Vayera: Don’t Jettison Your Past

When we undergo spiritual transformation, there is a tendency to throw away our past and try to expunge it from our consciousness. However, a healthier approach is to be authentic to oneself, to embrace formative experiences of the past as a part of who we are and elevate it within our present. This becomes apparent in the spiritual transformation of “Avraham’’ and how he relates positively to his previous identity as “Avram.”