In Parshat Noach, Breisheet 7:23 we
read:

All existence on earth was blotted
out- man, cattle, creeping things and birds of the sky; they were blotted out
from the earth. Only Noach was left and those with him on the ark.

Pirkei D’Rebi Eliezer points out
that the flood was universal except in the Land of Israel, upon which the water
of the flood did not descend from heaven, but the waters were gathered together
from all the lands and they entered therein as it says in Yechezkel 22:24: “Son
of man, say to her, you are a land not cleansed, not swept with rain on the day
of rage.”

In Breisheet 8:11 the dove brought
back an olive branch:

The dove came to him toward evening,
and behold, in her mouth was a torn off olive leaf. Noach knew then that the
water had subsided from the earth.

Where did the olive branch come
from?

In Breisheet Rabba 33:6 Rabbi Abba
said: She brought it from the young shoots of Eretz Yisrael. Rabbi Levi
explains where in Israel it came from: She brought it from the Mount of Oil (Olives)-
Har HaZeitim– since the Land of Israel was not inundated
by the water of the flood and therefore full trees remained there.

Ramban points out that since the
torrential rain did not come down upon the Land of Israel and the windows of
heaven were not opened there, the trees remained intact while in the
rest of the world they were broken and uprooted by the flood.

The dove specifically bringing an
olive branch which symbolizes peace shows us that even in the toughest times we
will prevail.

While we are fighting this war in
Israel, it is hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Rabbeinu Bachya (Shmot 27:20) teaches that
the mystical dimension of the story of the dove bringing back the olive branch
is that olive oil was intentionally chosen to be the only oil that was permitted
to be used to light the Menorah in the Mishkan and in the Beit HaMikdash since
the olive is a symbol of bringing light to the world.

Israel is unique as although it got
wet by the waters flowing into Israel, it was not destroyed by torrential
downpours.

Israelis are unique as even in the
toughest of times we persevere.

As we begin the rainy season in
Israel, let’s pray for constructive rain that will provide us with much needed
water and healing.

The end of Parshat Noach mentions
two of the seven species of Israel, olives and grapes.

The olive branch is mentioned in
Breisheet 8:11:

The dove came to him toward evening,
and behold, in her mouth was a torn off olive leaf.

Grapes are mentioned in Breisheet 9:20-21:

Noach became a man of the soil and
he planted a vineyard. He drank of the wine and became intoxicated…

We see from here that olives and
grapes dated back to before the time of the Flood.

Twice a day, we recite the Shma Prayer which states (Dvarim 11:13-14):

And it shall come to pass, if you listen diligently to My commandments
which I command you this day, to love the Lord your God, and to serve Him with
all your heart and with all your soul, that I will give you the rain of your
land in its due season, the early rain and the late rain, that you may gather
in your grains, your wine and your oil.

If we fulfil the mitzvot, then we will have grains, wine and olive oil
and we will be able to remain in the Land of Israel. If we don’t observe the mitzvot,
nothing will grow and we will be exiled.

We see from here that along with grains, wine and olive oil were
staples. The tithing of grain, grapes and olives is required by Biblical law
(the tithing of fruit, legumes and vegetables was instituted by Rabbinic law).

Grains, grapes and olives were later known as the Mediterranean Triad. They are the most prominent crops in the
classic Mediterranean diet and were central to the Roman menu.

Olive oil and wine were considered as
essential as grains in the ancient world.

There are many similarities between
olives and grapes and there are also many differences.

Olives and grapes resemble each
other in the way that they are both considered fruits. They have hard seeds
inside and a protective edible covering. They are both nutritious and can be
eaten as a fruit but are more valuable when converted into a liquid. The liquid
if made from the fruit itself, not from its seeds.

The wine and olive harvests are
comparable as they only last a few weeks. In Israel, many volunteers come to
help out with the harvests. The fruit must be kept in the best shape possible
and made into olive oil or wine as quickly as possible.

The olive trees and grape vines are
very distinct. Grapes are cultivated while olives grow wild. To get the
olives down, one has to bang on the tree while the grapes are taken off the
vine gently, one cluster at a time.

The process of making olives into
olive oil is a much quicker and simpler process than making grapes into wine.

Both olive oil and wine are stored
in a cool dry place. Olive oil has a much shorter life span than wine which
improves over time.

Along with the rest of the Seven
Species of Israel, grapes and olives are healthy. They have many vitamins,
minerals and antioxidants.

The next time that you travel in
Israel, check out one of the many wineries around the country to taste the wine
and see how it is made or go up to the Galil or Golan and visit a boutique
olive oil producer.

In Parshat Noach, God established
his covenant with Noach, his sons, his wife and his son’s wives. They would be
the only ones who would be on the ark aside from the animals and the birds who
would come in pairs and the ritually clean animals and birds who would come in
seven pairs.

What happened if an animal was too
big to fit on the ark? Were they left behind or was another solution found for
them?

The Talmud, Zevachim 113b speaks about
this issue.

Re’eim, a type of ox (mentioned in Dvarim 33:17) is a gigantic beast, too large to fit on
the ark, so how did they survive the flood?

According to Rav Yannai, Noach and
his family brought young re’eim cubs into the ark as they were small enough to
fit inside.

Rabbah bar Chanah challenges this
idea by saying that he saw a young re’eim, one day old and it was already the
size of Mt. Tavor.

Rav Yochanan taught that they
inserted the re’eim’s head into the ark, but the master taught that he was so
large that even his head would not fit.

The Gemara explains that his
nostrils were inserted into the ark, meaning that the rest of his body dangled
beneath the water. However, this explanation is problematic since his nose
could have easily fallen out and then he would have drowned.

Reish Lakish taught that they solved
this problem by tying his horns to the ark which prevented his nose from
slipping out.

Rav Chisada had an issue with this
solution since the waters from the flood were boiling so how would the re’eim
have survived being immersed in boiling water?

As well, wouldn’t the boiling water
melt off the waterproof pitch as Noach was commanded to caulk the ark with tar?

The only way to explain this is that a miracle
was performed which cooled off the water at the sides of the ark. This way the
pitch remained intact and the re’eim were able to hitch a ride.

The rabbis discuss another stowaway on the ark, the giant, Og, King of
Bashan.

In the Midrash, Pirkei D’Rebbi
Eliezer 23:8 we learn:

All living things which were upon
the face of the earth decayed, as it is said in Breisheet 7:23: And every
living thing was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, except Noach
and those who were with him in the ark, as it is said, “Only Noach and
those who were with him in the ark survived” except Og King of Bashan, who
sat down on a piece of wood under the gutter of the ark. Og swore to Noach and
to his sons that he would be their servant forever. What did Noach do? He bore
a hole in the ark, and put through it Og’s food daily for him. As it is said:
“For only Og, king of Bashan, remained of the remnant of the giants”
(Deut. 3:11).

How do we know that Og survived? In
Breisheet 14:13 we read: “The one who had escaped (palit) came and told Avraham
…”

Rashi comments that according to the
plain meaning of the text this refers to Og who escaped from the war. This is
what is referred to in Dvarim 3:11 “For only Og was left from the remnant of
the Rephaim…”

Rashi also brings the Midrash, Breisheet
Raba 42;8: This refers to Og who escaped from the generation of the flood.

The Talmud, Nidda 61a, adds that Sichon the King of the Cheshbon, Og’s brother was with him as
well.

Unfortunately, both brothers did not appreciate what Noach did for them.
They were not hospitable to B’nai Yisrael and even went to war against them.

May we learn to appreciate the favors that are done for us and emulate
the hospitality of Noach and Avraham.

Midrash Tanchuma 58:9 teaches:

All 12 months that Noach was on the
ark, he and his family didn’t sleep. They were up day and night as they were
busy feeding the animals that were with them. Noach would give each animal
their food at the time that they were used to eating. Each animal was used to a
certain feeding schedule and Noach made sure to keep to the schedule.

Rabbi Moshe Grylak points out that
while Noach and his family were diligently feeding the animals, underneath the
ark, Noach’s entire generation who did not treat each other properly drowned.
Since Noach was being saved, he felt that he had to prove that he was worthy to
live. Noach proved his dedication to help others and to do acts of loving
kindness. He passed the test.

Noach passed the test on the ark.
However, once it was all over, it was very difficult for him to rebuild his
life.

Although the earth was completely
dry on the 27^th of Iyar, Noach did not leave the ark until he was
commanded (Breisheet 8:15-16):

God spoke to Noach, saying, “Depart
from the ark, yourself and your wife, your sons, and your son’s wives with
you…”

After God promised that there would
never be a flood to destroy the entire world again, Noach plants a vineyard.

As we know, grapes can be used for
positive purposes- wine for Kiddush, Havdala etc. However, wine can also make
people drunk to the point where they don’t know what is happening to them.

Unfortunately, in Breisheet 9:21 we
read:

He (Noach) drank of the wine and became
intoxicated. He then uncovered himself in his tent.

While Noach was drunk, his son Cham
did something inappropriate to Noach who was so intoxicated that he only
realized what happened once he was sober.

How sad that Noach who passed the
test on the ark was not able to pass the test once he was back on dry land.

May we keep this message in mind and
be careful to only drink in moderation.

In Breisheet Chapters 8-9, after
Noach, his family and the animals survived the flood and departed from the ark,
Noach built an altar and brought burnt offerings. God was happy with the
sacrifices and promised that He would never curse the ground again because of
man and that He would never smite every living thing. He then blessed Noach and
his family to be fruitful and multiply. He made a covenant that a flood will
never destroy the earth. The rainbow is the sign of the covenant.

Then, in Breisheet 9:20-21, we read:
“Noach began to be a man of the soil and he planted a vineyard. He drank of the
wine and was intoxicated. He then uncovered himself in his tent.”

What happened to Noach? Did he get
drunk in order to escape from the experience of seeing the world destroyed?

Dr. Bryna Levy in her book Waiting
for Rain explains that “there is a parallel that can be drawn between the
destruction of the world in the time of Noach and the annihilation during the
Shoah (Holocaust). Indeed, the history of Biblical exegesis suggests that
Noach’s fate may be universalized to the experience of all survivors of
catastrophe.”

It is amazing how many Holocaust
survivors were able to move on and rebuild their lives, but that can’t be taken
for granted after everything that they went through.

One example of a Holocaust survivor
who was able to move on and never gave up hope was Noach Klieger who passed
away this past year at the age of 92.

After surviving Auschwitz, Noach
Klieger became a member of the crew of the SS Exodus attempting to bring
Holocaust survivors illegally into pre-State Israel. In 1948, he made aliya and
fought in the War of Independence. He worked in journalism and covered the
Eichmann and Demjanjuk trials. He was a frequent lecturer and he went back to
visit Auschwitz every year. He was a father and grandfather and wrote for the
Yediot Acharonot newspaper until the day that he passed away.

Both Noach from our parsha and Noach
Klieger dealt with their experiences differently.

They both got on boats and did what
they could to rebuild the world.

May we gain inspiration from the
stories of both Noach’s and be careful not to judge others as we have no idea
what they may have been through.

Sponsored by Bernie and Leah Weinberger

In honor of the yahrzeit of Leah’s father,

 Moshe Binyamin ben Shlomo HaLevi z”l

In Parshat Noach, the straw that broke the camel’s back and caused God
to destroy the world is found in Breisheet 6:11, “…the earth was filled with chamas”, translated
by Rashi as gezel (robbery).

When the earth was corrupt (vatishachet) with lewdness and idolatry, God
was not ready to destroy it. How did “chamas” push God over the edge to take
action?

Nehama Leibowitz explains:

“Chamas” is capable of demoralising all that is good in human nature and
acts as an inexorable barrier between man and his maker.

We read in Shmot Raba 22:4:

Thus said Job (Job 16:17) “Not for any “chamas” in my hands: my prayer
is pure”. Is there a prayer that is impure? He who prays to God with hands
soiled by “chamas” is not answered. Why? Because his prayer is impure as it is
said: “And God said, the end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is
filled with “chamas.” Since Job never committed any robbery, his prayer was
pure.

Just a few weeks ago, during the closing moments of Yom Kippur we
recited the Neila prayer and read the following sentence twice (in the
paragraphs following the final “Al Chet” prayer): “Lema’an nechdal m’oshek
yadenu”, “we cease from oppression of our hands.”

The only transgression that is specifically singled out in the Neilah
service is robbery. On a daily basis you don’t see shul-goers pick pocketing or
holding up banks at gunpoint so why is there an extra focus on robbery?

The prayer reminds us that we must follow the correct path which
includes paying workers on time, paying for all of the benefits that employees
are legally entitled to, paying off pledges and other financial obligations on
time, reporting earnings, not cheating the tax authority, not borrowing from a
friend without their permission, not being lax in returning borrowed objects etc.
All of these “white collar transgressions” fall under the category of robbery.

Transgressions between a person and their fellow person are not forgiven
by God. They can only be forgiven by the person who was wronged. If we want our
prayers to be accepted, we must do tshuva (repent). Even at the last moment of
Yom Kippur, we are reminded that if we did not do proper tshuva before Yom
Kippur we are not off the hook. We must commit to make amends in the category
of robbery by paying off what is owed and take it upon ourselves to handle
these situations differently in the future.

As we start off the New Year, this is the time to make resolutions of
how we will conduct ourselves here on in, avoiding transgressions associated with
robbery which brought about the flood and destroyed the world.

At the end of Parshat Noach
(Breisheet 11:29-30) we read about Avraham’s family: “Avram and Nachor married.
The name of Avram’s wife was Sarai, the name of Nachor’s wife was Milkah, the
daughter of Haran, who was the father of Milkah and Yiscah. Sarai was barren,
she had no child.”

Why is Yiscah mentioned here? Who
was she and why don’t we hear about her again?

According to Rashi, who brings Rabbi
Yitzchak’s interpretation from the Talmud, Megilla 14a ,Yiscah was Sarah. She
was called Yiscah (to see) because she saw the future through Divine
inspiration (she was one of the seven prophetesses). She was also beautiful and
all would gaze at her. Alternately, Yiscah is from the root meaning princely
(nesichut), just as Sarah is from the root meaning ruling (srara).

Avraham later explains to Avimelech
that Sarah is a member of his family (Breisheet 20:12) “In any case, she is my
sister, the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother and she
became my wife.”

Rashi points out that Sarah was
actually Avraham’s brother Haran’s daughter, making her Terach’s granddaughter
and Avraham’s niece. However, one’s children’s children are like one’s own children.
Family members referred to each other as brothers and sisters, as Avraham told
Lot (Sarah’s brother) “we are bothers” even though Avraham was Lot’s uncle.

Breisheet Raba 44:10 points out that
while she is named Sarai, she will not have children as she is barren. However,
once her name is changed to Sarah, she is able to have a child as it says in
Breisheet 21:1-2 “And God remembered Sarah as He had said and God did for Sarah
as He had spoken. She conceived and gave birth to Avraham’s son in his old age
at the designated time that God had declared.”

According to Rabbi Shimon ben
Karcha, when her name was changed from Sarai to Sarah, the letter yud which has
the value of ten was split into two letter heys which each have the value of
five. One hey was given to Avram to become Avraham and one hey was given to
Sarai to become Sarah, bestowing each one with a part of God’s name.

We see from the case of Sarah that a
person’s name(s) can reflect who they are. 

After Noach left the ark, “Noach
began to be a man of the soil and he planted the vineyard. He drank of the wine
and was intoxicated. He then uncovered himself in his tent (Breisheet 9:20-21).”

According to Radak, before the flood
people ate grapes but wine had not yet been invented. The story of Noach
getting drunk from drinking the wine that he produced as well as the aftermath warns
us to be careful when drinking wine as one can lose their mind while drunk,
become confused and act crazy.

Radak proves his point by adding a
quote by King Solomon from Mishlei (Proverbs 23:20-35) “Do not be among the
guzzlers of wine…Whose eyes are red? Those who linger over wine, those who come
to inquire over mixed drinks. Do not look at wine becoming red, for to one who
fixes his eyes on the goblet all paths are upright. His end is like one bitten
by a snake, like one dispatched by a serpent. Your eyes will see strange things
and your heart will speak duplicates. And you will be like one who sleeps in
the heart of the sea, like one who lies on top of a mast. In your drunkenness
you will say: “They struck me, but I did not become ill; they beat me but I was
unaware. When will I awaken? I will continue asking for more wine!”

Radak adds that the prophets Yishayahu
and Amos also spoke out against people who drink too much and get drunk and concludes
that the Torah recounts this negative story about Noach being the first person
to drink wine and get drunk and confused in order to warn us about the dangers
of drinking too much wine.

Rabbi Avraham Yaakov of Sedugora,
Ukraine (1820-1883) said that sometimes drinking wine is a mitzvah, but on
every mitzvah there is also the prohibition of “bal tosif”, do not add to the
mitzvah.

Last week, we celebrated Simchat
Torah and unfortunately many people in synagogues throughout the world drank
more than they should have and ended up desecrating the holiday rather than
rejoicing in it. Let’s learn a lesson from Noach’s embarrassment and try to
keep the drinking to a minimum and in good taste.

At the end of Parshat Noach, we learn of the birth of Avram,
the marriage of Avram to Sarai, the fact that Sarai is barren as well as the
start of their journey to the Land of Cnaan. At the
beginning of Parshat Lech Lecha we read (Breisheet 12:5) “Avram took his wife
Sarai, Lot, his brother’s son, all of their possessions that they had acquired
and the souls that they had made in Charan and they set out to go to the Land of Cnaan. They came to the Land of Cnaan.

Rashi asks what is meant by the words “the souls that they
had made in Charan”, after all souls cannot be made.

Rashi answers with an explanation from Breisheet Raba 39:14,
they brought the souls under the protective wings of the Divine Presence.
Avraham would convert the men and Sarah would convert the women. Therefore they
are considered to have made them.

We can learn from here some very important information about
conversions.

Avraham and Sarah, converts themselves understood the
importance of not just converting people, but rather touching souls.

When working with a person who is converting, a mentor has
to understand that they are not just going through the motions of filling out
paperwork and teaching a curriculum, they are creating a Jewish soul.

Avraham and Sarah realized that when it comes to studying
for conversion, it is often more comfortable for the men to have a male mentor
and for the women to have a female mentor.

For the past seventeen years, I have mentored female
converts, first in the United States
and then in Israel.
The women are naturally more comfortable opening up and asking questions to a
female mentor who is with them throughout the entire process.

Avraham and Sarah’s goal was to reach the Land of Israel.

Israel’s
Rabbanut needs to be welcoming to converts from abroad who want to make Israel their
home instead of trying to scare them away by telling them that their Halachic
conversions are still not good enough.

We are now in the year 5775. In the year 2023,
Avraham and Sarah the first converts already knew the best possible way to work
with converts. Why can’t we follow their formula and make sure that we are
giving converts support and touching souls, ensure that every female convert,
anywhere in the world is paired with a female religious mentor who is with her
throughout the entire process from meeting with the Rabbis, studying one on one
as well as accompanying her to the mikva and finally, when Halachic converts
are ready to make Aliya they should be welcomed with open arms.

In loving memory of Hillel Eliyahu ben Zvulun

(Rabbi Hillel Lieberman HY’D)

on his 15th Yahrzeit, Chet Tishrei

Rabbi Hillel Lieberman was brutally murdered while on
his way to

Kever Yosef HaTzaddik (Joseph’s Tomb in Shechem)

to stop the desecration of God’s name.

Sponsored by his sister and his niece,

 Elyorah Chaya
Lieberman and Sarah Leah Ellison

In
Parshat Noach (Breisheet 8:16), after the flood, God tells Noach to leave the
ark: “Depart from the ark, yourself, your wife, your sons and your sons wives
with you.”

Despite
all of the destruction that he saw, it was time for Noach to move on.

What
would have happened to the world if Noach and his family (and all of the
animals) spent the rest of their lives on the ark instead of going out?

What
would happen if the current terror attacks caused Israelis to stay at home?

Over
Sukkot, immediately after Rabbi Aharon Benita HY’D and Rabbi Nehemia Lavie HY’D
were murdered in the Muslim Quarter, a major Charedi posek (decider of Jewish
Law) in Israel told his students that they can travel to Jerusalem but they
should stay away from the Old City until things calm down. Two streams of
Chasidim were held back by their rabbis from coming to the Kotel as well.

While
the Western Wall Heritage Fund, Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef, MK David
Azoulay and Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz are not happy with the Halachic rulings (they
say that it is completely safe to go to the Kotel), the Muslim radicals are
thrilled that terror pays: “If after two stabbings we have caused many to leave
the Kotel, what would happen if we carried out some quality attacks?”

No
wonder why when I went to the Kotel this past Thursday, aside from a few Bar
Mitzvah celebrations there was hardly anyone there.

Today
there was supposed to be a massive prayer gathering at the Kotel led by Rabbi
Shmuel Eliyahu in memory of those who have been killed in the recent terror
attacks and to pray for a full recovery of the victims of terror. The low
attendance at the gathering probably has to do with the fact that the Charedi
and Chassidic Rabbis did not officially revoke their statements about it being
forbidden to go to the Old City and the Kotel as they
find it to be too dangerous. A Charedi Knesset Member was even ridiculed by the
Charedi press for going to the Kotel to celebrate a family Bar Mitzvah thus
defying the rabbis.

MK
David Azoulay encourages Israelis to visit the Kotel to strengthen our presence
there as well as at the other holy sites which symbolize most of all our
connection to the Land of Israel specifically now during these troubling times.

Just as God told Noach to “go
out”, we too must go out and show that we care about Israel’s holy sites.