What's In a Name - Lech Lecha

Shalom,

This week our Torah makes a significant transition.  We move from what some refer to as the pre-history stories (Creation, Eden, Noah, Babel, etc.) and move into our story, the Jewish saga beginning with Abram and Sarai.  We read parashat Lech Lecha and learn again of the call from God to Abram:  Lech Lecha - Go forth!  Later in the portion, a section we often gloss over as we are too focused on this beginning passage, we discover the exchanges between God and Abram about future descendants.  As God tells Abram more than once about this covenantal bond and the commitment that Abram will have descendants exceeding the number of stars of heaven and sands on the sea shore.  During one of these moments, God changes Abram’s name to Abraham - father of multitude and Sarai’s name to Sarah - mother of many (see Gen. 17:5).  

One question we may ask is:  If God had promised Abram descendants numerous times before this name change, why the name change now?  Sforno, 16th century Italian commentator, teaches us something at this moment.  He looks at the verb concluding the verse and points out the abnormal usage.  His comment states:  “For the significance of this name change will commence as of this day. The word נתתיך in the past tense means that this process has already commenced. This is why your name from now on will no longer be Avram, ever. This was a different name change from when Yaakov was accorded the name Yisrael. That name was an additional name which did not replace his original name Yaakov. The matter will be explained in due course." 

We know that later in the story, as Sforno alludes to, Jacob becomes also known as Yisrael.  And, there are other examples of changing one’s name.  In Talmud Rosh Hashanah, we learn, “Four things tear up a person’s decree.” (16b).  The Talmud’s list includes:  Charity, prayer, changing one’s name, and changing one’s behavior.  Rambam, in Hilchot Teshuvah, posits that part of the Teshuva process is to change one’s name, as if to say, ‘I am no longer that person who transgressed in such a way. (2:4).  We are given names, we choose names, and we earn names.  As the Israeli poet, Zelda, writes in her piece Each of us has a Name:

Each of us has a name

given by God

and given by our parents

Each of us has a name

given by our stature and our smile

and given by what we wear

Each of us has a name

given by the mountains

and given by our walls

Each of us has a name

given by the stars

and given by our neighbors

Each of us has a name

given by our sins

and given by our longing

Each of us has a name

given by our enemies

and given by our love

Each of us has a name

given by our celebrations

and given by our work

Each of us has a name

given by the seasons

and given by our blindness

Each of us has a name

given by the sea

and given by

our death. 

The journey of Lech Lecha, this week’s Torah portion, is one we are still traveling - the Jewish story.  Part of this story is the names earned - for us as individuals and as a people.  It is a constantly unfolding and evolving tale.  Sure, Sforno’s comment is an explanation of what occurs in Torah and yet, we can draw from this a way to understand the changes and evolutions in our own lives.  That is that they take time.  The names, the titles, we earn by living our lives are often earned.  Abram, slowly over the opening chapters of Genesis from chapter twelve onward is undergoing significant transformation as a character, as a human.  Sforno is pointing out that this change did not take place in an instant, but rather through process, through effort and multiple experiences.  The same is true for us.  We are constantly evolving as we learn from each new experience.  And not only does this take time and require patience, but certainly effort as well; it is the curation of the name(s) we earn by crafting lives well lived.  

May this week ahead and our engagement with Lech Lecha inspire us to reflect on our experiences and learn from them, so that we can continually become our best self.

Shavua Tov,

Rabbi Evon