The Torah is a legal guide to help us maximize our time in this world.  The word Torah itself means instruction or teachings.  Why would a book of laws begin with stories?  Imagine if the constitution began with stories of George Washington, Paul Revere and Samuel Adams, it'd be ridiculous!  The place for stories is in the history books, not the law books.  So why did God include the stories of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the 12 tribes in a legal script?  Join me as we discover through the lens of the Midrash what the role of Genesis is, and how in reality our entire connection to Torah even nowadays only exists BECAUSE we study the stories of Genesis. Happy Listening! Rabbi Moshe To sponsor a podcast or make a tax-deductible donation to support this podcast and DATA of Richardson go to: https://thethinkingjew.com/support-us/ To contact me with any questions or feedback, please email [email protected] All the sources quoted in this episode can be found on the episode source sheet located at www.sefaria.org/sheets/359309