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Weekly Reading Insights:
Noach 5779
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Overview of
the Weekly Reading
To be read on Shabbat Noach, 4 Cheshvan 5779/Oct. 13
Torah: Genesis 6:9-11:32; Haftorah: Isaiah 54:1-10
Noach is the 2nd Reading out of 12 in Genesis and it contains 6907
letters, in 1861 words, in 153 verses
G-d told Noach that the world was filled with perversion,
and He wished to destroy it through a flood. He asked Noach to build an ark,
promising to save him and his family. He also told him to bring into the ark
seven pairs of every pure animal and bird, and two pairs of every impure animal
and bird, as well as food for his family and for the animals. It rained for
40 days and nights, and all was destroyed. The water remained for a year.
G-d then commanded Noach to leave the ark, and promised that He would never
again cause such mass destruction by flood on earth. Noach offered sacrifices
from the pure species, and G-d placed a rainbow in the sky as a sign of the
covenant. As a result of an unpleasant incident, Noach cursed his son Cham,
whose son was Canaan, that he would always be slave to his brothers. Noach
died at the age of 950. The Parsha then chronicles the generations of Noach's
sons. The earth had one language, and the people decided to build a tower
to heaven. G-d saw this, and made the people speak different languages, so
they could not understand each other. He then scattered them across the world.
The chronicle of generations continues through to Avram, who married Sarai.
They settled in Charan.
 An
essay from
Rabbi Shaul Yosef Leiter, director of Ascent
(for a free weekly email subscription, click
here)
This week's Torah portion, Noach, the second Portion of the Torah,
is mostly about the flood and its aftermath. A cataclysmic divine event that
destroyed mankind, cleansed the world of its debauchery and left only one surviving
family.
The end of the portion speaks about the generation of the Tower of Babel. It
is shocking that only 340 years after the flood, the grandchildren and great
grandchildren of Noah were already again rebelling against G-d. Their plan was
to build a tower that would reach heaven either to block G-d from making another
flood or just simply to challenge G-d's sovereignty. Either way their approach
was naïve. What is the Torah trying to teach us?
The first hint is in G-d's reaction. The Torah in detail describes how G-d "descended"
and even decided to personally take control of events to thwart their efforts
(Gen 11:7). What was so threatening to G-d about a man made skyscraper?
The answer is in a verse that describes the uniqueness of the people of that
generation (11:6). "They are a united nation, with one common language.
So now should they not be prevented from doing all they have planned?".
The Torah describes their strength. They communicated in one language. Who can
imagine such a situation where an entire nation acted, spoke and thought in
total amazing unity!
Unity in this world draws it energy from the highest level of divinity, G-d's
oneness, above. Peace and cooperation happen when people think big. War and
dysfunction happen when people think small. The generation of the Tower of Babel
thought big and this connected them to a level of divinity called , the "Great
Divine Intellect" (mochin d'gadlut). But like everything else in
our world of duality, we can choose to use things in a positive way or a negative
way. This was the problem of the generation of the Tower of Babel. They tapped
into one of the greatest powers, the power of unity. But instead of good, they
were risking using it to cause incredible havoc with the order of divine presence
in this world. Like G-d forbid, a terrorist band with an arsenal of atomic weapons!
This was the concern of the Holy One Blessed Be He. A pre-emptive strike was
necessary.
How did G-d thwart their evil potential? By going to the source of their power.
By taking away their ability to communicate together, their unity of language,
thus transforming the unity they wished to use for evil, into discord.
What is the Torah lesson for each us? To understand the value of unity. How
truly great is the power of unity when it is used in an appropriate way, to
achieve positive goals. When unity and peace is true and sincere, based on the
foundations of Torah any goal can be achieved. Whether in the family, between
neighbors, in the workplace the community or in an entire country, unity and
peace are the platform for the greatest accomplishments. Taking things foreign
and bringing them together makes G-d our partner. And will ultimately bring
the most important unity we are all working and waiting for, the coming the
Moshiach.
Once a Jew came to the Rebbe Rayatz for a private talk. During their conversation,
the visitor mentioned another Jewish person who was at the lowest possible level
of connection to Judaism. This person used the expression, 'L'havdil',
meaning, 'May there be a separation between him and us!' The Rebbe immediately
corrected him. "Concerning another Jew we never use the expression, L'havdil!"
(Adapted from the Rebbe's talk, Noach, 1987. The story is from Sipurim v'Horaos
published by Maayanotecha)
Shabbat Shalom, Shaul
(for a free weekly email subscription, click
here)
For last year's essay by Rabbi Leiter on this week's Reading,
see the archive.
FROM
THE SAGES OF KABBALAH ON KabbalaOnline.org
Specifically, for an overview
of the recommended articles in the columns:
Holy Zohar, Holy Ari, Mystic Classics, Chasidic Masters, Contemporary Kabbalists,
and more,
click to Noach
one sample:
Chasidic Masters
 The
Almost Giving of the Torah
By Sarah Schneider, based on Pri Tzadik
R. Tzadok says that whenever we stumble in our lives, there was some blessing
that was trying to come through in that moment, and for whatever reason we didn’t
rise to the occasion. G-d offered us a gift and it slipped through our hands.
To continue, click
here.
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here.
For another taste of recommended Kabbalah articles on a variety of subjects,
click to the our
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