Parasha Thoughts
By Rabbi Yosef Shemtov
In this week’s portion we read about Noah who was very righteous and was saved along with his family from the devastating flood that destroyed the all earth and its inhabitants. The Midrash says for the duration of a year Noah and his family were on the boat with many different types of animals. They were literally like waiters and waitresses serving food to the animals. Noah wasn’t on a vacation cruise. Rather, he was working hard to feed the animals round the clock.
An obvious question that arises is why did God decide that Noah should have a hard time? Why couldn’t Noah be placed on an island for a year to enjoy himself? The answer is that God was teaching Noah kindness. Noah was very self centered. Not only did he not try to teach people how to be better people, he also didn’t pray for them. Hashem said to Noah that it is necessary to care about others. Noach had to learn this lesson the hard way by serving animals for one year.
Shabbat Shalom