WHO IS GOD? PARASHAT VA'ERA by Rabbi Yonatan Sadoff Reading the weekly Torah portion as a holy text, a sacred vessel that offers a path to God, rather than as a history or story book, raises important questions: who is God and what is God's real name? This week's reading begins with a perplexing verse in which God speaks to Moses, mentioning not one but two of God's names: Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 6 3 and I (God) appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as El Shadai (God Almighty), but by My name YHWH (the ineffable name of God) I was not known to them. שמות פרק ו פסוק ג וָאֵרָא אֶל אַבְרָהָם אֶל יִצְחָק וְאֶל יַעֲקֹב בְּאֵל שַׁדָּי וּשְׁמִי יְקֹוָק לֹא נוֹדַעְתִּי לָהֶם: The verse seems to be saying that God appeared to the forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as (or by the name of) El Shadai , but that they did not know God by a far more essential name, YHWH. This name is known as the tetr...
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