Most of us are very familiar with this week’s Torah portion from our childhood: the story of Noah and the ark. God was so distressed by the evil, lack of civility, lawlessness and corruption that the only way to eradicate it was total destruction of the world. An extreme measure to be sure. As Noah, his family, and all the animals descend from the ark, God sends a rainbow as a sign of a covenant of peace: brit shalom. With this covenant, God promises that never again will the world be destroyed.
A beautiful promise. Yet, we humans seem intent on doing what we can to break that notion of shalom at times. The great lack of civility in our public discourse, unmitigated hatred, violence, injustice, war, sorrow…where is that elusive brit shalom? For some, it feels like we are now living in particularly dark and dire circumstances, like Noah before the flood.
If we look closely at the beginning of the Noah story, the Torah text gives us a glimpse of how we have the possibility to bring light into our lives, no matter what is going on around us, to help create that beautiful rainbow, that brit shalom. When God instructs Noah on how to build the ark, one of the often over-looked detailed instructions is: “Make a tzohar for the ark and finish it within a cubit of the top.” (Genesis 6:16) What exactly is a “tzohar” since this is the only place in the entire Torah that this word appears?
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, z”l (former Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom), wrote a beautiful commentary about this concept of “light in the ark.”(Covenant and Conversation, The Light in the Ark, Parshat Noach, 5780). He shares that rabbinic commentators suggest that this “tzohar” was a window or a skylight: something that lets light in from the outside. Other commentators say it was a precious stone, that produces “radiant light,” designed to bring inner light to lighten the darkness within the depths of the ark. Rabbi Sacks says he believes “that the challenge for our time is to open a series of windows so that the world can illuminate our understanding of Torah, and so that Torah may guide us as we seek to make our way through the world.”
There is another way to view this notion of “tzohar” that resonates for me: sometimes we are actually surrounded by metaphorical light that seems to stream down upon us as if from a skylight or window, shining on all that is good and beautiful in our world. We just need to open our eyes, hearts, and minds to notice the rays. Other times, when the darkness feels so heavy, each of us can be that “tzohar” – that radiance – that brings light, goodness, and hope to our world. Either way, both of these outer and inner forms of “tzohar,” will bestow upon us that light, goodness, and hope to enable us to create a beautiful brit shalom – covenant of peace. We pray that our brit shalom will not be illusory, or shimmer brightly and then fade from view, but will shine like a beacon for all who live on our beautiful planet.
Friday, November 1 Erev Shabbat Services 5:15pm Pre-neg 6:00pm Erev Shabbat Family Service & Blessing the Animals Rabbi Sobel, Cantorial Soloist Arielle Khalili, and accompanist Nancy Rosen welcome the whole family to this Shabbat celebration. We will be celebrating November anniversaries and birthdays and our pets too for a special blessing.
Tonight's Pre-neg is sponsored by Temple Beth Sholom
