GEN1393 Midrashic sources show that individuality is at the very essence of being a Jew.  There are three classical names in the Scripture for the person who today is called a Jew: Hebrew, Israelite, and Jew.   The first Jew, Abraham, was called a Hebrew Genesis 14:13 because, according to Genesis Rabbah 42:13, the terms means that, regarding belief and action, the entire world was on one side while Abraham was on the other side (Ever).  Abraham’s actions and belief separated him from all others. The name Israel was given to Jacob after he fought the Angel of God [this verse].   Through this name change, he was thus transformed from Jacob, which means “following on the heels of another,” to Israel, which means “wrestled with God.” This transformation might be understood as a change within Jacob from a follower, a conformist, into a leader, an individualist. Finally, the most common name used today, Jew, was first sued in its present context with reference to Mordechai in the Purim story. Until that time, the term “Jew” (Yehudi) was a description of a person from the tribe of Judah. When Megillat Esther 2:5 described Mordechai, who was from the tribe of Benjamin, as a Yehudi, Esther Rabbah 6 naturally asks what is the meaning of this terms. Among the answers given, Mordechai was thus described because he was an individualist, refusing to follow the norms of the Persians and to bow down to Haman. The term Yehudi, says the Midrash, comes from the Hebrew Yechidi, an individualist. Therefore, it can be seen that all three biblical names for the term Jew describe, in some fashion, the characteristics of individuality. AMEMEI 122