Parshas Noach tells the well-known story
of when Hashem brought a flood and destroyed the world except for a tzaddik
named Noach, and his family. The reason given in the Torah for the Flood is
that humans had destroyed society, and had gone so far away from how the world
was supposed to function, that Hashem had no choice but to ‘start over.’ After
the Flood ended, Hashem made a few structural changes to how man related to the
world in order that future generations would not reach the same levels of degradation
that the generation of the Flood had reached.
One of these changes is something that
makes a very big difference in our lives, that we may not realize was not
allowed until this point in history. “כָּל רֶמֶשׂ אֲשֶׁר הוּא חַי לָכֶם יִהְיֶה לְאָכְלָה כְּיֶרֶק
עֵשֶׂב “נָתַתִּי לָכֶם אֶת כֹּל “Every moving
thing that lives shall be yours to eat; like the green vegetation, I have given
you everything” (Bereishis 9:3). With this statement, Hashem gave man permission
to eat meat. For ten generations since Adam, all men had been vegetarians, not
by choice, but by the command of Hashem. After the Flood, this was changed.
The Ohr HaChaim asks why Hashem waited
until now to permit the eating of meat, and did not permit it immediately by
Adam and the creation of the world. He explains that the permission to eat meat
gives humans a certain governance over animals; Noach was given this governance
for three reasons. The first reason is that without Noach, Hashem would have
destroyed the entire world, including the animals that came with him on
the ark. So, in essence, these animals, and their descendants, owed Noach their
lives. Therefore, Hashem gave him authority over them. The second reason is
that when Noach came off the ark, he immediately brought korbanos (from the
animals) to Hashem. It was because of these korbanos that Hashem promised to
never again destroy the world. (See 8:21.) Since Noach was responsible for
insuring the survival of the world, Hashem gave him permission to satisfy
himself from even animals. The final reason is because of all the hard work and
effort Noach put into taking care of the thousands of animals he brought onto
the ark with him. As a reward, Hashem gave him this extra authority over them.
None of these reasons applied to anyone at
any time before the Flood. Only now, after Noach did all these things in order
to sustain the animals, was man given this ‘supreme’ authority over them, and
was granted permission to eat meat. Enjoy your seudah this Shabbos! להתענג בתענוגים ברבורים ושלו ודגים!!
Shabbat
Shalom!
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