also mean various combinations
of all of those things. We have the opportunity to call into being our own
unique experiences with the “name” Moishe House.
As we go through our
lives, may we feel both the responsibility of the prescription of things that
are named for us and the freedom and power to create a name for ourselves. You
may have been given a name, but it’s what you do with it that really matters.
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