Parshat Va’era

Robert (don't call me Bobby!) Braun

When I first started practicing law, I went into a negotiation with a partner and met with a very experienced (at that time he seemed old!) lawyer, who happened to be a friend of my family and whom I had known for years. After providing what I thought was an exceptionally clear and convincing argument for my client, the lawyer turned to me, and said "now, Bobby," at which time my argument seemed to fall apart. Ever since then, I’ve made sure that I introduce myself to business associates and answer the phone as Robert -- not as Bob, or Rob, or certainly not Bobby, but my most formal given name; it’s my way of reminding people that as friendly as I hope to be, I also am here to do work, and I’m not 8 years old anymore!

The point of this somewhat pointless story is that we give ourselves names, and the name we give ourselves is often intended to have an influence on those around us. We do this to create another part of our life’s story, to present ourselves as we would like others to see us. It allows us to assume a presence that we might not otherwise have.

When I read the introductory portion of this week’s parsha, I am struck with the abrupt change in the tone and direction of the exodus story. God begins the parsha by informing Moshe that he is God, that he is the same God who appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but that he was not known as God to them, instead being referred to as El Shaddai.

Robert Alter notes that it seems incongruous to suggest that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would not have known God only as El Shaddai, particularly when that formulation is used only five times in the stories of the Patriarchs. And how can we suppose that this name was withheld from them?

For aficionados of Richard Friedman’s Who Wrote the Bible, , it may suggest an attempt to unify several biblical stories and traditions. El Shaddai might be an ancient reference to the combined gods of Canaan; if so, it might represent a significant theological shift away from those gods, and to the new God, Adonai, who is ascendant over them.

But more than this, it represents a change in the relationship between God and the Jewish people. While El Shaddai was the God who established a covenant to give the people Israel (verse 4), Adonai is the God of redemption; Adonai is the God who is known not simply to our forefathers, but to the people; Adonai is the God with whom each Jew will have a personal relationship. While El Shaddai establishes the covenant, Adonai is the God who fulfills the covenant.

During this week, when God reintroduces himself to the Jewish people, and thus to us, we should also be asking another question – how are we introducing ourselves to God, and what do we intend by our introduction?