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Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bereshit
- Noach
Noach’s level of righteousness and holiness also seems to slip in the aftermath of the flood. The rabbis allow him to question the judgment of Heaven that inflicted such a tragedy upon so many souls. He somehow forfeits his titles of being righteous, innocent and holy that accompanied him before the deluge. I feel that it is not his faith in God that is shaken as much as his faith in himself. Why was he spared? What does God want him to do now in the newly emerging and troubled world? He was powerless to prevent the first flood so what can he now do to prevent a second debacle from engulfing humankind? Noach feels himself to be an archaic remnant of a past civilization and completely without influence in the new world arising before his eyes. To a certain extent therefore, he gives up on shaping the new world, letting the baser instincts of human beings again drag down human society. He does not exploit his status as the lone survivor of the flood, the person who knows better than anyone else what society needs. That is what the rabbis meant when they criticized Noach for planting a vineyard as his first project after the flood. He should have created a school of learning and taught a generation the path of holiness and divine inspiration. It is this failure of will and initiative, of misplaced priorities and of unwarranted pessimism that is held against him. He could have been the bridge between the old world and the new. Instead he ended up not being the force for good in either of the worlds. It will remain for Avraham to fill that role ten generations later.
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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The Land of Israel LGBT'S IN ISRAEL
The question was asked, how can one make Aliyah with the LGBT parades?
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 7 - Five Accumulative Proofs of G-d
As a preparation for the Kuzari's classic proof of G-d from the mass-revelation at Sinai, we start here with 5 other directions to strengthen our belief which also contribute to what the Kuzari will present as well.
Ein Aya Muscle & Meaning: The Dual Nature of Gevurah (Physical Strength)
Is physical strength and fitness a necessity or an ideal? Although it if often totally overlooked among topics of Judaism, Rav Kook writes that it clearly is also a necessity to deter the many enemies of Israel, but even in Y'mot HaMashiach, in the Messianic era, to a certain extent, it's ideal continues even after our enemies will have been finished off.
Chukat "HOW ENTEBBE STOLE THE BICENTENNIAL
The Difference Between Historic & Eternal"
As we approach America's 250th birthday, it's worth remembering her 200th Bicentennial birthday, on Jul. 4th 1976, when Israel "stole the show" by shocking the world & miraculously saving 101 hostages in a foreign continent. As Pres. As Pres. Trump decides which countries get priority in his new Middle-East, it's worth reminding him of the difference between historic events and eternally historic ones. This obviously connects with this week's parsha, as well!
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 6 - The Parable of the King of India
The advantages of testimony over circumstantial evidence or philosophical speculation.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 5- "Proofs of G-d"
This may be the most important class of the entire book, where we finally get to the Jewish proof of the existence of G-d and truth of the Torah. We should follow His own direction where He tells us how to get to Him: through the Nation of Israel: Jewish history, Jewish prophets (and today, prophecies fulfilled), and national reward & punishment towards Am Yisrael.
Ein Aya One Humanity, One Creator, One Jerusalem
Rav Kook innovatively and beautifully explains this aggadeta where our sages say that after Jerusalem was destroyed her cinnamon fragrance is only found locked in a particular kingdom's treasury.
