Drash – Bereshit

Rabbi Frankie Salzman

Beth Shalom Synagogue, Adelaide

In Parashat Bereshit, creation begins with light. The Torah tells us that “the earth was formless and void, and darkness covered the face of the deep,” until the Divine spirit

stirred and said, “Let there be light.” From the first moment, the story of our people begins not in despair, but in possibility. Our tradition teach that creation was not a one-time act, but an ongoing process. Each day, we are invited to take part in renewing the world — to bring light where there is darkness, and to shape hope from chaos.

This week, as we begin the Torah anew, we also find ourselves entering a moment of new beginning. After nearly two years of anguish, families in Israel are finally able to embrace loved ones long held captive. The return of hostages reminds us that life and light persist even through shadow. Like the Psalmist’s words, “Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy,”1 we now see tears of relief replacing those of pain. It is a sacred reminder that even after long waiting, the world can still tilt toward compassion and renewal.

We also bring to a close this week the festival of Sukkot and our annual reading of the Torah with Simchat Torah. Our tradition calls this season z’man simchateinu — the season of our joy — and we read Bereshit both this upcoming Shabbat and on Simchat Torah. On this day, we dance with the Torah, turning it back to its beginning, circling from ending to creation once more. The joy of Simchat Torah is not simple happiness; it is the joy that comes from endurance — from knowing that, even after struggle, we can begin again. The same scroll that ends with the hope of return now opens with the promise of creation. This is what it means to live as a people of resilience: to finish one chapter and immediately start the next with faith that the story continues.

Pirkei Avot teaches that the world stands on three things — on truth, on justice, and on peace.2 Those principles are not abstract ideals; they are the daily acts that sustain creation itself. Peace does not come whole; it is made piece by piece through compassion, patience, and courage. The ceasefire that now holds, and the reunions we have witnessed, remind us that even fragile peace is still peace — a foundation on which new life can grow.

As we read Bereshit, we remember that the Divine saw all of creation and declared it good. May we, too, recognize the goodness returning to the world around us — the goodness of homecomings and the hope of peace. Like the Divine breath hovering over the waters, may we feel the stirring of new beginnings and add our own breath to the work of creation.

1 Psalms 126

2 Pirkei Avot 1:18

May this season of joy inspire us to be partners in rebuilding, in healing, and in hope. And may the light that shone at the world’s first dawn shine again upon Israel, bringing comfort, peace, and blessing to all who seek it.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach.