וָאֵרָא, אֶל-אַבְרָהָם אֶל-יִצְחָק וְאֶל-יַעֲקֹב--בְּאֵל שַׁדָּי; וּשְׁמִי יְ-ה-וָ-ה, לֹא נוֹדַעְתִּי לָהֶם. – And I appeared to Avraham, to Yitzhak, and to Yaakov as El Shaddai; my name יְ-ה-וָ-ה was not known to them. (Shmot 6:3) Rashi’s comment on this listing of the patriarchs is וָאֵרָא, אֶל האבות — that Gd appeared to the ‘fathers.’ What is Rashi telling us by way of this observation? We know Avraham, Yitzkhak and Yaakov are our forefathers so does Rashi’s comment help us to better understand the meaning of the text? The Chatam Sofer explains that the word אבות is the plural of the word אבה which means desire or want; thus, the weight of Rashi’s teaching is that Gd is saying ‘I appear to those who desire me’…. Gd unites with those who long and yearn for Gd. In a similar vein, the Ramban explains Gd’s saying, אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה – I will be that I will be as ‘as you are present with me, so I am present with you.’ The path to faith and to a relationship with Gd requires the courage to admit to and to act on the desire to believe in Gd.
