As shabbat ended a few hours ago a new week began, filled with the potential and possibilities in front of us each week. What will the week bring and what will we accomplish with it? We will plan, we will execute and we will change when some things go as expected and others do not.

This week’s Torah portion was Bereshit, the first portion of the new Torah reading cycle. This morning our congregation read the story of creation in Genesis 1:1-2:3.

Following lunch we discussed the juxtaposition of the creation narratives in Genesis 1-2:3 and 2-3. We examined the perspectives and styles of the texts, the role of gender in the texts, the interpretation gender roles in the stories, the “job” of the snake, the blessings (and challenges) of Eve and Adam’s decision to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.