This week, we focus on episode 2: The portion of Noah. When Noah's name is 1st mentioned in the Torah, he is described as "a righteous man, perfect in his generations..." As Rashi explains: 'Once a righteous man is mentioned, we speak of his good.'
It's strange, then, that when the great Avraham, the forefather of Judaism & monotheism, is 1st introduced to us in next week's portion, there is NO mention at all of any of his great attributes or prior achievements! All we know of him is that, at the age of 75, G-d tells him: "Go... to the land which I will show you." Unlike Noah, we hear nothing of Avraham's righteousness!
Now let's put this into some perspective: From the age of 3, Avraham had come to recognize that there was 1 G-d.
The Midrash describes the numerous trials & tribulations Avraham went through, trying to share his belief in 1 G-d to his pagan, idol worshipping neighbors. Like the time the King of his land, Nimrod, through him into a furnace for his beliefs and he was miraculously saved. Avraham was the ultimate rebel, rebelling against the world around him, against society, starting a new movement in the face of society. By the time G-d tells Avraham to go to Israel at 75, he & his wife Sarah had already brought 10's of thousands of people into the belief of one G-d, through their great love and devotion. They were the embodiment of kindness and self sacrifice for all things good and holy. So why do we hear nothing of this when Avraham's 1st chosen by G-d?
The Maharal of Prague asks this question, and his answer is an incredibly deep and powerful one: By Noah, the Torah mentions his greatness, his righteousness. By Avraham & Sarah, the Torah doesn't focus on their past deeds or greatness. Why? Because G-d is telling us, that ultimately He is choosing Avraham & Sarah (and their future descendants) as His people, for no reason at all. It's higher than reason. Beyond good deeds; beyond self sacrifice. A love that isn't dependent on a certain attribute or character trait. A human can only go so far with what he or she does. Here, G-d was Choosing, and that's something infinite.
It's interesting to note, that in the times of the Maharal (16th-century Europe), Christianity and its principles were dominant. What was the core idea of that religion? That G-d had abrogated his covenant with the Jewish people because of their sins, and had made a "new covenant" - a "new testament" which was to be followed. The absurdity of this claim can of course be explained at length, but suffice it to point to one verse in Vayikra (Leviticus), Chapter 26, verse 44: "But despite all this, while they will be in the land of their enemies, I will not have been revolted by them nor will I have rejected them to obliterate them, to annul my covenant with them - for I am Hashem, their G-d." It's convenient for them to ignore verses like these rampant throughout Tanach.
The Maharal may have been touching on this idea with his explanation here, that ultimately the Jewish People are connected to G-d in a bond that transcends reason, transcends how good we are or bad we are at a certain time. That's why the Torah didn't focus on Avraham's amazing deeds, for while they are vital to perfecting this world and serving G-d, which we all must do, ultimately G-d Chooses to bind Himself to us for reasons onto Him - beyond anything we could ever do.
May we always remember our close and eternal bond with Hashem, and on our parts rebel against society when it demands us to act in opposition to G-d, and live as proud Jews.
Shabbat Shalom!
-Daniel
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