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Table of contents
1) Elections
2) Thoughts on Shabbat Noah (Mayer Sasson)
3) Perashat Hashavoua (Archives: Rabbi YL Cohen)
4) Halakhat Hashavoua (Archives: Emil Khdoury z'L)
1) Elections
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2) Thoughts on Shabbat Noah
(Mayer Sasson - Published in S&P Bulletin)
PERASHA NOAH
“NOAH FOUND GRACE”.
"These are the products of Noach, Noach a righteous man was perfect…." (6,9)
We learned in the Gemara (Sanhedrin): Rabbi Yishmael said that for Noach as well it was decreed (to die in the flood) but he found grace in G-d's eyes as it says, "I have been caused to alter My decision that I have made them. But Noach found grace…" (Breishit 6)
We have to understand. The Torah itself testified about Noach "Noach was a righteous man, was perfect in his generation, with G-d did Noach walk." If so, why was a decree made for Noach to be killed in the flood?
The Holy Zohar says: It is true that Noach was righteous and perfect but he had a great flaw that he did not pray for the people of his generation the way Moshe Rabeinu ob'm did (and therefore the flood was called in Noach's name as it says (Yeshayahu) "For this is the waters of Noach").
The Chatam Sofer adds that Noach worried for himself and did not fulfill the mitzvah of admonishing his fellow man, to admonish the people of his generation to repent from their evil ways.
Therefore G-d alluded to him in the measurements of the Ark – "three hundred cubits the length of the Ark- three hundred is the numerology of SHIN – and fifty cubits its width – fifty in gematria is NUN – and and thirty cubits its height – thirty in numerology is LAMED . Together we get the letters לשן (missing a VAV)– tongue- to hint to him that he had a flaw in his tongue that he did not use it to reprimand the people of his generation and to pray for them.
And let us add the saying of the Gemara (Shabbat) "He who could have protested to his family members and did not – is held responsible for his family members; to the people of his city – is held respeonsible for the peole of his city; to the entire world – is held responsible for the entire world.
G-d said to Gavriel (during the destruction of the Temple) Go mark the foreheads of the righteous with a mark of ink so that the destructive angels do not overpower them; and the foreheads of the wicked with a mark of blood so that the destructive angels do overpower them.
The Attribute of Law said to G-d: Master of the universe, how are these different from those? He said to it: These are totally righteous and those are totally evil.
The Attribute of Law said to Him: Master of the universe, they (-the righteous) could have protested (and admonished the evil ones) but they didn't protest. G-d said to it- It is known and revealed to Me that if they (the righteous) would protest they (the evil ones) would not accept it. The Attribute of Law said to Him: Master of the universe, to You it is revealed, but who revealed it to them? (i.e. it was obvious to You that the evil ones would not accept the reprimands of the righteous but to the righteous ones it was not obvious – therefore they have to be punished for not reprimanding the evil ones.
The merit of the sons for the fathers
It says in the Gemara: Rabbi Yishmael learned: For Noach it was also decreed (to die in the Deluge) but he found grace in the eyes of G-d. As it says, "I have been caused to alter My decision that I have made them….. Noach found grace in the eyes of G-d."
This seems hard to believe. If Noach was not worthy to be saved from the Deluge and the decree was made on him as well due to some blemish or sin – how can the Gemara say he was saved because he found grace in the eyes of G-d? Is there favortism here? It says clearly "Who does not regard persons and takes no bribe".
Concerning this the Medrash says: "Noach found grace in the eys of G-d – Rabbi Simon said – We find that G-d does kindness for later generations in the merit of earlier generations. And (-but-) where do we see that G-d does kindness with earlier generations in the merit of later generations (their descendants)? Because it says "Noach found grace in the eyes of G-d". And in what merit did he find grace? In the merit of his descendants.
In the simple meaning of that said in the Medrash "in the merit of his descendants" it means the merit of his sons, Shem, Cham and Yafet.
However we learn from the Rishonim that the Medrash means that Noach was saved in the merit of Avraham Avinu who came out from him, as it is brought in the sefer Chomat Anach of the CHIDA on the verse "And G-d remembered Noach and all the living things….and G-d made a wind to pass over the earth and the water subsided."
The CHIDA says- The last letters of "And G-d made a wind to pass over the earth - "ויעבר אלקים רוח" – are רמ''ח which add up to the numerology of Avraham - אברהם – and this is to tell us that G-d remembered and saved Noach in the merit of Avraham who came out from him.
Shabbat Shalom!
3) PERASHAT HASHAVOUA is from the archives
By/Par : Rabbi YL Cohen
He is a Lebanese Jewish Rabbi living in Australia
NOAH -Date 1 HESHVAN 5768 / 13 October 2007
Today, we are advised by medical practitioners and dieticians that we should minimize the eating of meat and animal fat . Such food has been linked to heart attacks, strokes and various types of cancer and other chronic diseases. More than that, we are warned of Mad Cow which causes fatal deterioration of the human brain ( Jacob-Creutzfeld disease ) and of salmonella and birds flue in chickens , etc...So, generally speaking, there is a tendency today to move away from eating meat and its by-products. In fact, people feel healthier when they are vegetarian.
We learn in the Talmud in Sanhedrin 59b the following : "Rabbi Yehudah quoted Rav: Eating meat was not permitted to Adam, as it is written, ‘... they (all the green grasses and fruits ) shall be yours for food. And to all the animals on land,...' (Gen. 1:29-30), and He did not permit you the living creatures. But when the sons of Noah came, He permitted them to eat meat , as it is said, ‘As with the green grasses, I have given you everything .' (Gen. 9:3)." For that, all our commentators believe , like Rabbi Yehudah, that the first ten generations of Mankind from Adam to Noah were vegetarian . Only after the generation of the flood did Hashem allow Human Beings to eat meat with the limitation of eber min ha’hai /organ or limb from a living animal(Genesis 9:4-5) .
The previous week’s Perashah gives us an account of the people of these ten generations including two tzadikkim/righteous men Hanoch and Metushelah who lived a very long life. Is their long life linked in a way to their vegetarian diet ? Vegetarianism is not a form of self-deprivation ; the vegetarian does not desire to eat meat because he believes it is healthier not to eat meat. Most of our commentators believe that Hashem gave later permission for Man to eat meat only because of man's weak nature ( Debarim/Deuteronomy 12:20 ).
According to Sforno, Edom/Redness the name of Essau is a derogatory name as if to say: “You are so divorced from normal human lives, so consumed with your hunting and plunder, that you look at food and refer to it only by its color (lentils) “.That is also true regarding the meat which is also red as essau was a hunter and loved red meat. And Rashi in his comments to Bereishit/Genesis 25:25 explain that the redness of Essau’s complexion portended his murderous nature. As King David too was ruddy , Samuel feared at that time that he might be like Essau but Hashem reassured him , saying that his beautiful eyes are a proof that he is different(Samuel 16:12) meaning that unlike Essau who killed whenever the mood moved him , David by contrast would kill only in order to rule upon the Sanhedrin which acted as the eyes of the nation.
“And a wolf shall live with a lamb, and a leopard shall lie with a kid…And a cow and a bear shall graze together, their children shall lie; and a lion, like cattle shall eat straw." (Isaiah 11:6-7) Many commentaries explain that these verses illustrate peace in future Messianic time when the ways of nature revert back to the time of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, when man and animal will resume a vegetarian diet.
Haftarah: (Isaiah 66:1-24 Ko Amar Hashem) The Haftarah gives hope and comfort to the Jewish people as Isaiah foresees the downfall of the nations. The Haftarah is read particularly because it ends with the message :” And it shall be that, from New Moon to New Moon, and from Shabbat to Shabbat , all flesh shall come to prostrate themselves before Me, said Hashem”
Halachah Corner: When should the kohanim do the Aakirah(move towards the Ark in order to recite the birkat kohanim/Priestly blessing) as it is accustomed by all the Sefardim?
Maran writes in Shulhan Aaruch siman 128:8, that Kohanim must move towards the place of Birkat Kohanim next to the ark when the hazan begins the Berachah of Reitzeh in the hazarah of Shahrit and Mussaf . For that, the kohen must wash his hands and be ready before time.
Quiz of the last week: What was God's first commandment to man? Answer:”Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, subdue it and have dominion over all living things.”
Quiz of the week: How many days passed between the day the rains started and the day the earth was dry?
Joke of the Week:
Moshe recently had a full medical check up. When he returned 3 weeks later after the exhaustive lab tests were complete, his doctor said he was doing "fairly well" for his age.
Moshe was obviously a little concerned about that comment and so asked his doctor "Do you think I'll live to be 80, doctor?"
He replied, "Well, do you smoke or drink beer?"
"Oh no", Moshe replied, "I've never done either."
Then the doctor asked, "Do you eat grilled steaks or barbequed ribs?"
Moshe replied, "No, I've heard that red meat is very unhealthy."
"Do you spend a lot of time in the sun, like playing golf?" asked the doctor.
"No I don't," Moshe replied.
Then the doctor asked, "Do you gamble, drive fast cars, or mess with women?"
"No," said Moshe, "I've done none of those things."
The doctor looked at Moshe and said, "Then why do you want to live to be 80?"
4) HALAKHAT HASHAVOUA is from the archives
By/Par : Emil-Benyamin Khadoury z'L (2010)
Posted
WEEK OF NOVEMBER 5th 2006
Tsedaka(Charity)and Gemilut Hasadim (Acts of Kindness)
The Gemara taught us(Massekhet Succah) that the performance of Gemilut Hasadim(Acts of Kindness) is greater than Tsedaka(Charity)."Charity"is granting of some items of value to a person in need."Kindness"is any favor done to other without compensation.In Hosea (10-12)scripture identified Charity with sowing and Kindness of reaping;and reaping is superior to sowing because when a person sows ,he might later enjoy the grown produce or he might later not enjoying it if the crops will not grow and even if they do,perhaps they will be destroyed by wind or hail storm.However ,when a person reaps ,the produce has grown already and he will surely enjoy it.Also one cannot always be confident that his Charity have reached the needy,there are lot of fraudulent poor,Acts of Kindness,on the other hand ,are done to the rich & poor alike.Charity is rewarded only according to the kindness with which is performed,meaning the actual giving of (money or item of value)is classified as Charity,but the effort one extends (in the poor favor)is counted as Kindness,the benefactor engages his heart & mind to arrive at what is best for the poor.
1)Charity is performed only with one's property,whereas Acts of Kindness are performed both in person and with his property,there are many methods of performing Act of Kindness,for example ,we eulogizes a man/woman who has died,or we bear his/her coffin,or we burry him/ her,or we converse with a destitute person in a way that will ease his/her mind regarding his/her plight,we build his/her confidence and self-esteem ,we offer him/her advise that he/she will profit by and appreciate.In several instances a particular Act of Kindness,is also a fulfillment of another specific Mitzvah.
2)Charity is given only to the poor,whereas Acts of Kindness are performed with both the poor and the rich.
3)Charity is performed only with the living,whereas Acts of Kindness are performed both with the living and with the deceased
However one's must not forsake either one ,but accomplish both Charity & Acts of Kindness
Va-alekhem Tabo Birkat Hatob
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Emil (Benyamin)Khadoury
