The Message, Volume 11, Number 7, October 1983 Page: 3 of 6
[6] p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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. . . Rabbi Jack Segal
Tv
TNT—SOS—VIP
TO PARENTS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS
MHM MM
As in the past, we want to maintain contact with our
college students while they are away at school. If you have not
already done so, please complete the special form below and
return to: Rabbi Jack Segal,, P. 0. Box 35067, Houston,
Texas 77035.
We want our college students to be contacted. Please
cooperate with us.
COLLEGE STUDENTS ADDRESS 1981-82
Student’s Name ------------------------------
College----------
Student’s College Address ----------------------
_______________________________Zip___________________
If there is more than one college student in your home,
please attach the information on an additional sheet of paper.
BE CERTAIN TO INCLUDE ZIP CODE NUMBER.
Service, Torah Talk, Bagels & Lox Super Breakfast
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Rabbi Segal’s Torah Talk: “The First Biblical Mitzvah:
To Have Children or Not To Have Children —
and How Many — That is the Question. ”
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
This is the “FAMILY SERVICE”
Bring everyone along:
Grandparents
Parents
Children —
and Yourself
There are no age-limits — 95 years old or 1 month old
Dress is casual
Come and enjoy the service and program
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Present at the October 9th Service — 325
At that time, Dr. & Mrs. Milton
Nirken were preparing for their
double simcha, the Bar & Bat Mitz-
vah of their children, Robin and
Howard. They liked the plaque and
told Sam that they wanted to have
“Noah and The Ark” as the theme
for their simcha. Sam therefore said
that he would make a real replica of
the ark, not merely a plaque, and he
began researching the project. He
spent about 20 hours studying the
dimensions of the ark and searching
for pictures of the ark to guide him in the construction. He then
spent 334 hours actually building it. He began this project on May 5
and concluded it on August 14, 1983. There were 420 hand-made
pieces in the project. It was 7 feet 1.
inches long and 3 feet 8 inches high.
There were electric lights (which
Noah did not have), stalls and pens,
and miniature animals in it. In the
beginning it was merely a project.
Then it became a labor of love. Even-
tually, it was displayed at the Sham-
rock Hotel at the Nirken’s simcha.
Sam is to be commended for this
amazing project. To him, Noah is no
longer merely a character from an
ancient book. He is now part of Sam’s
life and a character who will always be remembered by Sam’s grand-
son Adam. To Sam we all say, “Todah Rabbah, Thanks for bringing
alive an ancient biblical story through your ability of being a master
craftsman.”
Most people merely read the biblical story of
Noah and the ark and go on to the next story, the
story of Abraham. Archaeologists, on the other
hand, spend much time comparing the biblical
story to other ancient accounts of a flood. Different
people have different interests in regard to these
stories.,But a number of months ago Joyce Gar-
finkel told her father Sam Lipp that she had seen a make-it-yourself
plaque of Noah’s ark in a hobby store and she wanted it for her son,
Adam, aged 4, who attends Shabbat services with her every week.
Sam, who also attends Shabbat services every week, said that he
would be happy to make it for his grandson. Sam had been in the
jewelry business and furniture business for many years and as a
youngster he had loved to do woodwork. Woodwork was his hobby,
his avocation. He loved to work with his hands, and, therefore, he
made the plaque for his grandson. However, he was not satisfied with
it. It was too small — so, he made his own plaque. This one was 24
inches long and 30 inches high.
Hi -''
The completed ark (August 14)
The ark as it was being built
(July 19)
Sam Lipp
f
RABBI SEGALS COLUMN:
“NOAH WAS NOT THE ONLY MAN TO BUILD AN ARK” - (Part II)
The story of Noah and the ark is a very famous one. However,
there have been other legends about great deluges that have almost
obliterated man from the face of the earth. Probably the most famous
one, exclusive of the story of Noah and the ark, is the ancient Baby-
lonian story of Utnapishtim and his ark.
These two stories, the biblical and the Babylonian stories, were
studied by archaeologists and the differences and similarities
were noted. For example, the biblical ark was a flat-bottomed
rectangular construction, “the length . . . 300 cubits, the breadth of
it 50 cubits, and the height of it 30 cubits” (Gen. 6:15). The cubit was
probably about 18 inches in length (the distance between the middle
finger to the elbow). Hence, the biblical ark was about 450 feet long,
75 feet wide, and 45 feet high — with a displacement of about 43,300
tons.
Utnapishtim’s vessel, on the other hand, was a cubical construc-
tion, the length, width and height each measuring 120 cubits. The
Babylonian cubit, however, was about 20 inches in length. Hence
the Babylonian ship was larger than Noah’s. It had a displacement
of about 228,500 tons, about 5 times that of Noah’s ark, and had seven
stories and was divided vertically into 9 sections, thus containing
63 compartments.
Noah’s ark, on the other hand, only had 3 stories and consisted of
an unspecified number of compartments (Gen. 6:14). It had a door in
the side (Gen. 6:16) and a window (Gen. 8:6) for light and venti-
lation. (Also see Gen. 6:16)
—
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Congregation Beth Yeshurun (Houston, Tex.). The Message, Volume 11, Number 7, October 1983, periodical, October 21, 1983; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1294159/m1/3/: accessed June 9, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.