The Torah doesn’t tarry ... second parsha (portion) of the year and we jump right into what I think is the most recall-able Biblical “story” – the story of Noach (Noah) and the teiva (the ark). Run up to anyone on the street and ask them how many days it rained on Noah’s Ark. Ask them what kind of olive-branch-carrying bird is important in the story, or what multicolored weather phenomenon has a starring moment at the end. I think a lot of people could answer all those questions! Noah’s Ark might just be the most accurately recalled event in regard to Torah / Bible readers.
When we first meet Noach in this parsha, he is introduced as a righteous man, perfect within his generation -- נֹ֗חַ אִ֥ישׁ צַדִּ֛יק תָּמִ֥ים הָיָ֖ה בְּדֹֽרֹתָ֑יו, and we are told that Noach walked with G-d ~ אֶת־הָֽאֱלֹהִ֖ים הִתְהַלֶּךְ־נֹֽחַ. What is an Ish Tzadik (אִ֥ישׁ צַדִּ֛יק, righteous man)? And also, why add the qualifier "in his generation ~ בְּדֹֽרֹתָ֑יו"?
Just like a parent loves their children without end, a righteous person loves good deeds without end. A parent doesn't love their children out of duty, they love them, because they love them. And like a parent doesn’t dismiss an unremarkable child as unimportant, a righteous person doesn’t dismiss a small mitzvah (commandment / deed) as insignificant. Rav Moshe Feinstein (20th century rabbi known as the Gadol HaDor, the greatest in his generation) taught that a person should work hard to perfect their deeds, just as they spare no effort to help their children.
And why was the qualifier "in his generation ~ בְּדֹֽרֹתָ֑יו" added to Noach's descriptor? Famously there are different interpretations. The first interpretation is that the people in the time of Noach were so awful that for him to still be righteous was a great feat. Another is that he was only good in comparison to those same awful people. Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, essential 12th century Torah commentator) taught that if Noach were to exist in the generation of Avraham (Abraham), he would be insignificant. On Rashi's train of thought, I have to ask a question -- why did no one else join Noach and his family? Noach builds his Ark, but isn't able to bring anyone to make teshuva, or to repent. He's building this Costco warehouse-sized boat over 120 years, and we have to assume that none of his neighbors ever stopped and asked him what he was doing? And if someone did stop and ask Noach why he was building this huge boat, did Noach not explain that the world had deteriorated so terribly that G-d was planning to destroy it? I don't know that anyone of Noach's time would necessarily even believe that explanation. But if we think of Noach in this not-so-perfect way, we see that he's a great example of a perfectly good man who is just not a leader. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks has put Noach in context -- Adam and Chava (Eve) failed the test of personal responsibility, Cain failed the test of moral responsibility ("Am I my brother's keeper? ~ הֲשֹׁמֵ֥ר אָחִ֖י אָנֹֽכִי?"), and Noach fails the test of collective responsibility.
Chasidic thought teaches that Noach was a "tzaddik im/in peltz" -- a righteous man in a fur coat. Meaning, there are 2 ways to be warm: wear a coat or make a fire. Which one do you think Noach was picking by getting on the teiva, the ark with just his family? It's nice and well to be snug and warm in your own goodness, but a fire can be enjoyed by everyone around you. Think about this -- which choice do you make in your own life? Is collective responsibility something you value?
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Music: reCreation by airtone (c) copyright 2019 Licensed
