We're exciting to be continuing a tradition we began last year of inviting members of our community to compose and share Torah Gems (insights from that week's Torah portion). This week, Rabbi Nechama Goldberg's message, originally published in the Schechter Shavuon (Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston), offers a delightful and insightful teaching on Parshat Noah (her teaching appears below).
Hodesh Tov and Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi William Hamilton
I am struck by the fact that there is no conversation between God and Noah. God has spoken to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. God has conversed with Cain and Abel. We can see that there is some kind of relationship there. What exists between God and Noah? Noah is described as a tzaddik (righteous). He is the one human being in Scripture called tzaddik. Neither Abraham, nor Moses, nor Elijah, nor any other biblical hero is so called in Scripture itself. And further, Noah is also called tamim (blameless) to underscore just how special he was. It is said of Noah that he walks with God. Yet it is said of Abraham that he walks before God. Noah is passive and does not protest when he hears of God's plans to destroy the world. He never displayed any anger or grief at what befalls him. Abraham protests vigorously when God reveals God's plans to destroy Sodom and Gemorrah. Noah appears to be a man of limited spiritual resources, who needed God by his side constantly.
When the details are sparse in the Torah, we can turn to midrash to explain what might have taken place. The rabbis are not alone in their desire to create stories to fill in the gaps. There is a classic "midrash" on the conversation that might have taken place between God and Noah.
Lord: (Sound of a bell) Noah.
Noah: "Who is that?"
Lord: "It's the Lord, Noah."
(Silence)
Noah: "Right..Where are you? What do you want? I've been good."
Lord: "I want you to build an ark."
(Silence)
Noah: "Right..What's an ark?"
Lord:..When you get that done, go out into the world to collect all of the animals in the world by twos-male and female- and put them into the ark."
(Silence)
Noah: "Right..Who is this really? What's going on? How come you want me to do all these weird things?"
(excerpted from Bill Cosby Noah:Right)
We might expect that there would have been such a conversation. Noah's persistent silence disturbed the rabbis as well. The following is a midrash from the Zohar, the classic work of medieval Jewish mysticism.
"When Noah came out of the ark, he opened his eyes and saw the whole world completely destroyed. He began crying for the world and said: 'Master of the World! If you destroyed Your world because of human sin or human fools, then why did You create them? One or the other You should do: either do not create the human being or do not destroy the world!
The Blessed Holy One answered him, "Foolish shepherd! Now you say this, but not when I spoke to you tenderly saying: 'Make yourself an ark of gopher wood.." I lingered with you and spoke to you at length so that you would ask for mercy for the world! But as soon as you heard that you would be safe in the ark, the evil of the world did not touch your heart. You built the ark and saved yourself. Now that the world has been destroyed, you open your mouth to utter questions and pleas!"
Noah merited being chosen to start the world anew. But think about how much more he might have done.
Shabbat shalom.
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