Parshas Noach - 5764Noah took to the ark in fulfillment of G-d's
command. He traveled with dedication and purpose. In contrast, many of
us are "lost at sea" without a compass, when it comes to our own lives
as the following true story illustrates:
There once was a Rav, a distinguished scholar, who
possessed many exceptional qualities that earned him
a great reputation. However, he had one character flaw:
he was so obstinate that once he made up his mind about
something, there was no way of ever changing his
opinion.
One day, when traveling on a journey, the Rav lost his
way and wandered through a forest for several days,
frightened and confused. In his state of confusion, he
lost count of the days and became convinced that Shabbos
was really one day earlier than it really was. When
finally, with G-d's help, he found his way out of the
forest and back home, he insisted on observing Shabbos
on Friday, despite the attempts of his family and
congregation to inform him of his error.
The Rav held firm, insisting that his calculation was
correct and that everyone else's calculations were a day
off. And so, every Thursday evening he would dress up in
his Shabbos finery, make kiddush and conduct a Shabbos
tish (table) full of guests, with another elaborate
Shabbos meal the next day. He would also insist that
everyone else do the same. Needless to say, this was
awkward for the community and embarrassing for his
family.
Then someone had the idea to summon his childhood
friend, the wise Rabbi Shmuel Shmelke of Nicholsburg to
see if he could bring the Rav back to his senses. When
Rabbi Shmuel Shmelke arrived, he instructed the people
to play along with him: to dress for Shabbos on Thursday
night and to join him and their Rav at the "Shabbos"
table. When they were all assembled, Rabbi Shmuel
Shmelke asked that wine be brought out - one after
another so that he could toast l'chaim to everyone. The
wine was very strong and while the Nicholsburger Rabbi
only pretended to drink, the Rav of the city became more
and more intoxicated, until he finally fell into a deep
sleep.
The combination of strong wine and physical exhaustion
caused the Rav to sleep until the next night, at which
time everyone reassembled, dressed in their Shabbos garb
(which was no problem since this time, it actually was
Shabbos). The Rav awoke and apologized to everyone for
"napping," and concluded the Shabbos meal as usual. And
so the Rav caught up to reality without even knowing it,
and from then on observed Shabbos on the correct day.
[The foregoing true story is
documented in The Commentators Siddur by Rabbi Y. Sender.]
We often are blinded by our emotions. In our confusion
and arrogance it we do not listen to the voice of reason
and become more distant from G-d, Torah and Israel. We
pray that just as G-d showed Noah the way, may He give
us the wisdom and discernment to find the proper path in
life.
D'Var Torah - Parshas Noach
"Noach was a tzaddik (righteous man), perfect in his generation" [Gen
6:9]
Rashi teaches us that there are two ways to understand this verse.
One positive and one negative. The negative way is that, had Noach lived in a
better generation, the generation of Avraham for example, he would not have been
considered anything special. Relative to his generation he was righteous.
The positive way is that despite living in a generation of sinners,
Noach was not influenced by them and remained perfectly righteous. The bottom
line is that we have to be responsible for our own success and happiness and not
worry about, compare ourselves to, or be dragged down by others.
An elderly sage named Reb Zusha lay on his
deathbed surrounded by his talmidim (students/disciples). He was crying and no
one could comfort him. One student asked his Rebbe, "Why do you cry? You were
almost as wise as Moses and as kind as Abraham."
Reb Zusha answered, "When I pass from this
world and appear before the Heavenly Tribunal, they won't ask me, 'Zusha, why
weren't you as wise as Moses or as kind as Abraham,' rather, they will ask me,
'Zusha, why weren't you Zusha?' Why didn't I fulfill my potential, why didn't I
follow the path that could have been mine."
"The dove came back... and behold, an olive branch... was in its mouth." (8:11) When Noach wanted to see if the flood
waters had receded to where they could finally get out of the Ark, he sent out a dove to look for dry land. The dove returned
with an olive branch, indicating that the water level was at least below the treetops. On a Midrashic level, Rashi comments that
the dove was hinting the following to Noach, "May my food be bitter as an olive and be provided by Hashem (G-d); not sweet
as honey and provided by Man." During its stay on the Ark the dove was being fed by Noach. We learn from this that it is
always uncomfortable for one to have to rely on the kindness of others. Therefore we must be sensitive to minimize the
embarrassment of anyone who receives a kindness from us. (There is a charity organization called Od Yosef Chai, with a
wonderful way of disbursing funds to the needy. They secretly contact the persons employer and give him money to give his
employee as a 'bonus'. In this manner the recipient doesn't even know that he has received tzedakah funds.)
There once was a man known as Yossele Kamztan (Joseph the Miser). He was the wealthiest man in his village and since
most of the residents were impoverished, he received petitions for charity all the time. People would tell him what they needed
and why; but, he would abruptly send them off empty handed. When he eventually died, the burial society had a tough time
scraping up a minyan (quorum) to participate in his funeral, for he was so despised, no one wished to attend.
Shortly thereafter the Rabbi was flooded with an unusual amount of charity requests. Each person had a similar story:
"Every morning, the milkman always brought milk to my door free of charge. Now he has stopped so my children have no
milk." "Every week the butcher would give us a chicken for Shabbos free of charge and now he has stopped. My family has
nothing to eat for Shabbos." "We have very sick child. The doctor used to treat him and give him medicine free of charge. Now
he has stopped. What are we to do?"
The Rabbi investigated and discovered that Yossele was secretly funding all of these people. When someone would
beseech him and tell him of his needs, he would pretend to turn a deaf ear as he "kicked them out." Afterwards he would secretly
arrange for whatever the person needed to be delivered to him and he would pay for it. The Rabbi was so taken by this, that he
organized the entire community to gather at Yossele's grave and ask forgiveness from his soul for the way they scorned and
despised him. From that time forward he was always referred to as Yossele Tzaddik (Joseph the Righteous).
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