Reply To: Short & Sweet

Noach: Building Upward

Noach was the first person to make a מזבח. But what is the point of a מזבח? Why can’t a Korban be brought on bare ground?

R’ Shamshon Rafael Hirsh has a fascinating explanation. Some people think that God can only be found in nature, and that they must retreat from society to connect to the divine.

But that is not what we believe. We believe that the best way to connect to Hashem is by building a society that reflects His will, by incorporating the divine into every aspect of our lives.

That idea, explains R’ Hirsh, is symbolized by a מזבח. A מזבח must be attached to the ground, but we need to make it by putting stones together. This represents using human activity to elevate the earth towards the divine.

After the world was destroyed in the Mabul, Noach built the first מזבח. This was an attempt to rededicate the world to its original mission – to be a place where people are constantly striving to build higher, to create an elevated society that connects us to our Creator.

לע״נ דוד חיים בן ישראל דוב הכהן
לע״נ ר׳ חיים דוב בן ר׳ בןציון שלום