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Parasha
Philosophical Reflection
Talmudic & Halakhic Study
Kitzur Halachot
Parasha
Bereshit
Genesis 1:1 – 6:8
5 chapters · 20 min read ·
4 October 2026
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Contents
1
Elohim Created in the Beginning
According to tradition, seventy sages translated the Torah into Greek. All the translations were identical. For example, they all rendered “Elohim created in the beginning” instead of “In the beginning Elohim created”. Why, and what does this teach us about the word “Elohim”?
2
Image, Form and Hairstyling
According to Maimonides, the word “image” (tzelem) applied to man does not describe a physical shape but an abstract purpose – the intellect. And what exactly was the “building” that God built from Adam’s rib? A surprising discussion about braiding hair on Shabbat.
3
Maimonides on the Sin of Adam
According to Maimonides, man’s purpose is the intellect. Hence a question: if so, what was wrong at all with the sin of the Tree of Knowledge, which gave man knowledge? And what did Adam actually acquire when he sinned?
4
Why Does the Torah Open with Stories Rather than a Commandment? Learning Values from the Bible Today
The Bible once taught the world basic values and morality. Today these already reside in our conscience, so in the stories of the Bible we mostly find what we already believed.
5
Mitzvot of Action and Mitzvot of Result: A Study of the Commandment to Procreate
The mitzvah of “be fruitful and multiply” requires an actual son and daughter – which sounds like a “mitzvah of result”. But the result is not in a person’s hands; only the action is. Which definition is correct, and what is the halakhic difference between the two?
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