Bereshit: An Introduction

"Bereshit bara Elohim et hashamayim ve'et ha'arets." In the beginning, God created heaven and earth. (Gen, 1:1). Creating heaven and earth seems like a lofty goal, but tonight I just don't seem to have the energy. And neither does my colleague. In fact, I'd be content with writing a few paragraphs, though this admission comes at the expense of being rebuked by my mother for being "unambitious." Sorry, mom -- deal with it.

Why, Bereshit? Why at the beginning of this blog, must I begin with THE BEGINNING? Because I was asked by my co-conspirator to begin with "a BANG." I don't recall exactly if it was just a regular bang, or "THE BIG BANG," but I decided to err on the side of caution, since this is our first collaboration, and I really want to impress him. It also introduces a very important set of issues, already hinted at by our blog's title, "Data Myths." Can myths be reconciled with data? Are faith and reason diametrically opposed without any room for accomodation of the other? Must we believe in either Creationism or Evolution? Or by equating Bereshit with the Big Bang, have I demonstrated a degree of cognitive dissonance that some might regard as unhealthy?

Bereshit also represents just one of many shared beliefs by my friend and me. Although these words were taken straight from the Torah and the King James Bible, the idea that the world was created by a Divine Being is universal among all ethical monothesits. There are many other values that we share, including many outside of religion, but this one is perhaps the most basic. By remembering what we have in common, without losing site of our differences, we hope to construct a healthy and informative environment for discussion, debate, and inquiry on just about any topic that suits our fancy.

And finally, I would be naive to believe that introducing this blog with Bereshit would not offend someone -- a rabbi, perhaps an evangelist, or maybe even an imam. Well, (if they were to actually read it), they better get used to it. Although we have great respect for religion, we will not shy away from its criticism or orthodoxy in fear of offending others or being labeled heretics.

Let the fun Bereshit ...