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1108
Third decade
Second thousand
dgepnl zezay
e"dl
d"ryz'd oeygxn '`
Oct 24-25 '14
OU Israel Center • 22 Keren HaYesod • POB 37015 • Jerusalem • (02) 560-9100
FALL BACK (SPRING AHEAD)
We (in Israel) go off Summer Time
this Motza"Sh when 1:59am Summer Time
is followed by 1:00am Winter Time
Since Musaf on Sh'mini Atzeret (Simchat Torah),
we've been saying MASHIV HARU'ACH UMORID
HAGESHEM in every Amida. But, we continue to
say V'TEIN B'RACHA in Bareich Aleinu.
That is, until THU Oct 30 Mincha.
We begin saying
dkxal xhne lh oze
in Maariv of the eve of 7 Marcheshvan, THU October 30th
xU¨º AÎl
¨ M¨ n«¦ ig©ÂdÎl
¨Â M¨ nE
¦
lŸM² n¦ m¦i¯p© W§
d­¨aY¥ dÎl
© `¤ `i¬¦aY¨
K®¨Y`¦ zŸi´ g£ d«© l§
hi:e 'xa :E «id«¦
§ i d­¨aw¥ pE§ x¬¨k¨f
(FY® W§ `¦ e§ Wi´¦` d­¨
ra§ W¦ d¬¨
ra§ W)
¦
From all life, all flesh,
bring two of each kind into
the ark to live with you...
(seven pairs of every clean animal...)
JERUSALEM in/out times for Shabbat Parshat NO'ACH-R"Ch
Candles 5:22PM • Havdala 6:34PM • Rabbeinu Tam 7:08pm
Pi x
ParshaP
Explanations further on
sawubona
boozhoo
kia ora
saluton
habari
moien
sveiki
privet
sillaw
kaixo
ahlan
aloha
labas
terve
salut
hola
ciào
heg
oi
hi
gtKnV








 
 
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
077-775-6565
Since it takes the Moon a little more than 29½
days to go through its cycle of phases, Jewish months have either 29 or 30
days. In our fixed calendar, the months of the year alternate in length - Tishrei
has 30 days, Marcheshvan 29, Kislev 30, Tevet 29, Sh'vat 30, Adar 29,
Nissan 30 Iyar 29, Sivan 30, Tammuz 29, Av 30, and Elul 29. This would be
the end of the story if the period from one molad to the next were EXACTLY
29½ days. But a lunation is 44m 3¼s more than 29½ days. To make fine
adjustments to the calendar so that certain criteria are met, Marcheshvan
sometimes has a 30th day added to it (making such a year SHALEIM) or
Kislev's 30 day is dropped (making the year CHASEIR). 5775 is K'SEDER.
nge
Candles
5:22
5:40
5:37
5:38
5:38
5:38
5:37
5:38
5:37
5:22
5:37
5:36
5:27
5:38
5:37
5:40
5:25
5:39
No'ach - Rosh Chodesh
Yerushalayim / Maale Adumim
The Aza area (Netivot, etc.)
Gush Etzion
Raanana / Tel Mond / Herzliya
Beit Shemesh / RBS
Netanya
Modi'in / Chashmona'im
Rehovot
Be'er Sheva / Otniel
Petach Tikva
Ginot Shomron
Gush Shiloh
Haifa / Zichron
Chevron / Kiryat Arba
Giv'at Ze'ev
Ashkelon
Tzfat
Yad Binyamin
Havdala Lech L'cha
6:34
6:36
6:34
6:35
6:35
6:35
6:34
6:35
6:36
6:35
6:34
6:33
6:34
6:34
6:34
6:36
6:32
6:35
R' Tam (Jerusalem) - 7:08pm 6:02pm
Ranges are 11 days, Wed-Wed
4:16 5:27
28 Tishrei - 8 Marcheshvan • Oct 22 - Nov 1
4:33 5:30
Add 1 hour until Sunday, Oct. 26
4:31 5:28
4:31 5:28
Earliest Talit & T'filin
Sunrise
Sof Z'man K' Sh'ma
4:31 5:28
(Magen Avraham: 7:59-8:02am)
4:31 5:28
Sof Z'man T'fila
4:31 5:29
4:32 5:29
4:31 5:30
Chatzot
4:30 5:28
(earliest Mincha)
4:31 5:28
4:30 5:28
4:33 5:30
4:18 5:25
4:32 5:29
11:24-11:23am
(halachic noon)
Mincha Gedola
4:20 5:27
9:31-9:33am
(Magen Avraham: 9:01-9:03am)
4:16 5:29
4:30 5:27
4:57-5:04am
5:47½-5:55am
8:35-8:38am
Plag Mincha
Sunset
(based on sea level:
11:54-11:53am
3:49½-3:42pm
5:04-4:54¾pm
4:59½-4:50pm
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a son, a place, a stone
No'ach, his son, the garden, in the
day, their father and Eliyahu, ear,
driver, Meidad and Kalev, stars of Nov
food, booty, spices, calf, Yehoshua
Moshe's cash card - no ver H³
Did Sheim find Mesh? Did Cham find
Mach? Did Yefet find Tefi? No! But...
What HaShem, No'ach and Yosef did
Cheshvan is NOT the correct name
of this month. Marcheshvan is.
The Good, the Bad, and the Feeble
The Good what? The Bad what? The
Feeble what?
as number 1, did not occur until we
were ready to leave Mitzrayim.
The answer to all three questions is
RAIN.
The Mishna in Taanit mentions the
17 of Marcheshvan in the opposite
context: If it has not rained by that
date, then individuals would accept
upon themselves three fast days
(Monday-Thursday-Monday).
We ask a lot from G-d. But that's
okay - He is AVINU SHEBASHAMAYIM.
Last week, we began describing Him
as the One Who causes the wind to
blow and the rain to fall - among
many other G'VUROT (powers)
which we attribute to Him.
Same date associated with devastating rain and with withheld rain.
Next week we (in Israel) will begin
asking Him for blessed rain.
(Outside of Israel, people will start
asking only early in December more on that next week, IYH.)
From 7 Marcheshvan and on (until
Pesach), if one omits the two small
words TAL UMATAR from his weekday Amida, he must repeat the
entire 19 brachot. If one does not
acknowledge G-d's role as the
Weather-maker (from Shmini Atzeret until Pesach), the entire Amida is
invalid.
No rain and not enough rain are not
good situations for us.
Too much rain falling too forcefully
can also not be good for us.
So we want and pray for GISHMEI
B'RACHA, blessed rain.
In other words, RAIN comes (or
doesn't) in three forms, as indicated
by the title of this Lead Tidbit.
Interesting that we begin our (hopefully) rainy season around the time
we read Parshat No'ach, because it
tells of the worst possible rain - The
MABUL. Destructive in the extreme.
Note that the Flood began on the
17th of the second month - which
most
commentators
say
is
Marcheshvan, because the shift in
numbering the months with Nissan
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 4
We want and we need and we pray
for Beneficial Rain, Gishmei B'racha.
Think about it. Omitting TAL UMATAR means that the person asked
G-d V'TEIN B'RACHA, please give a
blessing. Not negative. And yet, he
must repeat the entire Amida.
Remember that our Sages made the
rules for davening in general and for
how to handle omitting things that
should be said. They could have
said, whatever you leave out, just
remember for next time. And they
actually did say that for some of the
additions to the Amida. But not TAL
UMATAR. They were making a point
- one which we should ponder and
take seriously. Rain is a serious
matter. Everyone who davens must
do his share. So let's do it right!
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
No'ach
2nd of 54 sedras, 2nd of 12 in B'reishit
Written on 230 lines in a Torah, rank: 15
18 Parshiyot; 5 open, 13 closed; rank: 12
153 p'sukim - ranks 4th
Largest in B'reishit - tied with Vayishlach
1861 words - ranks 11th (6th in B'reishit)
6907 letters - ranks 13th (6th in B'reishit)
Drop in ranking for words and letters is
due to No'ach's very short p'sukim.
No'ach ranks 49th in words/pasuk and
51st in letters/pasuk in the Torah. No
sedra in B'reishit has shorter p'sukim.
None of the TARYAG mitzvot are
counted from No’ach, yet there are
mitzvot in the sedra, specifically (but not
only) references to the Noahide laws. So
too is P'RU URVU repeated to No'ach - it
is counted as a mitzva from B'reishit,
when it was commanded to Adam...
[P> X:Y (Z)] and [S> X:Y (Z)] indicate start
of a parsha p'tucha or s'tuma. X:Y is
Perek:Pasuk of the beginning of the
parsha; (Z) is the number of p'sukim in it.
Kohen - First Aliya
14 p'sukim - 6:9-22
The sedra of B'reishit began with the
glorious account of creation and
"went downhill" from there: The exile
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 5
of Adam and Chava from Gan Eden,
Kayin and Hevel, the continuous
degeneration through successive
generations until G-d's "regret" for
having created the world and his
"decision" to destroy it.
The only high note of this universal
downslide comes at the end of the
sedra: "But No'ach found favor in
G-d's eyes".
[P> 6:9 (4)] The sedra of No'ach
continues this thread and tells us
that No'ach was "completely
righteous IN HIS TIME".
Rashi presents the divergent
opinions as to whether "in his time"
is complimentary or derogatory. Was
No'ach great EVEN in his very
wicked generation, or was he great
only by comparison to the generation in which he lived. Although
Rashi does not seem to favor one
possibility over the other, it seems
obvious that No'ach was not as
great as Avraham Avinu. A look at
the fifth chapter of Pirkei Avot will
reveal a significant difference
between No'ach and Avraham. Ten
generations between Adam and
No'ach and ten between No'ach and
Avraham, both to teach us about
G-d's long patience. Same. Yet when
the first full run of ten generations
was up, the Flood came. When the
second one was up, the Mishna tells
us, that Avraham's merit sustained
the whole world. No'ach's merit
seems to have been only enough
only to save his own family. On the
other hand, there was a significant
difference between the generations
of No'ach and Avraham that cannot
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
be ignored, and makes comparisons
unfair.
Ponder this: Concerning the two
different ways to evaluate No'ach's
righteousness. Remember back a
few short (but busy) weeks to the
Musaf of Rosh HaShana, specifically
to the ZICHRONOT bracha. Not only
is one of the 10 p'sukim from
Tanach about G-d's remembering of
No'ach, but the pasuk is introduced
in a way that the following p'sukim
of G-d's remembering the cry of the
people in Egypt and of G-d's
remembering the Avot are not
similarly introduced.
"Of No'ach also You were mindful in
Your love, and did remember him
with a promise of salvation and
mercy, when You brought the
waters of the flood to destroy all
flesh on account of their evil deeds.
So his remembrance came before
You, HaShem our God, to increase
his seed like the dust of the earth,
and his offspring like the sand of the
sea."
The Torah essentially repeats that
No'ach had three sons - Sheim,
Cham, and Yefet, and that the
world was totally corrupt.
[S> 6:13 (48)] Then No'ach is
informed by G-d of His plans to
destroy the world and is commanded to build an ark, bring into
it two of every kind of animal and
sufficient food for his family and
the animals.
Commentaries
point
out
OU Israel Center TT 1108
that
page 6
No'ach was given ample time to try
to influence his generation to
mend its ways. He either tried and
didn't succeed or didn't try too
hard. He did exactly as he was told
(implying, and not more).
Think about this...
G-d could have destroyed the world
and saved No'ach and family and
the pairs of animals with a miraculous snap of His finger. In no time.
With no human involvement. He
could have, but He didn't. He could
have left No'ach on his own, to do
the whole job of saving his family
and sample pairs of all the animals.
He didn't do that either. (It probably
would have been humanly impossible for No'ach to have done the
whole job on his own.)
What G-d did do is command
No'ach to build an ark of a specific
size, a three-tiered floating structure,
and to gather all the food necessary
to feed many, many animals and his
family for a year. This, say some
commentaries, cannot be done
without a heavy dose of miracle, of
suspension of the laws of nature.
But it wasn't all supernatural. No'ach
was part of it. And that is what G-d
usually wants when it comes to
miracles. We, as humans, relate so
much better to that kind of miracle.
We need to see some familiar
nature inside a miracle, in order to
relate properly to it... and we also
need to see the miracles inside
nature.
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Levi - Second Aliya
16 p'sukim - 7:1-16
G-d tells No'ach and his family to
go into the Teiva (ark) and to take
with him seven pairs of each kind
of kosher animal and bird. Noa'ch
is told that in seven more days it
will rain for 40 days and nights
during which time all life on earth
will be wiped out. No'ach was 600
years old at the time of the Flood.
And so it happened.
How many gnus?
(What's gnu with you?) Seven pairs
because the gnu is a kosher animal,
or only one pair because the gnu is
never brought as a Korban? [The
gnu, an east African antelope - a.k.a.
wildebeest - comes in two species
of different colors, blue and black.]
Halachically a CHAYA T'HORA, it is
not fit for the Mizbei'ach.] Since
some say that the reason for the
seven pairs was because of
sacrifices, and others say it was to
provide kosher food, what's the
answer for gnu? Similarly, how
many chickens? Sacrifices? No.
Food? Yes. So which was it?
Rabbi Zev Leff explains that B'nei
No'ach are permitted to offer
sacrifices from ANY kosher animal
or bird; No'ach was not restricted to
cow, goat, sheep, and two types of
doves - the only acceptable
Korbanot for Jews. Hence, for either
reason, it would seem that there
were seven pairs of kudu, giraffe,
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 7
okapi, gnu, yak, bison, chicken,
sparrow, pheasant, etc.
Shlishi - Third Aliya
22 p'sukim - 7:17-8:14
The rains fell and the waters of the
deep surged for 40 days and
nights, but the Flood remained at
its highest level for an additional
150 days. G-d 'remembered"
No'ach and all with him in the ark,
and the waters began to recede.
The ark settled on Mt. Ararat and
40 days later (Remember the first
40 days which represent death of
all living things? This time the 40
represents the rebirth of those who
survived the Mabul), No'ach
opened the "window" of the ark
and sent out a raven. Then he sent
out a dove, and again, and finally
after a full (365-day) year, the
earth was ready to receive its new
inhabitants.
R'vi'i - Fourth Aliya
15 p'sukim - 8:15-9:7
[S> 8:15 (15)] G-d tells No'ach to
leave the ark with his wife, his sons
and their wives, and all the animals
and birds. No'ach builds an altar
and sacrifices upon it from all the
kosher species. G-d's "reaction" to
No'ach's offerings is that in spite of
the basic evil potential of human
nature, He will not destroy in the
"wholesale fashion" of the Flood
(but rather punish on a more
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
restricted and specific basis).
The laws of nature are "adjusted" to
provide the world with a neverceasing cycle of seasons and
climatic conditions.
Here's a thought We can see
in the account of the Flood and its
aftermath, a continuation of creation. It is as if stage 1 of creation was
recorded in Breishit and here we
have stage 2. In other words, the
world came into existence during
the 6 days of creation AND during
the Flood which took place 10 generations later. Sort of like a rough
draft and a further revision. And we,
by the way, constantly affect the
continuous further dynamic revisions.
G-d blessed and commanded
No'ach and his family (and all of
mankind) to "be fruitful and
multiply".
(Let the point in the use of the two
verbs not go by without notice: The
ability to have children and raise a
family is a mitzva and a wonderful
blessing as well.)
No'ach got permission to eat meat
(this was denied to the previous
generations), but was warned not
to eat from a live animal. Murder
and the other Noahide Laws are
referred to and/or inferred, at this
point. Again, No'ach and family are
told to be fruitful and repopulate
the world.
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 8
Chamishi 5th Aliya
10 p'sukim - 9:8-17
[S> 9:8 (10)] G-d makes a promise
to mankind that He will never
again destroy the world as He did
with the Flood. The rainbow will
serve as sign and reminder of this
promise.
We acknowledge the significance of
a rainbow by reciting a bracha when
we see one - "...He Who remembers
the Covenant, is faithful to it, and
keeps His word.” Of the 10 items
mentioned in Avot as having been
created at the instant between the
Six Days of Creation and the first
Shabbat, all but the rainbow are
supernatural. The rainbow, by virtue
of its inclusion on this special list,
can be seen as a bridge between the
natural and the supernatural. Put
differently, we should see G-d's
handiwork in all the elements of
nature, not just in obvious miracles.
"The mouth of the Earth" was a
one-time creation to dispose of
Korach and his gang. But regular
rocks and hills, crags and clefts are
no less part of G-d's handiwork.
Some say that a rainbow is a sign
that G-d is angry with the world and
would want to destroy it - except He
promised not to. On the other hand,
Yechezkel describes the Heavenly
Throne as being like a rainbow, and
the radiance of the Kohen Gadol
upon leaving the Holy of Holies on
Yom Kippur is also likened to a
rainbow in the sky. And a rainbow is
beautiful, too!
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Shishi - Sixth Aliya 44 p'sukim - 9:18-10:32
Second longest Shishi in the Torah
[P> 9:18 (12)] Some time after
leaving the ark, No'ach becomes a
tiller of the soil and a grape
grower. He produces wine and
becomes drunk. One of his sons,
Cham, behaves immorally with his
father in his drunken state; Shem
and Yefet behave admirably in the
situation, protecting their father's
honor and modesty. When No'ach
realizes what has happened, he
curses Cham and Cham's son
Canaan, and blesses Shem and
Yafet.
No'ach lives 350 years after the
Flood, and dies at the age of 950.
The arithmetic of No'ach's years
(600 before + 350 after = 950)
seems not to take into account the
year of the Flood. There is a good
case to be made for not considering
the duration of the Flood in calculations of the chronology of the
world. We might look at the Flood as
a period of "suspended animation" laws of nature were not in effect;
perhaps time as we know it cannot
apply to that interval either. The
animals in the ark did not function
in their normal ways. No'ach had no
sleep during the whole period (if we
take statements made as literal). It
clearly was not a natural time.
[P> 10:1 (14)] The Torah next
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 9
outlines the generations that
followed No'ach and the nations
that came from Sheim, Cham and
Yefet.
These are the descendants of
No’ach (numbers in brackets count
the 70 nations of the world - based
on the Living Torah by R' Aryeh
Kaplan z"l). We’ll call NO’ACH the
zero generation. That makes SHEIM,
CHAM, and YEFET, the first generation after No’ach.
The counting of the 70 nationprogenitors begin with the children
of Sheim, Cham, and Yefet.
The Torah starts the genealogy with
Yefet. Generation 2 from Yefet are:
[1] Gomer, [2] Magog, [3] Madai,
[4] Yavan, [5] Yuval,
[6] Meshech, and [7] Tiras (who
Rashi says is Paras, which partners
him nicely with brother Madai [3]).
Third generation from Noach via
Yefet’s children (from only two of
them; no decendants are named
from the other five children):
From Gomer: [8] Ashkenaz,
[9] Rifat, and [10] Togarma.
From Yavan: [11] Elisha,
[12] Tarshish, [13] Kitim, and
[14] Dodanim.
2nd generation from No’ach via
Cham:
[15] Kush, [16] Mitzrayim,
[17] Put, and [18] K’na’an.
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
3rd generation via Cham’s children:
From Kush: [19] S’va,
[20] Chavila, [21] Savta,
[22] Ra’ma, [23] Savt’cha
Ra’ma had [24] Sh’va and
[25] D’dan (both 4th generation)
Kush also fathered Nimrod, not
numbered among the 70.
From Mitzrayim: [26] Ludim,
[27] Anamim, [28] L’havim,
[29] Naftuchim, [30] Patrusim,
[31] Kasluchim,
(from either 30 or 31 came
[32] P’lishtim - according to Rashi,
Patrusim and Kasluchim swapped
wives a lot and the P'lishtim came
from both of them),
[33] Kaftorim (who might also
have come from either Patrusim or
Kasluchim or from Mitzrayim disputed by commentaries).
No one mentioned from Put.
[S> 10:15 (6)] From K’na’an:
[34] Tzidon, [35] Cheit,
[36] the Yevusi, [37] the Emori,
[38] the Girgashi, [39] the Chivi,
[40] the Arki, [41] the Sini,
[42] the Arvadi, [43] the Tz’mari,
and [44] the Chamati.
So far, 25 from Yefet, 19 from Cham.
[S> 10:21 (12)] From Sheim:
[45] Eilam, [46] Ashur,
[47] Arpachshad, [48] Lud,
[49] Aram.
OU Israel Center TT 1108
From Aram: [50] Utz, [51] Chul,
[52] Geter, [53] Mash.
From Arpachshad came
[54] Shelach and from him came
[55] Eiver. Eiver is 4th generation.
He had [56] Peleg and
[57] Yaktan (5th generation).
From Yaktan:
[58] Almodad, [59] Shelef,
[60] Chatzarmavet,
[61] Yerach, [62] Hadoram,
[63] Uzal, [64] Dikla, [65] Oval,
[66] Avima’el, [67] Sh’va (same
name as 24), [68] Ofir,
[69] Chavila (same name as 20),
and [70] Yovav.
That’s 26 from Sheim. Total 70.
It should not be lost on us that the
birth of the world population is
describe as the 70 nations, and the
birth of Israel begins (later) with the
“70 souls” who went down to Egypt.
Sh'VII Seventh Aliya
32 p'sukim - 11:1-32
Longest Sh'vi'i in the Torah
[P> 11:1 (9)] The Torah tells us of
the attempt to build the "Tower of
Babel", the symbol of rebellion
against G-d. G-d thwarted the
plans, confused the languages of
mankind and scattered the people
far and wide.
Commentaries contrast the
page 10
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
two sinful generations in this sedra.
Dor HaMabul was destroyed
because their sins included the
destruction of society by total
disregard of a person for his fellow.
Dor HaPlaga sinned against G-d
alone, not against each other. Such
a society (albeit warped) can survive;
G-d can permit it to continue under
these circumstances.
[P> 11:10 (2)] The sedra returns to
the lineage of No'ach, this time
tracing only through Sheim. We
find for each generation, the name
of the "main" person, his age when
his main, named son was born,
how many years he lived after his
"main" son was born, and the fact
that other sons and daughters were
born.
Sheim was 100 when he had
Arpachshad (2 yrs after the Flood).
He lived a further 500 years (600).
[P> 11:12 (2)] Arpachshad had
Shelach at 35. Lived 403 more
years (438).
[P> 11:14 (2)] Shelach was 30
when he had Eiver. Then another
403 years (same as his father).
(Total: 433).
[P> 11:16 (2)] Eiver was 34 when
Peleg was born. He lived another
430 years (464).
[P> 11:18 (2)] Peleg was 30 when
R'u was born. He lived another 209
(total, 239).
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 11
[P> 11:20 (2)] R’u was 32 when
S'rug was born. Plus another 207
years (239).
[P> 11:22 (2)] S’rug was 30 when
he had Nachor. He lived another
200 years (230).
[P> 11:24 (2)] Nachor was 29
when Terach was born. He lived
119 more years (148).
[P> 11:26 (7)] Terach was 70
(there's that number again, and
also notice how much older Terach
was when he had children,
compared with all previous
generations back to Arpachshad.)
Terach had three sons, Avram,
Nachor, and Haran. (Remember
that No'ach also had three sons.)
Haran had Lot. Haran died. Avram
married Sarai and Nachor married
his niece Milka, Haran’s daughter.
The Torah makes a point of telling
us that Sarai was barren.
Terach takes his son Avram, his
grandson Lot, his daughter-in-law
Sarai, they leave Ur Kasdim and
head out for the land of K'naan.
They make it as far as Charan and
settle there. Terach dies in Charan
at 205 years of age (first one since
No'ach with a recorded age at
death).
The sedra thus ends with the stage
set for the next major phase of
world development - the return to
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
belief in one G-d and the "birth of
Judaism".
Maftir in 2nd Torah
7 p'sukim, Bamidbar 28:9-15
Chapters 28 and 29 in Bamidbar
(Parshat Pinchas) deal with the
daily and Musaf korbanot in the
Mikdash. The two Shabbat p'sukim
followed by the five that deal with
Rosh Chodesh combined for the
Maftir of Shabbat Rosh Chodesh.
Note that when any holiday is on
Shabbat, the maftir is only about the
Musaf of the holiday, and Shabbat's
Musaf is not mentioned. The plain
reason is that the two p'sukim about
Shabbat Musaf are not continuous
with any other Musafim besides that
of Rosh Chodesh. And the skipping
that would be necessary on any of
those other days is not sanctioned.
But perhaps, we can see something
additional in the Shabbat - Rosh
Chodesh situation, namely that
Shabbat Rosh Chodesh is not just
Shabbat and Rosh Chodesh that
coincide, but it is a fusion of the two
days, each of which represents a
different facet of K'dushat Z'man Sanctity of Time.
Shabbat and Rosh Chodesh cover
everything. Shabbat is the culmination of the week. It belongs to the
week. Its Musaf is an extension of
the daily korbanot - two lambs. Rosh
Chodesh is the starting point for all
the holidays. Each and every holiday
exists because the first day of the
month of each holiday was
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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sanctified as Rosh Chodesh. No
Rosh Chodesh - no holiday in that
month.
Rosh Chodesh is linked to the
holidays by its Musaf, as Shabbat is
linked to the days of the week. Two
bulls, one ram, seven lambs plus
one sin-offering goat - identical to
some of the holidays and similar
enough to the rest.
The pasuk that we read twice at the
end of the haftara joins Shabbat and
Rosh Chodesh in a way that we do
not find for any of the holidays: "And
it shall come to pass, that every new
moon, and every Shabbat, shall all
flesh come to worship before me,
says HaShem."
Haftara 24* p'sukim
Yeshayahu 66:1-24
The Haftara for Shabbat-Rosh
Chodesh, the last chapter of
Yeshayahu, preempts the regular
Haftara (usually). The obvious
reason for the choice is found in
the next to the last pasuk, which
mentions both Shabbat and Rosh
Chodesh. This pasuk is reread after
the last pasuk, so that the book of
Yeshayahu - and this Haftara - can
end on a brighter note than its real
end provides. This chapter, as all
chapters in Yeshayahu from 40
and on, contains a message of
consolation. Specifically, this chapter tells us that G-d cannot be
contained in the physical Mikdash,
nor is He interested in sacrifices
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
that are not offered with sincerity.
This message is appropriate
always, and the association with
Shabbat - week in & week out Rosh Chodesh - month in & month
out, fits well.
OU Israel Center TT 1108
page 13
mgpn ixac
Divrei Menachem
[email protected]
One important concept in our parsha is
the importance of the names we carry
and the name we acquire during our
lifetime.
The opening lines give us a clue to
No'ach's virtues even before we are
acquainted with his life story. No'ach
was a man who walked with G-d, a
righteous person, perfect in his
generation. However, had he lived in
Avraham's time, we might take a
different view: For No'ach did not
educate his fellow men while building
the ark. And having been told that all
that moves on land will be in fear of
him, he yet desecrated the land by
planting a vineyard, becoming drunk, and
uncovering himself in his tent.
No'ach's three sons exhibit different
lifestyles and achievements. Regarding
their father's ungainly behavior we see
that Ham leers at his father's
debasement while, at Shem's initiative,
Shem and Yafet avert their gaze and
cover their drunken father (Rashi on
B'reishit 9:23).
Each son is accordingly cursed or
blessed. Shem is rewarded for his
exemplary behavior such that his two
brothers are to become subservient to
him, one way or another. Not for nothing
is his name Shem (lit. Name). And not
surprisingly does Shlomo HaMelech
remind us that, "Tov Shem Tov
MiShemen Tov" - 'Better a good name
than good oil.'
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Vebbe Rebbe
Mistakes in the Order
of Kaddish and Ba-r'chu
Question: On Motzaei Shabbat the
chazan mistakenly said Kaddish Titkabel
(=KT) and Barchu before V'yehi Noam and
Kiddusha D'sidra (V'ata Kadosh). After
saying those tefillot, he repeated KT and
Barchu. Also, one morning a mourner said
Barchu after the Kaddish of the Mizmor of
the day instead of after Ein Keilokeinu and
then repeated it at its normal place. Were
these repetitions warranted?
Answer: The answers are basically
evident if one understands the roles of
KT and Barchu.
The main reason to recite Barchu
again at the end of tefilla is for the
sake of latecomers who missed the
main one (Rama, Orach Chayim
133:1). For that reason, Nusach
Ashkenaz does not repeat Barchu on
Monday, Thursday, and Shabbat, due
to the assumption that latecomers
answered Barchu at the aliyot of Kri'at
HaTorah (see Rama ibid.). While it is
customary in Israel to insert Barchu
after Ein Keilokeinu, Barchu meets its
purpose earlier or later in tefilla at
least b'di'eved, as happens in Kri'at
HaTorah or in communities which do
not recite Ein Keilokeinu daily. This
should be so even according to
Nusach Sephard/Eidot Mizrach and in
regard to the Motza'ei Shabbat
mistake, as this is still a Barchu at the
end of davening, even if it moved up
one Kaddish. (Since Kabbalistic
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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considerations are behind the minhag
to repeat Barchu every day (see Kaf
HaChayim, OC 133:1) we cannot rule
out the possibility that it should be
repeated if not said at the exact right
place, but we doubt that.)
Different Kaddeishim have different
functions. The unique part of the
Kaddish Shalem known as KT is the
request that Hashem accept our joint
prayers favorably. This relates to the
joint Shemoneh Esrei, whether the
silent one at Maariv or chazarat
hashatz at the other tefilot (see Rama,
OC 55:3 and Mishna Berura ad loc.
22). Therefore, it seems evident that
KT is effective b'di'eved any time
after Shemoneh Esrei, and there is no
need or justification to repeat it.
However, there might be a significant
dissenter regarding KT before V'ata
Kadosh. Chief Rabbi Y. Yosef writes
(Yalkut Yosef 132:8) that if one
recited KT before before Ashrei/Uva
L'tzion (the morning version of V'ata
Kadosh), he should repeat it after Uva
L'tzion. This is based on the assumption that Titkabel applies not only to
Shemoneh Esrei but also to Uva
L'tzion, to the extent that if KT
preceded Uva L'tzion, another KT is
needed. Indeed we do find Titkabel
for a non-Shemoneh Esrei prayer Selichot. On the other hand, his proof
that Uva L'tzion warrants its own KT
seems to actually be a disproof, as we
will now see. He cites the Eliya Rabba
(OC 693:5) who says that at Ma'ariv
of Purim, KT is said twice, before
Megilla reading to cover Shemoneh
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Esrei, and after the Megilla for V'ata
Kadosh. The problem with this proof
is that while the Mishna Berura
(693:1) does cite the Eliya Rabba, he
also cites the Magen Avraham, who
says that Titkabel is said only in the
Kaddish that precedes the Megilla,
and the minhag of the great majority
of communities is like the latter. In
other words, we see that KT before
V'ata Kadosh/Uva L'tzion suffices.
Perhaps Rav Yosef would agree not to
repeat KT when it was done before
Vihi No'am/V'ata Kadosh of Motza'ei
Shabbat, due to the unique nature of
those tefilot. They are recited to push
off the end of davening in order to
delay the return of souls to gehinom
after Shabbat (see Tur, OC 295). The
simple implication is that the point of
return is after KT ends our tefilla. If
so, if one prematurely said KT before
those tefillot, there might be no reason
to say them. While our intuition
suggests that once the tefillot were
instituted, they should be said
anyway, its recitation is likely not
important enough in that case to
warrant a repeat of KT for its sake.
We posit then if one mistakenly
recited KT on Motzaei Shabbat before
the special tefillot, which include
sections from Tehillim and elsewhere
and requests, they would be followed
by Kaddish Yatom. If no one wants to
say Kaddish Yatom, the tefilla
continues with Aleinu.
Rav Daniel Mann, Eretz Hemdah Institute
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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Rabbi Weinreb's Weekly Column:
Parshat NO'ACH
"Easy Spirituality"
The French poet Baudelaire once
remarked that the devil’s greatest
success is his ability to convince us
that he does not exist.
Whereas Judaism does not believe
in the devil quite as Baudelaire
does, it does believe that there is a
“devilish” force called the yetzer
ha-ra within each of us, and that
that force works in very subtle
ways. At the same time, with
ambivalence, we definitely do tend
to believe that this yetzer does not
exist.
Jewish writings through the ages
have debated the nature of this
force. All these writings ultimately
trace back to a verse in this week’s
Torah portion: “The devising of
man’s mind are evil from his youth”
(B'reishit 8:21).
And to a similar verse in last week’s
Torah portion: “The Lord saw how
great was man’s wickedness on
earth, and how every plan devised
by his mind was nothing but evil all
the time” (6:5).
Thus, there most assuredly is an
inclination for evil in each of us. He
or she who wishes to live the life of
a good person is well advised to
guard against this natural inclination. This yetzer-force rarely commands us directly to do what is
wrong. Instead it tries to craftily
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
delude us into thinking that what is
wrong and evil is right and good.
A favorite strategy for the yetzer is
to persuade us that it seeks the
same ends and objectives as God
does, but that alternate ways of
achieving those ends are also
legitimate. Take spirituality, for
example. How does one achieve a
sense of spirituality?
For Judaism, spirituality and the
emotions which accompany it can
only be achieved through hard
work: prayer, study, sacrifice, and
above all, charity and compassion.
No easy “grace”! The yetzer, while
not denying the value of spirituality,
tempts us with short cuts, and
cheap and ersatz methods to
achieve the same results as the
more arduous methods prescribed
by the Torah.
A wonderful illustration of this
dynamic is found in this week’s
Torah portion, just after the story of
the great Flood. No'ach and his
family
are
beginning
anew,
rebuilding their lives, rebuilding the
world. What is the first thing No'ach
does? He plants a vineyard. His
grapes grow and ripen, he makes
wine and drinks it, and gets drunk.
What prompted No'ach to make
wine his first priority? Let me
suggest the following imaginary
scenario to answer that question.
No'ach walked with God. He
enjoyed the sense of spirituality for
which many of us yearn. He
experienced a spiritual “high”. In the
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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past he achieved that level of
spirituality by virtue of hard work:
obedience, construction of the Ark,
gathering the animals of the world,
tending to them, offering sacrifices.
Along came No'ach’s yetzer-force,
and said “No'ach! There must be an
easier way! (right!) You can achieve
the same spiritual high, the same
sense of wholeness and holiness
without all that work. All it will take
is a few drinks of one of God’s own
juices. Plant a vineyard, make some
wine and drink it and you will feel all
the good feelings you felt before,
and then some.”
For, you see, the yetzer, or if you
wish the devil, knows of the
connection between addiction and
spirituality.
How well I remember the 1960s,
and the many gifted spiritual
seekers who resorted to alcohol
and more potent substances to
generate moods of spirituality.
Judaism cautions us not to be
seduced by facile techniques, even
in the service of achieving higher
and holier states of conscientiousness. That is why the Torah
shifts next week into the story of
Avraham, whose spirituality was
based on service, on the courageous search for social justice, and
on compassionate concern for
others in need. In short, Avraham
was dedicated to the very arduous
methods that No'ach sought to
circumvent by drink.
Join us next week as we examine
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
the impressive personality of
Avraham and learn from him how to
achieve a sober sense of spirituality. 

We would be far less
exasperated by children's
activities if we understood
why those activities did not
exasperate them.
Although one may have a good
excuse, there may be no good
excuse for his having one.
Some,
when they see a mountain
before them immediately assume
that they must go over the top;
the expedient of going around the
side never occurs to them.
from "A Candle by Day" by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein z"l
Tishrei, Marcheshvan, Kislev;
Efrayim, Menashe, Binyamin
by Dr. Meir Tamari
It seems we are borrowing from
non-Jewish terminology, when we use
CHOL to describe weekdays or
secular knowledge or everyday
activities, since chol - chalal - means
empty and we thereby imply that there
are areas, days or activities which are
exempt or empty of any kedusha.
However, since G-d fills everyplace,
everything and every person, there is
no area nalul-empty, and so free of the
need and possibility for sanctification.
Chol days or actions are simply those
at a different and lowest level in the
hierarchy of kedusha. This is shown
by work being permissible on Rosh
Chodesh which is a low level of
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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kedusha, however, it too needs the
kedusha of hallel, of the special
reading from the Torah, and of the
korban musaf. Women refrain from
non-essential work, while in Tanachic
days it was marked by a family festive
meal, zevach mishpacha - zevach
being also a name given to korbanot
(Shmuel Alef 20:5-6). Its kedusha is
induced by our obligation and ability
to review, analyze, repent and correct
our actions of the past month. The
kedusha of Rosh Chodesh which
permits work, is parallel to that of the
courtyard of the Mishkan [AZARA of
the Beit HaMikdash] where all were
permitted to enter except for one who
is tamei. While this kedusha applies to
the Rosh Chodesh of all the months,
each month presents a different
perspective on serving and drawing
closer to G-d.
"The months of the year correspond to
the 12 Tribes of Israel but their
sequence is not according to that of
birth but rather in accordance with the
order of their encampment during the
march through the desert" (ARI
HaKadosh). For example, the Torah
writes, "The camp of Yehuda, with
Yissachar and Zevulun attending, will
be the first to travel" (Bamidbar 2:9);
just as they were the first three in the
march, so Nissan, Iyar and Sivan, the
first 3 months of our year, correspond
to these tribes.
Efrayim was number seven in the
march, followed by Menashe and then
by Binyamin, thereby corresponding
to the months of Tishrei, MarcheshNo'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
van and Kislev. Tishrei is the month
of Chagim, full of mitzvot, a month of
asei tov; Efrayim is asei tov, even as
Yosef named him, "Hashem made me
fruitful, hifrani, in a strange land"
(B'reishit 41:52). Marcheshvan, however, which has no chagim and no
special mitzvot, represents the
avoidance of evil, sur mei-ra. This
befits the tribe of Menashe; even as
Yosef said when he was born,
"Hashem made me forget, nashani, all
the troubles of my father's house
(41:51); made me cold or oblivious to
evil". So Marchesvan's sign is the
crab, cold and protected against evil,
sur mei-ra.
Kislev is the 9th month of the year
and relates to the tribe of Binyamin
which was number nine in the march.
Kislev introduces a different dimension, that reflecting the desire for
ecstasy, for an outpouring of spirituality and religiosity. Its name is related
to kesel-kesalim, kidneys, which are
the seat of strong human desires and
lusts. Binyamin too, has this spiritual
character and therefore was concerned
with and thought of Hashem the
whole day; "This is like a person who
is troubled that he has not satisfied his
desires or lusts (Rashi, Yoma 12a). He
personifies the stimulation of the heart
and mind to find ecstasy and elevation
in the worship of G-d. So Kislev is
fittingly the month corresponding to
Binyamin of whom the Torah says,
"the friend of G-d's, who dwells on
him all day and resides between his
shoulders [boundaries]" {D'varim
49:27). This is indicated by the
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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location of the territory of Binyamin
adjacent to the Beit HaMikdash,
medium for the outpouring of
spirituality and the overflowing desire
for G-d. This desire, power and ability
to raise human yearning for G-d
beyond the confines of logic,
intelligence and mental power, gave
the Jews the strength to overcome the
Greeks and their philosophy. It is
fitting therefore that Kislev being the
month of Binyamin who symbolizes
this characteristic of Israel, should be
the month of victory over the
philosophy of Greece" (Shem
MiShmuel).
[This philosophy, which differs
radically from ours, challenges us
even today. It is represented by
societies dominated by a world
outlook restricted to those things
which can be measured, seen,
weighed or humanly explained;
"chochma bagoyim ta'amin. Indeed
there is knowledge and wisdom
among the pagan nations" (Eicha
Rabba 2). However, there is no Torah
amongst them, no Revelation of
Divine Wisdom, no experiences
beyond the limitations of the human
mind and no values other than those
originating in the intelligence of men
and women. As we say in Sh'moneh
Esrei, "Hashem in His mercy bestows
knowledge on Adam [Mankind]",
however, Israel through Revelation,
has an additional powerful yearning
and ecstatic cleaving to Him; "I am
My Beloved's and my Beloved is
mine (Shir HaShirim 6:3) [and] on
Him is my desire" (7:11). 
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
goodness and kindness.
The following is from
Sapphire from the Land of Israel
A New Light on the Weekly Portion
from the Writings of
Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaKohen Kook
by Rabbi Chanan Morrison
website: ravkooktorah.org
Gathering within the Ark
Adapted from Mussar Avicha, pp. 33-39
A similar preparatory stage of
spiritual renewal took place many
generations
later.
Before
the
revelation of the Zohar, Rabbi
Shimon bar Yochai spent 13 years
hiding in a cave. He needed this
period of seclusion to purify and
prepare himself for the Zohar’s inner
light (Adir Bamarom 7).
Why an Ark?
The Path of Personal Growth
Why was it necessary for No'ach to
build an ark to save his family from
the Flood’s destruction? Could God
not have arranged an easier way to
rescue him?
This same method, Rav Kook wrote,
is necessary for our own moral and
spiritual growth. Change is difficult.
It is not easy to correct old habits
and patterns of thought. As human
beings, we become accustomed to
looking at life in terms of fulfilling
our material needs, which can lead
us to drift unthinkingly into selfcentered pursuit of honor and
physical pleasures.
The Midrash raises this question,
explaining that the 120 years that
No'ach worked constructing the
enormous boat were meant to
provide the people of his generation
with an opportunity to repent.
Rebuilding the World
Eighteenth-century scholar Rabbi
Moshe Chaim Luzzatto offered an
alternative explanation to that of the
Midrash. He wrote that No'ach
needed to spend a year living inside
the ark in order to prepare the
foundations of a new world. Outside
the ark, where flood waters swept
away the world’s evil, nothing could
survive. Inside the ark, the inner
integrity of the world was reestablished under No'ach’s direction. The
soul
of
this
great
tzaddik
encompassed all the souls of the
world. As No'ach fed and looked
after the animals in his care, he
renewed the world on the basis of
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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The path to repairing one’s deeds
and refining one’s character has two
aspects. The first step is cognitive.
We must fully understand each trait
and its characteristics, and we must
learn the proper time and place for
their expression. Therefore our first
request in the daily Amida prayer is
that God “grant us knowledge,
understanding, and insight.”
Theoretical knowledge, however, is
not enough. After acquiring this
wisdom, we must accustom our will
to whole-heartedly conform to this
new path. We must strive to quiet
our heart’s desires and distance
ourselves from all that leads to a
confused state of mind - a state that
undermines the very foundations of
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
character-building. We need to
acquire a resolute and steadfast
outlook and fortify our traits so that
we will be able to retain our purity
and holiness even when occupied
in worldly matters.
A Private Ark
Those who succeed in directing
their mind and inner will in this
fashion will gain control of all
aspects of their lives. Those who
have not carefully thought out their
path, however, will lack control of
their actions and desires. Such
individuals need to withdraw the
powers of the soul, their strengths
and talents, and gather them in, like
lines radiating outward that are
pulled back to their focal point.
This undertaking is similar to
No'ach’s confinement within the ark.
It can be a bitter and heavy burden
to constrain the soul’s powers in
such a way, since the soul naturally
seeks independence and freedom.
Even confinement in the body is a
terrible prison for the soul; all the
more so to be constrained in such a
fashion.
Converging toward the nucleus of
one’s mind and inner will is not a
pleasant task. One may feel pained
and even depressed from the
constraints of this path of repair. But
after the soul’s forces have become
accustomed to conducting themselves properly, they may be allowed
to return to their natural state. Then
all aspects of one’s personality will
be proper vessels for fulfilling God’s
will, and one’s powers may be
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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released to rule over the body once
more, now following the dictates of
the intellect.
This path of personal renewal
parallels the world’s renewal in the
time of No'ach. The months spent in
the ark were a preparatory period of
converging and gathering powers
under the direction of the tzaddik.
But when the punishing waters
receded and the inhabitable dry land
appeared, the ark’s inhabitants
could be freed from their confinement. So too, as character traits are
repaired and perfected, they may be
released once again.
Testing the Waters
During the period of confinement,
one needs to ‘test the waters’ - to
measure whether one’s powers are
ready to be set free. This stage
corresponds to No'ach’s sending
out the raven and the dove. One
tests one’s traits in matters that do
not involve danger, just as No'ach
utilized birds - creatures that can fly
and thus were not endangered by
the flood waters. When No'ach
realized that the world’s repair was
not yet complete, he drew them
back into the ark.
The Divine command, “Leave the
ark!” came only when the land was
completely dry. Then it was time to
serve God in an unhindered manner,
for the active dissemination of
Torah and acts of kindness requires
an unfettered soul, full of strength
and courage. 
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
OzTorah
Not Guilty, Your Honour!
What are "Mei No’ach", the waters of
Noah (Yeshayahu 54:9), which are
mentioned in the Haftara for Parshat
No'ach?
One possibility is that the phrase
means no more than "the flood
waters in the time of Noah". Another
view is that in some sense they are
Noah’s waters, implying that Noah
is at least partly to blame for them. If
he had been a better leader of his
generation, the argument runs, they
might have been more faithful to
God, and the flood might not have
been necessary.
But Noah did try to teach his
contemporaries, and it is not entirely
his fault that they did not respond.
Thus it is not fair to blame him for a
wayward generation.
The Midrash Tanchuma declares
that God believed that when the
people of the time saw Noah
building an ark they would ask what
he was doing and Noah would have
warned that if they did not repent
there would be a flood… but things
did not work out as God expected,
and the people took no notice.
Yes, there is a rabbinic belief that
had Avraham been the leader of that
generation and not No'ach, things
might have been different, but
another rabbinic principle is that you
cannot transpose leaders between
generations. All that you have is "the
judge that shall be in those days"
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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(D'varim 17:9), even if that judge is
inferior to a judge of a previous (or a
later) generation.
It sounds attractive to imagine how
much better things would be if, for
example, the Rambam were alive in
the 21st century, but it’s only a
dream, and the reality is that Noah
was the best leader they had in his
generation, and our leaders are the
ones we have in our own days.
Rain, Rain
DEFINITELY DON'T
go away...
We began saying MASHIV
HARU'ACH
UMORID
HAGESHEM (MHUH) on Shmini
Atzeret (a.k.a. Simchat Torah)
and continue until the first day
of Pesach. Omitting MHUH
invalidates the Amida and one
must repeat the whole Amida.
HOWEVER, since it is our
custom to say MORID HATAL
during the period when MHUH
is not said, if one forgets to say
MHUH, he can assume that he
did
said
MORID
HATAL
(because a habit is established
with a month or 90 times). In
such case, the Amida is not
invalid and one does not repeat
it.
Although MHUH is correct, and
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
MORID HATAL is not (during
this period of time), at least one
acknowleges G-d's involvement
in the weather - and that allows
the Amida to stand.
If one follows the practice of not
replacing MHUH with anything
(as was the original procedure,
and still is for Nusach Ashkenaz
abroad), then omitting MHUH
(or even not being sure, during
the first month or so after
Shmini
Atzeret)
requires
repeating the entire Amida.
Maharal on the Sedra
NIMROD
B'reishit 10:8 - And Kush begat
Nimrod - he began [HEICHEIL] to be
a mighty man on earth.
Rashi - He was mighty in causing
the whole world to rebel against the
Holy One, blessed be He, through
the scheme of the Generation of the
Dispersion.
Gur Arye - Otherwise it could have
said "He was the first mighty man."
But he began something here - the
worldwide
rebellion
against
Hashem, and HEICHEIL connotes
"profaned" as well as "began" in
double entendre. But there were
idolators before - why say Nimrod
began it? Because the verse goes
on to say he was "mighty at
trapping", which means that he was
the first to succeed in the
entrapment of people's minds
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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[Rashi on 10:9].
This midrashic explanation [in
B'reishit Rabba 23:7] is inconsistent
with the tendency in scripture not to
conceal misdeeds of sinners. Why
speak so elliptically of Nimrod's
sin? The answer is that idolatry was
not a revealed matter in their day,
just as the worship of Hashem was
not known. Neither is mentioned in
the Torah until much later.
The simple interpretation is, as
Onkelos renders, he was a strong
king. But strength [gevura] applies
only to Hashem, as we say in the
morning prayer, "Are not all mighty
men like nothing before You?" He
began to be mighty before Hashem
when he should have shown
humility and submission, which
hints that his strength was the
strength of rebellion and idolatry.
"Mighty at trapping" connotes
plotting and trickery, not going on
the simple straight path like other
trappers. "Before Hashem" connotes plotting and trickery in Godly
matters to the point of causing the
people to rebel against Hashem.
Likewise, Eisav was [25:27] "a man
who knew of trapping" as opposed
to Yaakov, the simple, "pure man".
Nimrod was the first king, and
otherwise unspecified earthly kings
oppose the Kingdom of Heaven,
which is why Hashem did not wish
for Israel to appoint a king over
themselves. True are the words of
the Sages.
Column prepared by Dr. Moshe Kuhr
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Reprinted (with permission) from
Shabbat Shalom
Parsha Booklet (4) by
Rabbi Berel Wein
The deleterious effects of alcohol
abuse are clearly evident in this
week's parsha. No'ach, after the
trauma of the Great Flood and the
destruction of his society and world,
somehow drowns his sorrows in
wine and becomes drunk and loses
control over himself. From that
incident, further tragedies, curses
and disasters arise until it seems
that the entire exercise of the Flood
seems to have been purposeless
and irrelevant.
The scourge of alcohol-related
tragedies that was for many years
almost unknown in the Jewish world
is today commonplace in our
society. Binge drinking by kippawearing youths is now an accepted
way of life in the Diaspora and here
in Israel as well. If one has any
doubts about the effects of such
behavior on family life, employment
success and social interactions, let
him spend five minutes speaking to
Dr. Avraham Twerski. He will
quickly disabuse (no pun intended)
you of such a fanciful untrue notion.
Automobile fatalities, broken families and homes and marriages,
violent behavior and an attitude of
uncontrolled hedonism all are
products of the vineyard of No'ach.
Because of this alarming situation in
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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the Jewish world there are now
shuls that ban any form of liquor
except for kiddush wine from being
served or located on its premises.
The excuses of Purim and Simchat
Torah may have been valid for
previous generations of sober
minded Jews. In a generation of
over indulgence and uncontrolled
materialism, such as ours resembles, alcohol has become lethal to
Jewish life, behavior and values.
There is a wonderfully true and
pithy Yiddish aphorism that states:
"What a sober person has on one's
lung (controlled within), a drunken
person has on one's tongue
(exhibits in one's outside behavior)."
I knew Jews who when drunk on
Purim would pour their hearts out to
God and recite the entire Yom
Kippur services by heart. Others
who were great scholars would
repeat countless sections of the
Mishna by pure memory.
When wine enters then the inner
secrets of a person are revealed, is
certainly a correct assessment.
Therefore I was mightily disturbed
when on the night after Simchat
Torah, "religious" Jews who were
visibly drunk went on a stonethrowing binge at passing cars here
in Jerusalem. No matter what type
of dress they wore on the outside,
their true inner selves was revealed
to be one of hatred, violence and
vandalism. By such behavior, Jews
can revert back to be Sons of
No'ach instead of Sons of Avraham.
I think that No'ach's failure to realize
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
the inevitable consequences of his
drunkenness is one of the saddest
narratives in the Torah. We will
meet another incident of the
dangers of an alcoholic binge in the
story of Lot and his daughters.
There too, as in the case of No'ach,
future generations of history are
affected negatively by the drunken
behavior of an ancestor.
I therefore think that the story of
No'ach in this week's parsha is
most relevant to us and our times.
To ignore that lesson is truly to
place ourselves personally and
society-wise in a very dangerous
and unfortunate position.
AMMMA vs AMA, stressing the
MEM in the former and not in the
latter.
The problem is that most people
do not emphasize letters with
DAGESH CHAZAK. And this includes most BKs (Baalei K'ri'a).
N. Sharoni in EIM LAMIKRA HASHALEIM flags the word for cubit
by saying that the MEM should be
stressed to not make the word
sound like maidservant. Really
careful (m'dakdeik) BKs do it right.
TtRiDdLeS
Previous (Trippple issue) TTriddles:
dO¨ `© vs dn¨ `¨
On the left we have the Biblical
unit of measure, the cubit. (What's
a cubit?)
On the right is the word for maidservant, similar to SHIFCHA.
[1] ALEF BET BET GIMMEL DALED
HEI VAV VAV VAV YUD LAMED
LAMED MEM SAMACH AYIN
REISH REISH TAV TAV
These are the letters you need to
spell ETROG, LULAV, HADASIM,
ARAVOT.
[2] ABJOPQRSTUV
What's the difference in pronunciation? It's subtle. In Ashkenazic
pronunciation, the one on the left
is AMAW and the one on the right
is AWMAW.
These letters changed into numbers
- 1,2,10,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22 - are the
dates in Tishrei that were the Yamim
Tovim - Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur,
Sukkot, and Simchat Torah.
In the Israeli pronunciation, they
both come out AMA, but there is
supposed to be a difference in pronouncing the MEM with a DAGESH
(cubit) and the MEM without the
DAGESH. In exaggerated transliteration, we would render it as
[3] Originally 2, now 42, really only
One
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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AVINU MALKEINU originally was
two statements made by Rabbi
Akiva during a severe drought. That
was the first recorded AVINU
MALKEINU prayer. Over time, more
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
requests of G-d have been added,
and the current prayer have 42 lines.
But - there is only one AVINU
MALKEINU, His Unity is an essential of our religious belief.
CHIZUK ! IDUD
[4] 7 (f) lambs (m) and the president
and his wives
The first portion of the Torah, Parshat
B'reishit, outlines the creation of the
world. The very next portion, Parshat
No'ach, proceeds to detail its utter
annihilation via the flood.
SHEVA is the feminine form of the
number 7. Male lambs are K'VASIM.
And the president (V'HANASI) and
his wives (V'NASHAV). Gimatriya:
SHEVA = 300+2+70 = 372
K'VASAIM = 20+2+300+10+40 = 372
V'HANASI = 6+5+50+300+10+1 = 372
V'NASHAV = 6+50+300+10+6 = 372
And YOM KIPPUR = 372.
Rabbi Atik z"l used to ask...
For B'REISHIT: Aside from Parshat
B'reishit, where else in Sefer B'reishit
does the phrase YOM ECHAD occur?
In Tol'dot, Rivka wants to send
Yaakov out our Eisav's reach, so
that she will not lose two sons in
YOM ECHAD, one day.
In Vayishlach, Yaakov tells Eisav
that he can't travel together with him
because if he pushes his herds and
flocks to move to quickly, they will
die in a single day, YOM ECHAD.
The Sun and the Moon are called
M'OROT in Parshat B'reishit. Where in
the book of B'reishit are the Sun and
the Moon named in one pasuk?
In Yosef's second dream, the Sun
and the Moon and 11 stars are
bowing to him.
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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Divrei Torah from the weekly sedra
with a focus on living in Eretz Yisrael Chizuk for Olim & Idud for not-yet-Olim
A single individual is given advance
warning, and having been informed of
the impending doom, is directed to
begin the building of the Ark to save
himself and his family.
In this week’s Haftara, the Prophet
Yeshayahu, surprisingly refers to the
flood waters as “Mei No'ach” (54:9),
"the waters of No'ach", implying that
Noach himself was partially to blame.
What did he do wrong?
Our sages pointed to a number of
shortcomings. Despite having singlehandedly erected the ark, toiling for a
hundred and twenty years, when the
time finally comes, No'ach is reluctant
to enter the ark. Rashi describes his
inner turmoil as follows: “He believed
and didn’t believe that the flood would
arrive. He only entered the Ark after
the floodwaters forced him in” (Rashi
on B'reishit 7:7). For this Chazal
counted him among the “ketanei
emunah”, those of little faith.
However, No'ach's shortcomings are
not confined to matters of faith - Bein
Adam LaMakom - indeed, the more
pressing issue lies elsewhere.
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Upon receiving his prophecy, No'ach
sets out to fulfill the commandment
and immediately commences the
construction of the ark. Although
seemingly beyond reproach, our rabbis
believed that this was a highly flawed
reaction on No'ach's part pointing to a
hugely significant difference between
No'ach and others who similarly
received
prophecy
telling
of
impending doom. When G-d notified
Avraham and Moshe of his plan to
mete out justice upon the sinners, they
both immediately resorted to prayer,
beseeching the Almighty that he
reconsider His plan of destruction.
No'ach did no such thing - he is
content to save himself together with
his own family. No'ach had indeed
walked with G-d (B'reishit 6:9) but
not with his fellow man…
In D'varim Rabba (11:3) the Midrash
presents the following exchange:
“No'ach said to Moshe: ‘I am surely
greater than you, seeing as I was
delivered from the generation of the
Flood.’
Moshe replied: ‘You saved yourself
but not your generation; whereas I
saved both myself and my generation… this can be compared to two
seafaring captains. One saves himself
losing his ship, the other saves himself
as well as his ship. Which one is more
praiseworthy?"
Unless we remind ourselves how
deeply flawed the people killed in the
Flood really were, we will surely
minimize the grand scale of the lesson
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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we are called upon to internalize.
No'ach's generation were 'top grade'
sinners who had freely chosen to lead
a lifestyle antithetical to his own.
They fully deserved their punishment,
and yet No'ach is reprimanded for his
lack of empathy and caring. Thinking
of this message, I am reminded of
how certain insular ultra-orthodox
communities are dismayed by the
mere presence of their Modern
Orthodox brethren within their midst,
living in close proximity to their shuls
and schools.
We must take to heart the Rabbinic
teachings regarding the significance of
the binding together of the Arba
Minim representing how all types and
varieties of Jews must come together
to form a holy congregation.
In the face of those who favor a closed
monolithic community, our motto
needs to be the unqualified acceptance
and tolerance of all Jews. We must not
permit those who preach exclusiveness to gain the upper hand!
Returning to No'ach, we must also
remember that when we witness the
rising of the flood waters we are
called upon to enter into the ark.
Jews the world over have been warned
about the flood waters of assimilation
which threaten to overcome them.
Many think they can build their own
local Arks thereby keeping out the
unwanted influences. Historically,
though, such ghettos, self-imposed or
otherwise, have not succeeded in
keeping the floodwaters at bay.
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
Eretz Yisrael represents the Ark of
our national existence. Ever since the
founding of Medinat Yisrael, the
doors to our Homeland have remained
open beckoning all to come home.
The gangway leading to the Ark is
still easily accessible. Those who have
not yet entered should not tarry,
thereby emulating No'ach's lack of
faith by waiting till the rising waters
force them in.
Rabbi Yerachmiel Roness, Ramat Shiloh, Beit Shemesh
Parsha Points to Ponder
by MK Rabbi Dov Lipman
No'ach
1) Why did G-D command No'ach to
go out and TAKE the seven kosher
animals of each species (7:2) while
for all the other species He said that
they will COME TO YOU in the ark
(6:20)
2) Why does G-D say that DAY AND
NIGHT will never cease (8:22) after
the flood, if according to the Torah
night precedes day?
3) Why did G-D say WE WILL GO
DOWN, referring to His ministerial
angels, when going to separate the
people into nations after the
construction of the tower of Bavel
(11:7)? Why didn't G-D do it alone?
Suggested answers
1) Rabbeinu Bachya teaches that
G-D felt that He could order the
animals that would survive after the
flood come to the ark on their own
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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but that it would not be proper to
force the animals that would be
slaughtered for sacrifices to come
on their own. Therefore, He
instructed Noach to go and get
them.
2) The Baal Haflaah (Rabbi Pinchas
HaLevi Horowitz, 18th century
Germany) explained
that the
concept of night preceding day
became reality when the Torah was
given and G-D taught the words
AND IT WAS EVENING AND IT
WAS MORNING when describing
creation. Until the Torah was given,
day preceded night and, therefore,
G-D spoke according to that order.
3) Rabbi Yaakov Kaminetzky
answers that this when G-D
separated the people into different
nations He appointed angels to
oversee those nations. The bringing
of the angles down with Him was to
assign them these missions.
MACHON PUAH
A New Baby, a New Hope
On Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur we
reflected that we do not know during
the coming year how many will be born
and how many will die. Deaths are
often recorded and commemorated
after a person has lived a meaningful
life and has influenced others. But
rarely are births recorded and mentioned in the press.
This year between Rosh HaShana and
Yom Kippur there was an exceptional
birth in Sweden, one that was recorded
in the medical literature as well as in
the popular press. It was not the birth
of a prince or a dignitary, rather the
baby was a normal little girl born to
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
parents with no regal lineage. The birth
would have gone unnoticed and
unannounced were it not for the
extraordinary operation that resulted
in the pregnancy. For this was the first
recorded birth of a child after a successful uterine transplant.
As we have previously written and
discussed, the Swedish team has been
working for over a decade to perfect
their technique to enable the transplant of a healthy uterus to a woman
who was born without a uterus. In this
case, the donor was the 63 year old
mother of the 38 year old recipient who
was born with Rokitansky Syndrome in
which girls are born without a uterus.
Until now such women are able to have
children using the services a gestational carrier, a surrogate mother who
carries the pregnancy, and delivers the
child for the genetic parents.
This new procedure will actually treat
this condition by enabling the woman
to carry her own child and so it is an
exciting development. There have been
attempts to transplant a uterus before
but this is the first modern report of
the birth of a child and holds the
promise of hope for many women and
couples.
We have already discussed the halachic
implications of this medical procedure
and written that the mother is clearly
the recipient and not the donor and so
any child born will be considered
halachically as the child of the
recipient especially when she is also
the genetic mother of the child.
The operation to transplant the uterus
is long and complicated and therefore
also very expensive. It is therefore not
currently clinically available for most
people. But as it becomes more
common and will be adopted by other
OU Israel Center TT 1108
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hospitals worldwide, it will become a
more viable option. But it is an exciting
development and one that was
correctly heralded as a breakthrough.
We constantly monitor the literature
to find any new developments that
may be able to help even some of the
many couples who turn to Puah each
and every day of the year.
Rabbi Gideon Weitzman
Portion
And G-d Remembered No'ach
I am writing this in Glasgow, where I
am to present at the 24th Alzheimer
Europe Conference and at the
meeting of INTERDEM. While in
Glasgow, I also gave two talks at the
Giffnock and Newlands Hebrew
Congregation, one on memory
improvement techniques and another
on the importance of activities for
people with dementia.
In the lecture on memory I started
with a discussion of Jewish sources
on memory. The root word ZACHAR
for memory is mentioned 169 times
in Tanach. We just finished with the
holiday season - some people might
even still have their sukkot still
standing. The Rosh Hashana Musaf
prayers are filled with verses about
memory in the zichronot - remembrances section. One of the verses
actually comes from this week's
Torah portion of No'ach. In our
prayers on Rosh Hashana we say
that God remembered No'ach and
brought him out on dry land, Lot and
No'ach 5775 - Rosh Chodesh
saved him from destruction, and
Rachel to give her a child. These are
an interesting choice of verses
related to memory because usually
we think of memory as something
from the past. But Lord Jackobowitz
points out that here it is all remembering for the future. We need our
memory to remember things from the
past and that is how we know where
we came from - but that is not
enough to maintain our tradition. We
also must use our memory for the
future - to plan what good deeds to
do and to pass on our heritage to the
next generation.
Rav Hirsch on the verse from this
portion says that ZACHAR is related
to SACHAR which means to lock up.
To keep and hold it in the memory. In
my lecture I also talked about lots of
ways to help lock things in the
memory - using associations, mindfulness, organization, creativity, story
method, chunking, repetition, making
choices…
And why was No'ach remembered?
The Midrash teaches us that it was
because day in and day out he cared
for the animals. This was a hard job
but he did with all his heart. For all of
you who may have forgotten this is
the time of year I remind everyone
about the non-profit organization
Melabev who has been caring for
people with dementia and Alzheimer's for over 30 years with all
their heart. This is the time of year to
sign up for Melabev's moonlight
Walk, Nov. 6 (in the Eshtaol Forest in
the Hills of Jerusalem) or full 2-day
Walkathon, Wed. & Thu. Nov. 26-27
(in areas of Mt.Gilboa & Mt. Tabor),
which is good for your memory
(exercise, social activity, being in
nature) and is Melabev's main fundraiser of the year - melabev.org/walkathon
- If you can't join the walkathon you
can sponsor one of our walkers
www.walk4alz.com/sponsor - including me.
Please remember Melabev at this
time of year.
WHILE AT THE SHUL in Glasgow I
tasted raisin biscuits that looked like
strudel but are made with cookie
dough. My hostess, Ruth Levey gave
me this recipe. Everyone was very
nice in Glasgow.
RAISIN STRUDEL
2 eggs
1 cup oil
175g sugar
350g flour
2 tsp baking powder
Favorite Jam
Sultanas
Beat eggs. Gradually add sugar then
oil. Add flour to make a rollable
dough. Knead dough on a floured
board. You may need to add a little
flour to make it stronger. Roll to
approx. 30x23 cm. spread with jam.
Sprinkle with sultanas or mixed dried
fruit, Roll over and seal ends. Glaze
with water and sprinkle with sugar,
transfer to baking tray, bake at
180°C for 25+ min. Enjoy.
Lord & Tailor!
by
Rabbi Ephraim Sprecher
Dean of Students, Diaspora Yeshiva
"And the Lord G-d made for Adam
and his wife garments of skin, and He
clothed them" (B'reishit 3:21). The
Midrash (B'reishit Rabba 20) plays on
the word, OR (skin), spelled AYINVAV-REISH in this verse and the
word OR (light), spelled ALEF-VAVREISH. This Midrash offers a different reading of this verse according to
Rav Meir's Torah Scroll where the
word OR in this verse is written with
an ALEF instead of an AYIN. Thus
the verse now reads, "And the Lord
G-d made for Adam and his wife
GARMENTS OF LIGHT, and He
clothed them."
With regards to the sin of Adam and
Chava, this Midrash teaches that their
challenge was not the need for
physical clothing to cover up their
nakedness. This is because they
already had made for themselves
garments of fig leaves. It was their
souls that were in danger of becoming
spiritually ill, and they needed this
spiritual protection of G-d's Light.
Rav Soloveitchik explains how
appropriate it is that this Midrash was
composed by Rav Meir, for Rav Meir
had two outstanding teachers, Elisha
ben Avuya and Rabbi Akiva. Rav
Meir therefore understood the difference between physical clothing
KOTNOT OR, spelled with an AYIN,
and spiritual clothing, KOTNOT OR,
spelled with an ALEF. Despite being
a great Torah scholar, Elisha b. Avuya
rebelled against the Torah and
betrayed his own people by collaborating with the evil Roman government.
Elisha became the darling of the
so-called "enlightened" non-Jewish
world by vilifying and denouncing his
own people. Unfortunately, the Elisha
b. Avuya Syndrome is very much
alive and well today. Elisha's final
years were lived in affluence and
physical security. Rav Soloveitchik
writes that Elisha died in the comfort
of his own warm bed among his
non-Jewish intellectual colleagues. In
this way he was sheltered in
KOTNOT OR (with an AYIN,
protective physical clothing).
Yet his rebellion and betrayal of his
own people caused him to die without
a legacy of KOTNOT OR (with an
ALEF – without immortality). Elisha's
soul came before G-d spiritually
unclothed. In stark contrast, Rabbi
Akiva's final days were that of a
hunted fugitive. To avoid capture by
Rome, Rabbi Akiva hid every night in
a different location. His body was
without the comfort KOTNOT OR
(warm, physical clothing) and without
any material comfort. After Rabbi
Akiva was captured by Rome, his
painful death did not allow him to die
in comfort. The Roman executioner
raked his skin with iron combs, and he
died in complete physical nakedness.
Yet Rabbi Akiva's essence and soul is
immortal, living on through his Torah
teachings which we are still studying
today. He departed this world with an
extraordinary set of spiritual clothing,
KOTNOT OR, GARMENTS OF
G-D'S ETERNAL LIGHT. This is
Rabbi Akiva's eternal legacy for the
Jewish People.
Outlines of three pears with different
animals in them. Old joke about the worms
coming to Noah's Ark in an apple, but all
the other animals coming in pears (pairs) •
Swan and sheep are marked with x7,
since, as kosher animals, they came in
seven pairs • The fish reminds us that fish
were not taken on the Teiva, but survived
the Mabul, according to Tradition, in a
column of water under the Teiva that did
not have the destructive forces of the rest
of the floodwaters • Triceratops did not
survive the Flood (one explanation) • The
famous dove with olive branch... • the cloud
with rainbow is obvious as is the cloud with
rain • The grapes and wine flask are references to No'ach's post-Flood occupation of
vintner... and the sad episode that followed
his over-tasting of his product • The people
figures represent the proliferation of human
beings after the Flood • The (leaning)
Tower of Babel accompanied by words of
many languages • The words all mean
HELLO • Ear of corn, TIRAS in Hebrew • a
KUSH ball • GOMER Pyle • an OVAL for
one of the sons of YOKTAN ben EIVER •
another son of Yoktan was SH'VA,
represented by the SH'VA in the oval • a
12-inch ruler represents one of the sons of
Cham, PUT, as in U'FOOT • Buttons are
for KAFTORIM, descendant from Cham via
Mitzrayim • package, in Hebrew, CHAVILA
- not spelled the same as the two of
No'ach's descendants, but sound-alikes •
"Falafel" insignia of a major in the IDF. In
Hebrew, RAV SEREN, acronym: RESEN,
the name of one of the cities built by
Nimrod • The letter CHET is for CHEIT, one
of the descendants of No'ach via Cham via
K'naan • CHET is also the first letter of the
word chodesh, making it Rosh Chodesh •
Razor blades - LEHAVIM, descendant of
Mitzrayim • Railroad crossing sign and the
rat go together to make R R rat. Say it just
right, and you get the resting place of the
Teiva • The letter O and the numeral 4.
Read the four in Yiddish and you get OFIR,
a son of YOKTAN • Super Circles (a great
card game for all ages) is rainbow-like •
Lower-right is a BUL (stamp) of a bull. BUL
is another name for Marcheshvan • Poker
hand is a pair of sevens - reverse that to
seven pairs of kosher animals on the Teiva
• Phone number is that of Zohar • Other
stamp has the state bird and flower of
Massachusetts (official 2-letter abbreviation, MA) making it a MA-BUL (Flood - get
it?) And between the bull stamp and the
razor blades is the set-up of a game called
NIM using keys as the 15 playing pieces of
this particular version of NIM, given us
KINIM. This does not mean lice, which is
spelled with a KAF, but in Parshat No'ach
we find KINIM spelled with a KUF and
meaning that the ark was to be built with
compartments.