Weekly Dvar Torah: Enter the Ark, Exit the Ark

When the floodwaters started rising, G-d commands Noah to enter the Ark.

Obviously the purpose of the Ark was to save Noah from the flood, it would be a given that he should enter the Ark once the rain started and the waters started rising, so why did G-d have to command Noah to enter the Ark?

Says the Baal Shem Tov; the floodwaters of Noah are the day-to-day raging waters of the rough and tumble of life, we become overwhelmed by the struggles of earning a living, raising our children, paying the bills, and more.

How can we survive?

For this G-d says; make an Ark, in Hebrew the word for Ark is תיבה = Teiva, this word also has the meaning of “words”, Teiva = Word, G-d advises us to enter the words of Torah and Prayer, this way when we get close to G-d by engaging the holy words of Torah and Prayer, we will be protected against the threatening floodwaters which may drown us.

Sounds good, let’s delve into the holy words and we won’t have to worry about drowning in the flood.

Further on, G-d commands Noah to exit the Ark.

Dear G-d, I entered the Ark per your command in order to stay protected against the raging waters of the daily struggles, I’m safe now, why should I exit the Ark?

I feel safe in the Ark!

Here comes another meaning to the word תיבה, Teiva = Box.

G-d says, it’s time to get out of the box.

True, in order not to drown in the raging waters, I told you to enter the Ark, the words of Torah and prayer, I took you under My cover, I closed you in My box of holiness, of Torah, of prayer, I hid you in My box so you don’t drown in the flood.

But now that you know the ropes, now that you learned how to survive, now it’s time to get out of the box.

I need you to help make the world a better place, I need you to go out there and to delve into the day-to-day struggles of life, I need you to step up to the challenges of life and turn them into opportunities.

For 30 days during Tishrei, you experienced one holy-day after another, you became satiated with holiness, you felt close to G-d on every level, now it’s time to return to the world.

The purpose of creation was not to be removed from the world, this is good for spiritual angels, but you human beings, you were put in a world which seemingly is detached from Me, G-d, and I need you to take all this holy fuel of G-dliness that you absorbed during Tishrei, and inject it into the mundane world.

Make me a dwelling in your day-to-day life.

So, as we enter the blah days of Cheshvan, G-d gives us the prescription of how to stay protected in this world, but not isolated from the world.

This is the ultimate purpose of all the goodies I gave you during the holy-days, these were tools given to you to do the ultimate, to build My home in the world of the flood.

Think out of the box, don’t stay locked in the Ark.

This is even greater than spending time in Shul over the holidays, this is the highest calling.

Have a high-flying Shabbos,
Gut Shabbos

Rabbi Yosef Katzman