1: Bereshit
Welcome to TLDR Torah: a synopsis of the weekly parsha based on a reading of Robert Alter’s translation, plus a question to spur your Shabbat dinner (or any!) conversation. Please share interesting discussions that result!
Parsha Bereshit (Genesis 1:1 - 6:8)
TLDR:
God creates the world in 7 days :) He makes Day 7 holy, perhaps intending to limit smartphone use among future generations.
God creates the man “Adam” and the woman “Eve”. There are 2 stories about how humans are created.
The cunning serpent entices Eve to eat from the “Tree of Knowledge, Good and Evil”. She and Adam eat from it, then get kicked from the Garden of Eden for either transgressing what God commanded and/or out of fear that they might eat from the Tree of Life and live forever. An etiological story explaining why life is tough for humans.
Abel, the shepherd, and Cain, the farmer, bring offerings to God. God prefers Abel’s offerings to Cain’s, so Cain kills Abel. First murder, without a real whodunit and a strange punishment for Cain to fit the bill.
Long list of people who live long lives and bring technology to us mortals.
God sees people are bad, regrets creating them, and plans to wipe out humans and animals. But Noah “found favor” in his eyes. Cliffhanger!
Question:
Consider two ways of creating the world. The first is to plan everything out to a T, think of every contingency, and build it to perfection. The second is to vaguely plan it, build the first bit (say, the land, sea and stars), see how it is, and adjust your plans from there. Which route does God intend to take (from the text, not from a meta “God knows everything” perspective)? Which route does God actually take and to what end? Which one is better and under what circumstances?
I intend to uphold the “TLDR” part of the title, but if you’re looking for more, email me and I’ll share other notes and reflections I took as I read!