10/10/2026
The Torah portion Beresh*t opens with a world suspended between darkness and possibility (Genesis 1:1–6:8). God speaks, light is called forth, creation takes shape, life emerges, and humanity begins to learn what it means to live before God.
Then comes an astonishing declaration: human beings are created in the image of God. Our dignity does not come from accomplishment, status, intelligence, or wealth. It is a gift bestowed by our Creator. Before Adam or Eve accomplish anything, they bear the image. Their worth precedes their work.
Yet, bearing God’s image does not mean we will always live faithfully. Adam and Eve hear God and hide. Sin brings shame and fear; yet in their failure, God does not abandon them.
“Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9).
God already knows where Adam is. This question is an invitation: Where are you? Will you come out of hiding? That question echoes through our lives. We hide behind excuses, accomplishments, titles, fear, religious activity, and shame. Yet God continues to call out to us.
Then comes another question: “Where is your brother?” (Genesis 4:9). Cain cannot escape responsibility for Abel. Thus, our relationship with God cannot be separated from our relationships with one another.
Early in the Torah, we encounter two questions: Where are you? Where is your brother?
There is something comforting about beginning the Torah with these questions. Even when we hide, fail, or turn away, God calls us back into relationship with Himself and one another. Perhaps this is one of Beresh*t’s greatest invitations: to return to God is not only to deepen our relationship with Him but learning to see and care for others as fellow bearers of the divine image.
The Torah begins with creation but moves into a broken world. Yet darkness does not have the final word. God speaks into darkness, brings life from emptiness, and makes renewal possible.
Beresh*t means “in the beginning.” Every beginning reminds us that failure is not the end of the story. When God calls, the faithful response is to stop hiding, step into the light, and answer, “Hineni. Here I am.”