Bereshit: “Very Good” Creation

 “Teamwork is so important that it is virtually impossible for you to reach the heights of your capabilities or make the money that you want without becoming very good at it.” -Brian Tracy 

In a perfect world, one might wonder why God didn’t create us in a much more self-sufficient fashion. Why are we so dependent on others? Why are we always in need of the help of professionals, workers, and a slew of specialized and non-specialized people in order to accomplish almost anything in our daily lives?

Is this some lack in the divine design? Was this an oversight in God’s master plan? Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin, also known as the Netziv, (1816-1893), implies that this dependency is exactly what God wanted.

In Genesis 1:31 God oversees the whole of his creation efforts at the end of the sixth day. He states that it is “very good.” The Netziv explains that each individual component of creation was “good.” However, it is the combination of all the different elements which complement each other that makes creation “very good.”

May we always be there to contribute our particular capabilities to creation and may we gladly accept the assistance of others when we need it.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach,

Ben-Tzion

Dedication

To all the people who continue to assist us – it makes for a “very good” existence.