Illustration credit: Rivka Tsinman
Prayer in the Parashah תְּפִלָּה
One of the main characters in Vayeishev is Yehudah. His name is connected to the שֹׁרֶשׁ (shoresh, root) י.ד.ה, which has a couple different meanings:
To give thanks
This was the meaning of Yehudah that we saw in Vayeitzei, when Yehudah’s mother gave thanks to God at his birth.
To admit something
In Vayeishev, Yehudah acts out this meaning of his name. He has the courage to admit: I was wrong. He had made a promise to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, to have her marry his youngest son, Shelah. But Yehudah doesn’t come through on that promise, until Tamar convinces him to admit his wrongdoing.
This same shoresh also forms the word מוֹדִים (Modim), which is what opens up the second-to-last section of the Amidah. What are we doing when we say Modim? Both of these things.
Thanking
נוֹדֶה לְּךָ…עַל חַיֵּינוּ
We give thanks to You…for our lives
Admitting or acknowledging
מוֹדִים אֲנַחְנוּ לָךְ שָׁאַתָּה הוּא ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ
We acknowledge to You, that You are our God
- Why might the same shoresh mean both to thank and to admit?
- When you pray, are you more focused on thanking, or on admitting something (maybe that God is in charge, or that you might have done something wrong)?
- The Gemara says that the Amidah ends with הוֹדָאָה (hoda’ah). Why do you think thanking and admitting are both important things to do at the end of the Amidah?
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