[Avodah] Fables and Lies

[Ilana Sober]

I once heard "myth" defined as an account of the past that gives
meaning to the present. Again - no connotation of truth/falsehood.

Used in this sense, every nation has founding myths. Our central
founding myths are the stories of the Avot, and especially Yetziat
Mitzrayim. Regarding the Avot - we say maaseh avot siman l'banim: the
actions and experiences of the avot reverberate through the
generations. Regarding Yetziat Mitzrayim - we have numerous mitzvot
ranging from korban Pesach/leil haseder/sipur yetziat Mitzrayim to
pidyon haben, b'chor, tefillin, the mitzvah to remember yetziat
Mitzrayim daily.... Yetziat Mitzrayim gives us a basic foundation of
emunah in understanding G-d as Creator and Master of the Universe, and
ourselves as ovdei H'. These truths can be conveyed through narrative
infinitely more effectively than through books of philosophy.

I am not using the term myth to chas v'shalom imply that anything in
the Torah is fictional, but to convey WHY it is important for us to
retell and remember these stories. For example - the connection
between the Jewish people and Eretz Yisrael began with the words Lech
Lecha. And therefore our relationship with the Land is very different
from that of a people whose founding myth is that they are indigenous
and have lived there since time began.

Rashi asks this question at the very beginning of Chumash. Why do we
need all the stories from Parshat Bereishit to Parshat Bo? Because
these stories give meaning to the present - in this case, they explain
and justify the sovereignty of the Jewish people over the formerly
Canaanite Eretz Yisrael. The fact that they happened is not enough to
justify their inclusion in the Torah. A lot of other things that also
happened are left out of the Torah. The stories that are in the Torah
are there because, in addtion to being true, they shape our
understanding of who we are for all generations.

- Ilana