------------------------------------------------------- Noach Vol. V , No. 2, November 4, 2000 * 6 Marcheshvan, 5761 ------------------------------------------------------- Buffet of Jewish Thought Will be held on November 9th at the Radisson Hotel in Clayton Rabbi David Fohrman Resident Scholar of the Hoffberg Institute and noted author and lecturer will be speaking on, "The Ten Commandments: Why These?" For more information and reservations call the Kollel office at 726-6047. Limited seating available *** Noah was a righteous and flawless man in his generations. Noah walked with the L-rd. Breishis 6:9 Noah is described here as both righteous and flawless. Later, however, G-d commands Noah, "You and your entire household shall come into the ark, for I have seen you to be righteous before Me in this generation" (7:1). Noah's flawlessness is not mentioned, only his righteousness. Why is this so? The Beis Yosef offers a phenomenal solution to this question. Noah lived during two sinful eras, the generation of the Great Flood and the generation of the Tower of Babel. In the first, the generation of the Great Flood, people fell to the lowest levels of corruption and promiscuity, engaging in adultery and all forms of forbidden relations. By withstanding the temptations of this time and refraining from the adulterous practices of his contemporaries, Noah earned the description "righteous." Later, Noah lived during the generation of the Tower of Babel. This generation did not sin in pursuing the temptations of the flesh. Rather, theirs was an intellectual rebellion against the authority of G-d. A spirit of denial and idolatry pervaded the land and infected the people. Noah stood firm against the tide of rebellion, remaining steadfast in his loyalty to G-d. Avoidance of idolatry is considered flawlessness. When G-d told Noah to enter the ark, He emphasized Noah's virtue of righteousness. The entire generation would be destroyed because of their promiscuous behavior, but Noah, who was "righteous in this generation," would be saved. His future flawlessness in the generation of the Tower of Babel was not relevant at this time. At the beginning of the parashah, however, when Noah is introduced, we are told that he was "righteous and flawless in his generations." This summarizes his entire life. He was righteous in the generation of the Great Flood and flawless in the generation of the Tower of Babel. *** And the earth was corrupted before the Lord, and the earth was filled with robbery. Breishis 6:11 Certainly, everything is "before the Lord." What was specific in the corruption of the land that the Torah emphasizes that it, in particular, was "before the Lord"? Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried explains that the corruption was only evident to G-d. As for the people, they thought that theirs was an acceptable lifestyle. Robbery and adultery had become so prevalent that, even in their innermost consciousness, they did not sense the corruption of their actions. When matters reach such a state, when sinners are convinced that theirs is a valid way of living, no amount of rebuke will be effective. For them, the only option was destruction. *** For the earth is filled with robbery through them. Breishis 6:13 Rashi explains that although the generation of the Great Flood was steeped in vice of every kind, their fate was sealed only because of the sin of robbery. Why was this so? Rabbi Yosef Shaul Nathansohn clarifies this with an interesting analogy. A pelican once went down to the seashore to catch fish. He thrust his beak into the waters and brought forth a large squirming fish. "Please let me go," begged the fish. "Don't kill me. Take pity on a creature that was formed by the Holy One, Blessed Is He, Himself." The pelican was about to release the fish when he noticed a tiny fish falling out of the mouth of the larger one. Apparently, it had been on the verge of being swallowed. "What a fraud you are, foolish fish!" said the pelican. "Why should I take pity on you and not eat you when you yourself were prepared to do the same to this little fish?" No matter how serious the sins of this sinful generation, G-d was prepared to deal mercifully with the people. However, when they themselves showed no mercy to other people, when they robbed other people without the least compunction, they lost all claim to merciful treatment. Thus, the punishment was for all their sins, but the sin of robbery sealed their fate. *** Every moving thing that is alive shall be yours to eat. Breishis 9:3 Many commentators wonder why people had been forbidden to eat meat before the Great Flood but were permitted to do so afterwards. The Oznaim Latorah suggests that it was for educational purposes. The generation of the Great Flood lacked a true appreciation of the greatness of humanity. They did not understand that man is the pinnacle of creation, and that a person is as far removed from the animal world as an animal is from a rock. Instead, they considered themselves the highest rung in the animal world, intelligent animals of the highest order. It was therefore not surprising that they behaved like animals and committed the sins of adultery and robbery. To prevent this from happening again, it was now permitted for people to eat the flesh of animals. This showed them that they were at the center of creation and that animals had been created only to serve their needs. If they would learn to appreciate and respect themselves for what they were, they would be far less likely to slip once again into behavior better suited for beasts. *** And Kush fathered Nimrod ... He was a mighty hunter before G-d. Breishis 10:8-9 A rich Jew once sent a letter to Rabbi Yechezkel Landau, the author of Noda Biyehudah. "Rabbi," he wrote. "I have been blessed with great wealth. I own many estates and a great deal of forest land teeming with all sorts of wildlife. Am I permitted to go hunting on my lands? I know that hunting is an unusual pastime for Jews, but being that I have the opportunity, is it permitted for me to hunt?" Rabbi Landau responded to the rich man's query at great length (Yoreh De'ah II10). He discussed the prohibition against inflicting pain on living creatures as well as other aspects of the issue. "However, after all is said and done," Rabbi Landau concluded, "I find your question quite bizarre. The only hunters mentioned in the Torah are Nimrod and Esau. Hunting does not seem to fit into the ways of the children of Abraham and Isaac. If you take my advice, you'll stay put in the comfort and security of your home and don't waste your time with such things." Rabbi David Pavarsky, Rosh Yeshivah of Ponevezh, often quotes this responsum of Rabbi Landau. Clearly, certain activities that do not violate any laws or commandments are still improper conduct for Jewish people. They are not consistent with "the ways of the children of Abraham and Isaac." *** POINTS TO PONDER: * Noah was a righteous and flawless man in his generations. Noah walked with the Lord. (Breishis 6:9) What is the significance of the word 'man'? Wouldn't it have sufficed to state simply that Noah was "righteous and flawless in his generations"? Rabbi Moshe Feinstein explains that the word "man" here connotes that Noah was a man, not a child - that is, a mature and stable individual. If a person is to be righteous, he must first be a man. He must be intelligent and clear-sighted, a person of common sense and good judgment. Otherwise, his righteousness will be unstable. A fool can be led astray easily, and it would be inappropriate to consider him righteous. * "...and the windows of the heavens opened." (Breishis 7:11) Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk liked to draw attention to the words of the Zohar on this verse. The Zohar finds allusion here to the six hundredth year of the sixth millennium since the creation of the world - the year 5600 (1840). According to this interpretation, the eruption of the great abyss and the opening of the windows of the heavens symbolize tremendous growth in knowledge and scientific discoveries that will begin after that date. "We have seen with our eyes," said the Rebbe of Kotzk, "the great advancement of science in all subjects all over the world. It is clearly the result of Divine revelation predicted thousands of years ago." * "...from people to animals." (Breishis 7:23) The Talmud (Berachos 61a) understands this to mean that the people were stricken before the animals. The Vilna Gaon explains that this was the only logical sequence, for animals exist solely to serve people. Therefore, first the people needed to be destroyed, and once that happened, there was no longer any reason for the animals to exist. * The Ramban explains that though the rains did not fall directly on Israel, thereby uprooting its trees, the floodwaters spread afterwards to cover the entire surface of the earth, including Israel. (the above divrei Torah have been adapted from the Parsha Anthology) *** HAFTORAH: "Ho! All you thirsty ones, go to the water." (55:1) The Torah is compared to water which nourishes, revives, and stimulates. We find, however, that the Torah is also compared to fire. How do we reconcile these two contrasting similies? The Mezritcher Maggid, z.l., explained that Torah study serves to quell the two different blandishments of the yetzer hara. At times it heats up man's passion to sin. At other times it cools him off through complacency. To the yetzer hara of passion and desire, the Torah serves as water, cooling it. The yetzer hara of complacency is sublimated through the fire of Torah study. Hence, the Torah serves as the vehicle for protecting us from the evil inclination. (adapted from Peninim on the Torah) *** HALACHA: HALACHOS PERTANENT TO LEFT-HANDED PEOPLE (CONT.) 1. When reciting tachanun during minchah, both right-handers and left-handers lay their heads down on their left arm, with the face turned slightly to the right. However, during shacharis, since tefillin are worn, the right hander who has the retzuos (straps) of the tefillin bound on his left arm, lays his head on his right arm, the arm without the tefillin, while the left-hander, who has the retzuos of his tefillin on his right arm rests his head on his left arm, his arm without the tefillin (See O.C. 131:1 and M.B. 4). [This is done as a measure of respect for the retzuos of tefillin so as not to seem to be resting on them]' 2. The Torah extends more prominence to the right hand than it does to the left hand (see M.B. 2:5). However with regard to the act of trying, the prominence shifts to the left hand because tefillin are usually tied on the left arm. Therefore, although both right handers and left-handers put on their right shoe first, (because of prominence to the right side) there is a difference with regard to tying their laces. The right-hander should tie his left shoe first (because it is on that side that he wears his tefillin) whereas the left-hander ties his right shoe first. 3. When one removes his shoes, he first unties and removes the one with less distinction. The right-hander thus unties his right shoe first (less distinction with regard to tying) and then unties his left shoe. However he takes off his left shoe (less distinction in general) first, and then removes his right shoe. The left-hander unties his left shoe first (Less distinction for him with regard to tying tefillin) and then unties his right shoe. However he removes his left shoe first (less distinction in general) and then removes his right one. 4. During the recitation of Shema both right-handers and left- handers hold their tzitzis in their left hand (between the fourth and fifth fingers). 5. When one is making 'atifah' (lit. wrapping) with his tallis around his head, he casts the tzitzis of his tallis over his left shoulder (O.C. 8:2 and M.B. 4). Rav Chaim Kanievsky writes (Kuntros Ish Itair n.6) that since the tzitzis are cast over the left side for kabbalistic reasons, both right-handers and left- handers do it the same way. 6. After one has taken his three steps back at the conclusion of the Shemoneh Esrei, he bows three times to Hashem. He first bows to his left side. This is because when one is praying the Shemoneh Esrei, it is as if Hashme is standing opposite him. Thus by bowing to one's left side, he is actually bowing to Hashem's right. It is for this reason that both right-handers and left- handers bow first to their left side (See M.B. 123:4). 7. Rav Chaim Kanievsky writes that (Kuntros Ish Itair, n. 42) both the right-handed and left-handed person should begin cutting the nails of his left hand first. *** This week's issue is sponsored by Debra F.Fink,D.M.D M.S. P.C. Adult and Child Orthodontics 314-984-9900 *** Torah Bits are distributed to all of the St. Louis area Orthodox shuls. To sponsor Torah Bits or place an announcement, please contact The Kollel office Rates sponsorship: $50 per issue. announcements: $5 for individuals $10 for organizations *** Torah Bits is compiled by Rabbi Nitsun under the direction of the Rosh Kollel, Rabbi Greenblatt. Torah Bits have Torah content, please treat it respectfully. 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