Why start with creation?

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”

- Genesis 1:1

Why does the Torah begin with creation? I would like to offer one possible approach based on the teachings of Nahmanides, Kli Yakar and Rabbeinu Bahyah.

Nahmanides (Rabbi Moses ben Nahman, b. 1194 d. 1270, Spain and Land of Israel) in his introduction to the Book of Genesis asks two fundamental questions in Biblical exegesis. Why does the first paragraph of the Torah not begin with the oft-repeated phrase “And God spoke to Moses, saying…” and why does Moses always address himself in the third person?Nahmanides argues in regards to the first question that it would not have been proper to include himself in the narrative prior to the account of his birth. Moses, according to Nahmanides, exercised tremendous humility in choosing to not mention his own self in places that it would have been seen as arrogant to do so. In regards to the second question:

The reason the Torah is written in this form [namely, the third person] is that it preceded the creation of the world, and needless to say, it preceded the birth of Moses our teacher.

Once again, the answer offered by Nahmanides is centered on the humility of Moses. The ability to copy down what would become arguably the most important literary work in human civilization and not flash your name everywhere was a deep testament to the integrity of Moses.

There is one phrase in the explanation offered by Nahmanides that I believe has a great amount to teach us as to why the Torah began with the story of creation and not with, for example, the first commandment of sanctifying the new month. Nahmanides states “… that it [the Torah] was written with letters of black fire upon a background of white fire.” How are we to understand this statement? What does it mean to have letters of black fire emblazoned unto a background of white fire?

Kli Yakar (Rabbi Shlomo Ephraim Luntschitz, b. 1550 d. 1619, Poland), a medieval commentator on the Torah, suggests an explanation of the phraseology of “black fire on white fire.” He writes in his commentary on Parashat Haazinu:

Like there is white and black similarly in the Torah there is what is revealed, like the color white, and what is hidden, like the color black… and both are dependant on each other.

Thus, the colors white and black take on new meanings as representative of that which is readily known and accessible and that which is secretive and difficult to penetrate. With every story mentioned in the Torah one can view it as white fire or as black fire and, indeed, both methods of interpretation are dependant on each other to create a full and holistic picture of Torah.

The account of creation offered in the Book of Genesis, on the surface level, provided a framework for understanding the formation of the world. However, if we end the discussion there or get bogged down in trying to reconcile religious truth with scientific truth, we will have missed the central point of the creation narrative which lies somewhere in the mix of white and black fire.

Rabbeinu Bahya (Rabbi Bahya ben Asher, 13th century, Spain) suggests that if the Torah would have only begun with the first commandment, it would have not provided us with the background behind the One who commands. We would have not gained a deep sense of appreciation for the wonder of God and how central the role of love is in the entire narrative of the Torah. Indeed, there are many commandments and directives in the Torah. Those rules and regulations though come from the same God who created all life and invested that life with sacredness. An omniscient, omnipresent and all-powerful God has no compelling reason to create life and sustain it. Thus, it is only the overwhelming force of love that causes God to bring the entire universe into existence.

Genesis then teaches us both to approach life with a sense of humility and recognize that it is appropriate at times to write about ourselves in the third person. It also provides insight into the character of God which becomes essential as the commandments begin to be given only shortly thereafter. The ultimate challenge for us as we begin anew our study of the Torah is to transcend a bit the black fiery letters and embark on a journey into the white fire of Torah.