D'var Torah By: Rabbi Bruce Kadden; Reprinted from ReformJudaism.org
The Power of Names and Naming
Elie Wiesel has written, "In Jewish history, a name has its own history and its own memory. It connects beings with their origins. To retrace its path is then to embark on an adventure in which the destiny of a single word becomes one with that of a community; it is to undertake a passionate and enriching quest for all those who may live in your name."1
From the story of the Creation through the rest of Genesis, the giving of names has been a significant part of the biblical narrative. After creating the wild animals and birds, God "brought the man to see what he would call each one; and whatever the man called it, that became the creature's name" (Genesis 2:19).
In this week's portion, Mikeitz, Joseph moves from being falsely imprisoned to becoming second in command in Egypt due to his ability to interpret dreams. As Joseph settles into his new life, he is given a new name by Pharaoh: Zaphenath-paneah, which is "Egyptian for 'God speaks; He lives' or 'Creator of life.' "2 This name signifies not only that Joseph is now fully part of Egyptian society, but also that his special gift that has allowed him to succeed is the ability to speak for God.
Pharaoh also gives Joseph "Asenath daughter of Potiphera priest of On as a wife" (Genesis 41:45) and they soon become parents of two boys. "Joseph named the first-born son Manasseh [Hebrew, Menasheh], 'For God has made me forget all the troubles I endured in my father's house.' And he named the second one Ephraim, 'For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction' " (Genesis 41:51-52). These explanations may or may not accurately reflect the actual linguistic derivation of the names, but they do reflect the biblical author's understanding of the meaning of the name in relationship to the narrative.
Continue reading.
No comments:
Post a Comment