Mindful Torah...and more

Today’s Torah portion is Noah (Genesis/Bereshit 6:9 - 11:32). Though it begins with the story of Noah, the ark, and the flood, it also contains within it the story of the Tower of Babel.  In the middle of the Noah narrative, after the flood has subsided and Noah, his family, and the animals begin to repopulate the earth, one of the first things Noah does is to plant a vineyard. He then makes wine (we won’t discuss the time lapse) and passes out drunk. While lying naked in his tent when one of his sons, Ham, enters the tent and sees him. He runs out to tell his brothers Shem and Yaphet what he has seen. They then go into the tent and cover up their father.  When Noah awakens and hears what Ham has done, he curses him saying, “ Cursed be Canaan, son of Ham, a slave of slaves shall he be to his brothers.  Blessed be God, the God of Shem and may God extend Yaphet to live in Shem’s tents.  And to them both, Canaan shall be a slave.” This short passage was one of the roots...

I first wrote this commentary/d'var torah three years ago.   However, given the current political situation in our country (and elsewhere) where so many seem enslaved to their own ego or ideology, I felt it was still quite appropriate.  Hopefully, the day will come when it will not. Shabbat Shalom, Steve Nathan ________________________________________________________________________________ Parshat Shemot: The Journey Into Slavery Begins This week's parashah is Shemot (Exodus/ Shemot 1:1 – 6:1). The saga of slavery and redemption that we remember each year at the time of Passover, as well as now during the Torah reading cycle, begins with this parashah. The narrative opens by reminding us of the names ( shemot ) of the sons of Jacob/Israel. Then we read that the Israelites multiplied greatly in Egypt. In fact, the Torah tells us that they "swarmed and multiplied and increased very greatly, so that the land was filled with them (1:7)....