Partners
Gellman, Marc
"IS THE W0R1D nmSHEDT PARTNERS MARC GB1MAN Before there was anything, there was God, a few angels, and a gigantic, spinning, swirling glob of rocks and water with no place to go. The angels said...
...God made a man and a woman from some of the water and dust, and said, ' 'Look, I'll give you the whole world, but you have to finish it...
...God answered, "NOPE...
...So God took all the rocks out of the swirling glob, put them in one place, and said, "I will call this place the universe...
...Then God took all the water from the swirling glob and spread it around the universe saying, "Some of this water will be oceans, some will be clouds, and some will be just water.'' Then the angels asked God, "Is the world finished...
...God smiled and answered, "I don't know...
...On some of the rocks God placed growing things—and creeping things—and things which—only God knows what they are...
...Some of the rocks will be planets, some will be stars, and some will be just rocks...
...The angels said to God, "Why don't you clean up this mess...
...Then the angels asked God, "Is the world finished...
...God answered, "NOPE...
...Rabbi Marc Gellman is Hillel Director at Northwestern University...
...And they all agreed to the deal...
...Go ask my partners...
...Now you look...
...they said, "We can't finish the world without your help—so maybe—we could be partners?'' God warned them, "If we're going to be partners, sometimes you might get angry at me, and sometimes I might get angry at you, but even so, none of us can stop finishing the world—that's the deal...
...His midrashim are a regular moment feature...
...And when God had done all this, the angels looked around the universe and said, "Well, it's neater but is it finished...
Vol. 3 • January 1978 • No. 3
