One of the merits the Jewish people had to be redeemed from Egypt was that they did not change their Jewish names: Jews named Reuven and Shimon went down to Egypt, and Jews named Reuven and Shimon went up from there. They did not call Yehuda "Royfa"; Reuven "Loyliani"; Yosef "Loystus" or Binyamin "Alexandri." (Midrash Raba)
And she called his name Moses (Moshe) and she said: Because I drew him out of the water (Ex. 2:10)
Moses' name, Moshe, is in the present tense because it refers to an ongoing process: In every generation there is one "Moses" whose function is to pull Jews out of the depths of the "sea," lifting and elevating them from both spiritual and physical "mud." For "the reflection of Moses exists in each and every generation." (Netivot Noach)
Reprinted from the Parshat Shemos 5761/2001 edition of L’Chaim.
