Thursday, October 27, 2022

Noah: The Good, the Bad, and the Perfect Marriage

by Rav Netanel Yosifun, translated by Hillel Fendel

Groom placing ring on bride's finger (Credit: Saeed Sarshar/Unsplash)

Once upon a time, a man came to see a marriage counselor, and began to complain: "My wife is too passive and quiet. I do all the cooking and cleaning, and she barely helps out. And I even have to do all the talking – if I don't start a conversation, you'd be able to hear a pin drop in our house. I always have to initiate and start discussions. I can't go on this way!" 

Noah: Preparing the Way for the Land of Israel

by Rav Yosef Carmel, translated by Hillel Fendel

Noah's ark

This week's Torah portion of Noah takes us up to (and past) the birth of Avraham Avinu, in the year 1948 after Creation – and nary a word seems to be mentioned about the Land of Israel throughout these almost two millennia! 

Is this not very strange, considering that the Foundation Stone – Even HaShtiyah – from where the world was actually created, is located in the Land, on what later became the Temple Mount? The longed-for Garden of Eden, too, is located in our Holy Land. How could the Land play such a minor role in the first 2,000 years of human history?