[Avodah] The importance of a woman's name

[Shoshana L. Boublil]

Twice in the course of Bereishit, Hashem seems to make a fuss about a woman's name.

The first time is Chava.  For she is Eim Kol Chai. She is not a cipher. She is the mother of all who live. For a  book known for its brevity, this is a long sentence.

The second time is Sara Imeinu. Or, Sarai as she was formerly known.  Oh, she is also called Yiska.  Again, for a book known for its brevity on some subjects, it's spending a lot of time on her name. And all this - before Avraham gets the call for Lech Lecha.

Genesis is a book of names. We have the human family tree from Adam all the way to Ephraim and Menashe. In most cases, we only know the father, but if you look again, that's ALL you know about these men. They were born, they lived, they had children and they died. Nothing they did in life was apparently memorable.

And then you have the men who were worth mentioning. Chanoch, a worthy personage. but for some reason he did not become one of the Avot, one of the leaders of the Jewish nation.

If you go back,  you see a very interesting mandate that Hashem gives the world: "Al Kein Ya'azov Ish Et Aviv VeImo VeDavak BeIshto VeHayu LeBassar Echad". We have no idea who Chanoch married.  Apparently, his closeness to Hashem was as an individual, not a couple.

Et HaElokim HitHalech Noach. We have the story of the flood and Noach, but once again, Noach did not become a patriarch. He is not listed as an Ushpizin. Midreshei Chazal make a point of limiting his level of Tzaddikut (Ish Tzaddik BeDorotav). There is another minor point here: We have no idea who his wife was. In fact, he is very much like the other members of the family tree: we know when he was born, who his children were and when he died.  Any other historical information has to do with the flood or with Kenaan and his fate. 

Going through the rest of Genesis, these are the names that stand out: The Avot and Imahot; Reuven - for not "becoming" who he could have become; Shimon & Levi for an historic action they took; Yehuda & Tamar; Yosef & Osnat; the remainder of the Shevatim and their place in history of the others, and in the family tree.  Other figures appear as they impact the main characters, but they did not become our national role models.

Examining Bereishit we see an interesting phenomenon. Any man who became "something" (Av/ Jewish leader) - we have at the very least the wife's name, usually we have even more than that. What's even more fascinating is that this phenomenon is not limited to Bereishit - it is true for the whole Chamisha Chumshei Torah.  When you consider that the chumash is a very limited historical document (it covers about 2500 years plus the basic Jewish law), each word gains added importance. Why mention Osnat at all? And yet Yosef became a national figure - the Ge'ula is connected to Mashiach Ben Yosef (and of course Mashiach Ben David).

There is a very important lesson to be learned here. Many think that the Torah is chauvinistic. That addressing Hashem in the masculine is based on this.  But we have to remember our basic Jewish axioms - Hashem is Echad. Hashem is neither male nor female, nor is Hashem NOT female nor male. When Hashem creates mankind "BeTzelem Elokim" Hashem makes a point of stating :VeHaYu LeBassar Echad". That is the goal. What couples are supposed to strive for.  And Hashem is consistant. 

Leadership in Yahadut is not given to individual heroes.  It is given to family men, who value their wives and are united with them. Not as Mal'achim, but as humans who live and strive, make mistakes and make amends.  It is only when pursuing this goal, of togetherness, striving for Echad, that a person can become a true leader of the Jewish people.

Shoshana L. Boublil

Note: This is part of an article. Comments are welcome.
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