Parasha Thoughts |
By: Rabbi Chaim Saeeidian “These are the offspring of Noach.” ( Bereshit 6:9) As the first verse in this week’s Parasha begins with recounting Noach’s offspring, we come across Rashi’s famous comment that the main offspring of the righteous are their good deeds. Let us understand the depth of Rashi’s words and see what connection is there between offspring and good deeds. For that we shall turn to HaRav Moshe Feinstein ZT”L and his commentary on the subject. Perhaps the Torah means to teach us that one should perform good deeds with the same love a father has for his children, a love which causes him to desire to help them not just because he is compelled to do so. Alternatively, just as a father loves his children even when they don’t live up to his expectations, so too a person should love the good deeds he has done, and not regret that he didn’t do deeds of greater significance. Furthermore, one should examine every good deed he performs for imperfections that need improvement, just as a father will do with his children’s failings that require correction. This applies not only to deeds of great importance, but also to ordinary actions, for one must be careful with a minor Mitzvah as with a major one. Still another similarity is that just as a father toils to ensure that his children lack nothing they need to become better and wiser, so should one toil over his deeds to improve them and perform them in the best possible fashion. Shabbat Shalom |
