Vaera: God appears
Vaera is the second Torah portion in the book of Exodus. Last week, we read about Moses being born, and being raised as a prince by Pharaoh's daughter. He went into the wilderness, saw the burning bush that wasn’t consumed. Moses heard God speak and reveal a particularly strange name. Then, he was charged with becoming our spokesman. In chapter five of Exodus, Moses and Aaron speak to Pharaoh, asking that the Israelites be allowed to leave to worship God in the wilderness. Instead, Pharaoh punishes the Israelites, taking away the straw they used to make bricks. Now the Israelites must gather straw for bricks and keep the same brick building quota they had before. That story might be familiar, as it is recounted during the Passover seder.
Moses returns to God, complaining that Pharoah didn’t listen and made it harder for the Israelites. So why should Moses continue speaking on God’s behalf? We enter the scene in chapter 6 verse 2:
וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר אֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אֵלָ֖יו אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָֽה׃
God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am יהוה.
וָאֵרָ֗א אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֛ם אֶל־יִצְחָ֥ק וְאֶֽל־יַעֲקֹ֖ב בְּאֵ֣ל שַׁדָּ֑י וּשְׁמִ֣י יְהֹוָ֔ה לֹ֥א נוֹדַ֖עְתִּי לָהֶֽם׃
I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but by My name יהוה, I did not make Myself known to them.
Let’s break down the multiple names for God included in these two pasukim, these two verses of Torah.
The first name is אֱלֹהִים
Plural form of El.
The main god of the land of Canaan. In Canaanite mythology, El’s consort, female companion and source of fertility was Asherah.
The second name is יהוה
Let’s get back to this one after the other names.
The third name is אֵל שַׁדָּי
This actually contains two names. El, as noted earlier is the singular form of Elohim. El Shaddai is often translated as The Almighty One.
Shaddai is the name of a town on the banks of the Euphrates River in what is now Syria. It is assumed that Shaddai is the name of a god worshipped there. It would make sense that Abraham brought this name with him from northern Mesopotamia to Canaan.
In connecting El with Shaddai, the Israelities are merging two gods, the Canaanite and Mesopotamian gods. Two nouns together form a word pair - so it can be read god of Shaddai. We are left again wondering, what does Shaddai mean?
Robin Cohn breaks this down in a blog post, using the scholarship of William Foxwell Albright.
Shaddai is probably related to the Hebrew word Shadayim. Shadayim means breasts.
El Shaddai is The God of Breasts.
The Feminine God. The Nurturing God. The God who Protects us and Sustains Us. Suckling Us.
This protective aspect of God is who we call upon with our mezuzot. Shaddai is the reason a single Shin is used on a mezuzah and on the doors of our sanctuary’s ark. The Shin, the first letter in the Hebrew word Shaddai, represents Shaddai, represents the God of Breasts who is the Almighty who protects us.
Before we totally get lost from our Torah text, remember that God says to Moses: “I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai.”
God is saying that our forefathers, and everyone else in the book of Genesis only knew God as El Shaddai. At that stage in our history, we were still in the early stages of separating ourselves from polytheism, merging understandings of the divine realm and relying on a singular aspect of God: God’s Protection.
We stumble in our knowledge of ultimate truths. As children, we are taught simple explanations for God and religion. We see God as the Giver of Good and the Punisher of Evil. When the messiness of life creates cracks in our belief, it is easy to stumble and fall into the narrow place. With narrow thinking, we abandon belief completely. We declare God a fantasy and live enthralled by the material world.
When we are ready to begin breaking free, when we hitch up our courage and join Moses on his journey towards leadership, God appears.
God appears and declares God’s Proper Name.
God’s Proper Name is being revealed to Moses and to us.
God’s True Name is spelled yud, hay, vav, hay. In scholarly circles The Name is described as the Tetragrammaton, which simply means the four letter word.
Last week, God provided a different name for Moses to communicate to us. God said, Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh. I am Who I am. I will be Who I will be. That name is directly connected to Y H V H. These are all forms of Being. An English translation of The Name is The Cause of Being. God is The Cause of Being. Reality exists. Ideals exist. Life exists. God is The Cause of Existence. Thus another way of saying this sentiment is Ground of Being. The stability of existence is God.
Let’s not forget that an ancient name for God is included in God’s Proper name – Yah, as is the air we breathe. The sound of breathing, the breath of life. When we chant Hallelujah, we are literally saying “praise Yah,” or in complete English, “praise God.”
How in the world did we get from these deliciously rich and complex understandings of God’s Name to Adonai?
Well, adon means lord. As in “my lord, may I bring you some tea?” A lord can be a superior human, a human one is deferential towards. This use of the word does not connote the understanding of a human that is a god, just a firmly deferential way of conversing.
In context, Adon can also be a name of God. The suffix added to the word we use a lot means My Lord, Adonai.
The Proper Name of God is so holy that we don’t pronounce it. We cover it over with the name Adonai. And we pretend that we don’t know how to pronounce Y H V H. Even when we write those letters, we added the vowels to spell Adonai, confusing the reader by looking at something unpronounceable. And we all agree that when we come upon those four letters, we will substitute this word, Lord, for the Essential Name.
Yet again, we stumble in the wilderness.
We stay in the narrow place.
We get stuck in Mitzrayim, in our internal Egypt because who needs a lord? Why should I bow down to a king, whether he is a human or divine?
Claiming that God’s Most Essential Name is “Lord” has, unfortunately, left many of us disconnected from the Source of Life. It is a pious cover for revelation, a way to indicate God rules over us, using language that denies individual choice and freedom.
Rather than using “Lord” as the English translation of Y H V H, I often say “HaShem,” which simply means “The Name.” For me, HaShem is more forceful than Adonai. You see, I am referring explicitly to Y H V H: The Name is God’s Proper Name. The Name, HaShem, is the word we don’t pronounce because to pronounce it would be to reduce it. Pronouncing it completely, treating it like anything else in material reality further decreases our connection to the Source of Life.
Our Torah portion begins with God appearing to Moses.
What does it mean that God appeared one way to earlier generations and differently to Moses?
Judaism traditionally understands Moses as the apex, the height of human interaction with God. Moses knew God more intimately than any human before him or since him. This is why Judaism constantly connects innovation with Moses, claiming that all was revealed to Moses at Mt. Sinai.
But, if Moses experienced God more fully than previous generations, why should we believe that our understanding of the Divine ended on Mt. Sinai? Personally, I see this Torah portion as a proof text for the ongoing revelation of God. What I mean is that human understanding of the nature of reality and the nature of God deepens over time. Our relationships, with each other and with God, are more complex than any previous generation. The Jewish tradition is a roadmap for our journey. Neither humanity nor God stopped evolving on Mt. Sinai.
God is appearing to us tonight. In the faces of one another. In our expanding membership. Together, we are learning new ways to make the holy present for ourselves and for the larger world.
Every week, we have the opportunity to join together – appreciating our common humanity, taking time to live into the deepest part of ourselves, and connect to our Cosmic Companion.
We do not need a burning bush or a magic rod to connect us with HaShem. We have the souls around us and the Soul of the Universe to hold us on our journey through time.
As Temple Israel steps forward into the future we are co-creating, may we remember that God appears whenever we hold space for the people around us.
God appears when we comfort mourners.
God appears when we pray for the sick.
God appears when we doubt God’s presence.
God appears when we express gratitude for our food and our drinks.
God appears when we revel in the growth of our children.
God appears when we choose to create space for holiness.
When we acknowledge Shabbat and other Jewish holidays, God appears.
May God appear to us this Shabbat. May we experience joyfulness and hope as we welcome our new members.
May we remember God is the Ground of Being, Who unfolds the future of our beloved community. Shabbat Shalom.
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This sermon was delivered at Temple Israel during our New Member Shabbat on 28 Tevet 5783.