Spring Break
Baruch Hashem
(Blessed is the Name)
Alejandro Paiuk (2007 B)
Issue date: 3/3/08 Section: Viewpoints & Humor
"I'm Alejandro, what's your name?" I asked.
"I am known by many names. You can call me A-dam, from the Hebrew word, Earth. Your name is Alejandro."
I was struck by the way he said this, as if he had known before I told him.
"Do you know where your name comes from? When Alexander the Great conquered Judea and Samaria, he did not destroy the Temple, nor did he ask the People to worship him. Astonished and thankful, they named all of the male children born that year Alexander. It has been a Jewish name ever since. You and your friend, you are Jewish. I asked Adonai for a ride and He sent you. And what is your name?"
"Noah," he replied without taking his eyes off the road.
"Ah, it is very interesting that both of you have gentile names. Noach was a righteous man, but he lived before the covenant was made with Moishe. Before the covenant, mankind had to follow only seven laws, the Noachic laws, to be righteous. The gentiles, these are the only laws they must follow to this day. Neither of you are religious. You are good people, but you do not feel very Jewish. It is written in your names."
"So, um, uh, what are you doing in Hawaii?" I was bewildered by how fast the conversation with this stranger had gotten so deep.
"I came here to think, to write a book. Hawaii has special energies. It is like a green diamond in the middle of the sea. I can feel the presence of Adonai without any interruptions."
"Yeah, it does feel really special here. It pulsates with life. But at the same time I feel like the volcano could just swallow us any second. It makes everything more urgent, more…you know, real."
"What you are feeling is the Shekhina, the Bride who welcomes the Creation and the Sabbath, the feminine side of Adonai. Here the forces of fire and the sea meet, like the dimensions of Adonai taught in the Kabbalah. Kabbalah means reception: Hawaii, tonight, is a place for you to receive the blessings and wisdom of the Shekhina."
"I am known by many names. You can call me A-dam, from the Hebrew word, Earth. Your name is Alejandro."
I was struck by the way he said this, as if he had known before I told him.
"Do you know where your name comes from? When Alexander the Great conquered Judea and Samaria, he did not destroy the Temple, nor did he ask the People to worship him. Astonished and thankful, they named all of the male children born that year Alexander. It has been a Jewish name ever since. You and your friend, you are Jewish. I asked Adonai for a ride and He sent you. And what is your name?"
"Noah," he replied without taking his eyes off the road.
"Ah, it is very interesting that both of you have gentile names. Noach was a righteous man, but he lived before the covenant was made with Moishe. Before the covenant, mankind had to follow only seven laws, the Noachic laws, to be righteous. The gentiles, these are the only laws they must follow to this day. Neither of you are religious. You are good people, but you do not feel very Jewish. It is written in your names."
"So, um, uh, what are you doing in Hawaii?" I was bewildered by how fast the conversation with this stranger had gotten so deep.
"I came here to think, to write a book. Hawaii has special energies. It is like a green diamond in the middle of the sea. I can feel the presence of Adonai without any interruptions."
"Yeah, it does feel really special here. It pulsates with life. But at the same time I feel like the volcano could just swallow us any second. It makes everything more urgent, more…you know, real."
"What you are feeling is the Shekhina, the Bride who welcomes the Creation and the Sabbath, the feminine side of Adonai. Here the forces of fire and the sea meet, like the dimensions of Adonai taught in the Kabbalah. Kabbalah means reception: Hawaii, tonight, is a place for you to receive the blessings and wisdom of the Shekhina."
Be the first to comment on this story