Parshas Noach 5781
When Noach emerges from the ark, he is hit with the exact commandment that we would have expected: P’ru u’r’vu, to be fruitful and multiply. With the earth’s population having been completely wiped out in the Flood, it is incumbent upon Noach and his family to ensure the future of humanity by having children, who will then have children in turn.
וַיְבָ֣רֶךְ אֱלֹקים אֶת־נֹ֖חַ וְאֶת־בָּנָ֑יו וַיֹּ֧אמֶר לָהֶ֛ם פְּר֥וּ וּרְב֖וּ וּמִלְא֥וּ אֶת־הָאָֽרֶץ׃
בראשית ט:א
And G-d blessed Noach and his sons and said, ‘Be fruitful and multilply and fill the earth.’
Bereishis 9:1
Obviously, it takes two to tango. Noach’s mission to help repopulate the world will be only as successful as his wife’s interest in this calling. And yet it is here that we confront the great curiosity of this mitzvah. As seen in the pasuk above, the charge to procreate is given to Noach and his sons, but not to any of their wives. This is true not only in the era of Noach, but in halachic terms as well: the obligation of having children as an actual mitzvah devolves exclusively upon men. Why would a responsibility that perforce demands the participation of both genders be presented to men and not women?
The Meshech Chochma offers an insightful explanation. Perhaps, he suggests, women are not commanded in this mitzvah because they more naturally assume the role of mother all on their own. Left to their own devices, women surge towards motherhood in a manner that outstrips the male desire for fatherhood. An actual halachic demand would be superfluous motivation for a woman to have children; hence, no mitzvah is issued.
We tend to look at the Torah and its mitzvos as the one and only source for legitimate holiness. And yet contained in the Meshech Chochma’s comments is the assertion that this should not necessarily be so. Hashem’s voice can indeed be heard in every word contained in the Torah, but, apparently, can also be heard from within ourselves. When Hashem created the human being b’tzelem Elokim, in the image of G-d, he was created with Divine software already installed. To listen closely to the natural tendencies of the human heart is to hear the Divine word.
Naturally, this idea has its limitations. Not every human urge can be presumed to bear Hashem’s imprimatur; not every impulse can be equated with a halachic mandate. Indeed, the Torah provides us with a framework for determining which of our inner voices to listen to and which to silence. Again and again, the Torah demands that we overcome our instincts in the interest of coming closer to Hashem. Self-sanctification before self-indulgence.
Yet it is critical that we recognize how so many of our natural tendencies are naturally aligned with the Torah’s demands. Much like the drive for motherhood, our innate sense of fairness, mercy, and compassion are in complete consonance with the dictates of the Torah. Why is this important to be aware of? For one, it adds a further dimension to the gratitude we owe Hashem. Just as its worth reflecting on the marvels contained within the physical human body and appreciating the gift of sight, digestion, or respiration, we should also develop gratitude to Hashem for the natural Divine impulses He’s endowed us with in our spirit.
A further point is that reflecting on how many of our natural tendencies are morally virtuous should give us a great sense of confidence in our ability to develop a profound and powerful relationship with Hashem. There is a world of difference between viewing a life of Torah and mitzvos as one that demands a virtual overhaul of all that we are as opposed to one that simply augments our natural state, ensuring that we need only amplify those already holy tendencies that have always existed within us.
One final point that I think is worthy of our consideration is less about our relationship with Hashem and more about our relationship with the world. And by that I mean the world beyond the Jewish People. That Klal Yisrael enjoys a closer, warmer, and deeper relationship with G-d than any other nation is axiomatic. And yet if we look out onto the world and see a mass of people bereft of any holiness because of the absence of the Torah, we are making a grave mistake. The tzelem Elokim imprinted upon every human being means that many of the drives and impulses that animate each of them are reflective of Hashem and stem from a holy source. Yes, the Torah keeps those impulses in check, erects effective guardrails, and ensures that we are kept from falling prey to negative tendencies. But even without the Torah, the human being is capable of no small measure of holiness and Divine reflection. When the homeless are sheltered, the underprivileged are cared for, when decent people devote themselves to their family members, their neighbors, or fellow citizens, we are seeing the Divine light flicker within the human spirit. Let’s remember to appreciate it as nothing less.